As part of a multi-year partnership between Formula 1 and Lego, the top three drivers at this past weekend’s British Grand Prix at Silverstone were given brick-built trophies to raise above their heads on the podium. Race winner Lando Norris received a gold-adorned Lego trophy comprised of 2,717 bricks that was inspired by the historic Royal Automobile Club (RAC) trophy, while second-place finisher Oscar Piastri and third-place finisher Nico Hülkenberg were given smaller white Lego trophies with red and blue detailing. The constructor’s trophy won by McLaren is the same size as the first-place finisher’s gold trophy, but is made of mostly dark blue bricks with gold accents.
This year’s race marked the 75th anniversary of the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, and while McLaren finishing 1-2 was a foregone conclusion for much of the afternoon, the battle for third place saw Hülkenberg hold off Britain’s hometown hero, Lewis Hamilton. It was Hülkenberg’s first podium of his 15-year career, ending a record-long wait in career starts for a driver before capturing a top-three finish.
Controversy Over Lego Trophies
There was some controversy after the race’s conclusion surrounding the Lego trophies, particularly in regard to Hülkenberg’s first-ever podium finish. While both Norris and Piastri have experienced multiple podium finishes and therefore have a number of fancy trophies in their collection, Hülkenberg’s first trophy after driving in 239 races is made of plastic bricks that little kids use at playtime.
Oscar Piastri, perhaps trying to get a rise out of Hülkenberg, asked him how it felt to get a prize, “that you can pull apart and probably buy next week.” Ouch. Hülkenberg, ever the cool customer, replied, “It’s good. My daughter can play with it too. You’ve always got to see the bright side… A bit of silver or gold would have been nice too, but I won’t complain.”
Indeed, Hülkenberg had an amazing race that was plagued with on-and-off rain. Starting from 19th on the grid, the 37-year-old German driver and his team executed a flawless strategy to gain 16 spots despite the Sauber car’s obvious lack of competitiveness. The toughest challenge was overtaking Lance Stroll for third near the end of the race and then holding off seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton, who has won the British Grand Prix, his home race, nine times.
TopSpeed’s Take
Formula 1 and Lego have gotten a lot of mileage out of their relatively new partnership. Before the British Grand Prix’s Lego trophies, there was the spectacle at the Miami Grand Prix, where each team’s drivers piloted a full-size Lego version of their F1 car around the track in lieu of a driver’s parade. The slow-moving procession hilariously devolved into a demolition derby when many of the drivers began bumping into their colleagues.
We love this sort of marketing, and leave it to Lego to be so creative with these F1 activations. Both have garnered a ton of attention for each company, whose partnership appears to be a perfect match. Of course, fans can also purchase a Lego Speed Champions set of every car on the grid this season, as well as numerous other sets that include a safety car, a transporter, a pit crew, and a team garage. There’s no word yet, though, on whether the Lego F1 trophies will become an official set.
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