Tom Cruise fist bumps Lewis Hamilton for F1 race; hugs him for winning after horror crash

Hollywood actor Tom Cruise on Sunday was spotted fist-bumping car racer, Lewis Hamilton, on the grid ahead of the F1 British Grand Prix at Silverstone. After Hamilton’s ‘Mission Impossible’ win for the 99th Grand Prix title following the horror crash of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, the guest of Mercedes, Cruise embraced the 36-year-old F1 British racer in all good spirits. Hamilton’s rival known for his aggression on track was knocked off a steep curve in the first lap, he, however, was able to walk himself to the ambulance and has been hospitalized since. 

Tom Cruise was spotted in a black facemask and jacket with a white T-shirt. He showed up for a quick chat with Hamilton, who in his Mercedes branded cap and his racing gear, was seen smiling and responding to the actor. The Top Gun star also waved at his fans as he walked to the spectator’s area. He was seen cheering for Hamilton during the race as he donned a pair of aviators.

The actor had reportedly turned up to congratulate Lewis Hamilton and also briefly spoke with Stefano Domenicali, the CEO of the Formula One Group ahead of the race. Hamilton won after contesting the 10-second penalty for a crash during the controversial lap, then overtaking Ferrari's Charles Leclerc towards the dramatic victory.

[Credit: AP]

“I tried to give him [Max Verstappen] the space but I was quite a long way up the inside into 9 and none of us backed out and that was the end result,” Hamilton told F1 reporters after securing the title.

A number of  commentators weighing in on the incident, with Christian Horner saying: “I have reviewed the footage many times and still cannot help but feel that putting a wheel up the inside at Copse, one of the fastest corners in this World Championship, was ill-judged and a huge risk by Lewis to both drivers."

"He was not significantly alongside Max as you can see from the point of contact, Lewis’ front left to Max’s right rear. The move was never on and resulted in a 51G impact for Max.”

Top Gun: Maverick promotions to begin soon

Cruise has lately been spotted in all major sporting events including Euro2020, women’s and men’s tennis finals at Wimbledon on July 10 and 11 where Ash Barty and Novak Djokovic were the champions. He had been shooting for Mission Impossible MI:7 across the UK amid the pandemic for the franchise’s seventh edition. In the movie, Cruise will star as Ethan Hunt. He will also shortly be on the promotional duties by the paramount studio for Top Gun: Maverick ahead of that film’s planned release on July 2. MI:7 director Christopher McQuarrie had earlier posted on Instagram, that the team had wrapped a successful shoot in the Middle East and was headed back to London for the “finishing touches” to the movie.