Donald Trump has been on a track day

Track day cars are normally high-revving, stripped out and on slicks. Not Donald Trump’s.  At yesterday’s Daytona 500, he took ‘Cadillac One’ - a GMC Topkick-based armoured car that’s fitted with highly classified defence tech and better known as ‘The Beast’ – for a lap of the track to kick off NASCAR’s iconic race.

Weighing somewhere between 6,800 to 9,000kg and equipped with night vision optics, a tear gas cannon, onboard oxygen tanks, an armoured fuel tank, pump-action shotguns and multi-spectrum infrared smoke grenades, it’s not your typical track hound. But check out that sidewall! That’s halfway to a motorsport tyre.

"There is no greater thrill than to join you at the world centre of racing for the 62nd Daytona 500 - so exciting," President Trump said to the sell-out crowd.

"To all of the drivers, technicians and pit crews here today, good luck and may the best team win. God bless you, God bless our military, God bless our veterans and God bless America. Have a great race."

Trump was the second-ever president to deliver the Great American Race's iconic command, "Gentlemen, start your engines!" but the first of any president to take a lap in the armoured presidential limo, natch.  But the 45th President of the United States could be onto something here; hands up if you want to see a one-make race series of presidential limos?