Emerson Fittipaldi has explained the reasons behind his infamous celebration after he won the Indianapolis 500 in 1993.
The Brazilian is a legendary figure in motorsport, winning two Formula 1 world titles in 1792 and 1974 with Lotus and McLaren respectively and achieving 14 wins and 21 podiums.
Outside of his success in F1, Fittipaldi also enjoyed a fruitful spell over in the United States, competing in the IndyCar CART series, as well as the Indy 500.
And speaking on the MotorMouth Podcast, the 77-year-old shed light on the outrage he caused after his victory at the historic race.
Emerson Fittipaldi explains why he drank orange juice after winning the 1993 Indianapolis 500
Fittipaldi retired from F1 in 1980 having driven for Lotus, McLaren and his own team, which he set up in 1974 and raced for from 1976 until his retirement.
But while his time in F1 came to an end, his racing career did not, as he ventured over to the States to compete in CART and the Indy 500.
Fittipaldi first took part in the latter in 1984 with WIT Racing Promotions and would participate in the race every year until 1995, which he failed to qualify for.
Driving for Patrick Racing from 1985 to 1989, in his final year with the team, the Brazilian won his first Indy 500 in dominant fashion, leading for 158 out of 200 laps and winning by two laps.
In 1993, now racing for Team Penske, Fittipaldi would claim his second win at Indy, but not without causing huge controversy afterwards.
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Traditionally, drivers mark their victory at the event by drinking a bottle of milk, but the two-time F1 champion instead drank a bottle of orange juice.
But unbeknownst to many, Fittipaldi did in fact follow the tradition and drink the milk after his orange juice celebration, and he explained his reasoning behind it.
“[It was] a very polemic situation because I drank the orange juice and then I drank the milk.
“I had the milk! Nobody knows! All the press and the media said that I only drank the orange juice. I drank the milk, but after.”
Asked about the outrage that the celebration caused, he replied: “I lost some money! Anyway, it was for the Brazilian orange juice. I was an orange farmer, big farmer of oranges, so I must celebrate with Brazilian juice, but I drank the milk!
“But Indianapolis was fantastic, that’s an experience.”
Emerson Fittipaldi was Indy CART champion in 1989
Along with his two victories at the Indy 500, Fittipaldi competed in the Indy CART series and enjoyed great success in the category.
Spending his first season in 1984 getting used to the machinery, the Brazilian recorded his first win in 1985 at the Michigan 500 with Patrick Racing, whom he spent five years with.
In 1989, along with his first win at Indy, Fittipaldi won the CART series by 10 points over Rick Mears. While retiring in three races that season, the 77-year-old finished in the top five at every other race, including five wins.
Fittipaldi moved to Penske in 1990 and competed in CART until 1996 with the team, finishing runner-up twice in 1993 and 1994.