McLaren defend Donald Trump's Miami Grand Prix visit despite fan backlash

McLaren F1 have issued a statement in response to the backlash they faced for allowing Donald Trump to visit their garage during the Miami GP.

The former US President, who resides in Florida, was among the high-profile individuals seen in the paddock before Sunday's race and received VIP treatment from McLaren with a tour of their team garage. Trump was observed examining Lando Norris' car and engaging with team members. He also took the opportunity to snap photos with McLaren CEO Zak Brown in the pit lane. A video captured him deeply engrossed in conversation with notables such as Brown, FIA president Mohammed ben Sulayem, Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali, and Greg Maffei, the president of F1's commercial rights holders Liberty Media.

The decision by McLaren to invite Trump into their garage has sparked considerable disapproval from fans on social media. One fan expressed dismay, commenting: "It's not like Trump bought tickets to go to the GP. He was INVITED by a MAJOR team. Absolutely shameful by the whole McLaren organization."

Another fan voiced frustration over the apparent double standards, saying: "So Trump is allowed to gee up a crowd and start political advertisements at a Grand Prix. Yet, when Vettel or Hamilton said/say something, they're told to shut it. Nice one, F1... What an embarrassing OG for McLaren.", reports the Mirror.

Not everyone was upset to see him there, though, including some of the local fans in the grandstands. Some videos from the pit lane showed Trump leading chants of "USA, USA," with many in the crowd joining in.

But the level of criticism received by McLaren prompted the team to issue a statement explaining why the former president had been in their garage. The statement read: "McLaren is a non-political organisation however we recognise and respect the office of President of the United States.

"So when the request was made to visit our garage on race day we accepted alongside the president of the FIA and the CEO's of Liberty Media and Formula 1. We were honoured that McLaren Racing was chosen as the representative of F1 which gave us the opportunity to showcase the world class engineering that we bring to motorsport."