Elements of Formula 1 social media have been deeply excited at the start of the Singapore Grand Prix weekend, as a very familiar face cropped up in the paddock. To answer the all-caps question posed by the X account ‘comfort lando’ (WAIT. IS THIS THE SAME MAN, RIGHT?), yes, the chap pictured next to Lando Norris is indeed the man from 2011’s favourite stock photo, also known as ‘Hide the Pain Harold’.
His real name is András István Arató, a Hungarian electrical engineer who took up a side hustle modelling, appearing in hundreds of stock photos including the famed shot in which he’s smiling but has a pained look in his eyes. It’s somewhat like the expression we imagine Lando Norris making after dropping out in Q1 at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix last weekend.
After years of seeing his image spread everywhere, András decided to capitalise on his unlikely fame in 2017, launching his own Facebook fan page and eventually appearing in various advertising campaigns. Earlier this year, he starred in one for Dutch chocolate milk brand Chocomel.
He was in the Singapore Grand Prix paddock on Thursday night as a guest of Hungarian F1 journalist Sándor Mészáros. On Instagram, András referred to the trip as a “magical farewell night” in Singapore. “Mészáros Sándor is Hungary’s most characteristic autosport journalist, he arranged an exclusive tour of the paddock for us in the racing circus that serves as his second home.”
Meeting ‘Harold’ might well have geed up Norris ahead of the next day’s free practice sessions, as he finished FP1 in second behind Charles Leclerc, switching places with the Scuderia Ferrari driver to finish FP2 in first. His championship rival Max Verstappen finished the sessions fourth and 15th respectively.
With the gap between Norris and Verstappen down to 59 points with seven rounds remaining, and Red Bull’s pace waning in recent GPs, it’ll be an exciting final chapter of the season even if we don’t have subsequent appearances of Internet meme celebs. That said, we wouldn’t say no to an appearance of the Distracted Boyfriend in the paddock at some point in the next few months.
