Formula 1 star Lando Norris made a surprise stop in the San Francisco Bay Area Monday, delighting fans by signing autographs at the Google campus.
Norris, a 23-year-old driver for McLaren, stopped by Google headquarters in Mountain View for a quick chat and meet-and-greet session. McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown accompanied him, and their appearance was something of a business synergy move: Google is one of McLaren’s main sponsors. Videos posted to social media show Norris and Brown mingling with employees and signing autographs at the Googleplex. One person handed Norris an iPhone to sign, prompting the driver to pause and give a cheeky grin; Google, of course, makes Android devices, an Apple competitor.
Since last year, Android and Chrome branding has appeared on the McLaren cars. During this year’s British Grand Prix, McLaren even debuted a chrome-colored livery, a mashup of Google Chrome branding and an homage to the team’s shiny 2006-2014 cars. Norris had a custom helmet made especially for the race with a matching silver metallic color scheme and the Chrome logo on the top.
It was a short stop in California for Norris and Brown before hitting the road again. They’re headed to Austin, Texas, for this weekend’s U.S. Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas. But McLaren fans have to wait only about a month for a chance to see the team in action: Norris, Brown, Pato O’Ward, Alexander Rossi and Tony Kanaan are scheduled to appear at the Velocity Invitational at Sonoma Raceway on Nov. 10-12
