McLaren F1 boss slams ‘not well-executed’ Euro 2020 final after Norris mugging

McLaren Formula 1 CEO Zak Brown has criticised the Euro 2020 final at Wembley for being “not well-executed” after Lando Norris was mugged.

Lewis Larkam

14 Jul 2021

Lando Norris (GBR) McLaren in the post race FIA Press Conference.
© FIA Pool Image for Editorial Use

The 21-year-old had his team-issued watch worth £40,000 stolen when he was attacked by two men as he returned to his McLaren GT sportscar in an official Wembley car park.

A statement from McLaren said Norris was “unharmed but understandably shaken” by the incident which occurred after England lost in a tense penalty shootout to Italy after the match finished 1-1 after extra time.

The Euro 2020 final was overshadowed by violent scenes before and after the match on Sunday night, with a number of ticketless fans breaking into Wembley Stadium.

The Metropolitan Police said as many as 53 arrests were made at Wembley amid the disorder, while nineteen police officers were injured.

Brown told Sky Sports that he had spoken to Norris “about it a lot” and shared his own experiences of being mugged when he was younger.

"I've been mugged three times actually, in Los Angeles when I was younger, so I shared my story [with Lando],” Brown said.

“It's easy to feel responsible when you're the victim, if that makes sense, you've got a nice watch on. The reality is he did everything he was supposed to do.

"Got some bad people in the world. That was not a well-executed event - I went, and that just wasn't acceptable behaviour.

"So that's going to need to be fixed because you shouldn't ever feel in danger going to a big sporting event, you'd never see that in Formula 1.

"But he's OK. A bit traumatised as you'd expect, he's explained it to me, it wasn't a very nice experience, but he's healthy and he'll be fine.”

Norris posted a message to well-wishers on Instagram, saying: "Thanks for all the messages everyone.

“Thought I'd let you know that I'm doing well and trying to make sure I'm ready and in the right zone for this weekend to perform at my best.

"Love you all and can't wait to see so many of you back at the track this weekend.”

Norris sits fourth in the championship and is the only driver to have scored points at each of the nine races so far this season heading into this weekend's British Grand Prix at Silverstone.