Lando Norris talks about the four most important people who have shaped his life and career – from his father to a motorcycling legend
After world champion Lando Norris named his four favorite Formula 1 drivers a few days ago, the 26-year-old Briton now reveals in a video on social media which people have had a significant impact on his life and career in motorsport.
Not surprisingly, Norris names his father Adam as one of the central figures in his career. “First and foremost is my father,” says the McLaren driver, who has been driving for the British racing team since 2019 and has never driven for any other team in Formula 1.
“Even as a child, he loved racing. When he grew up, he couldn’t really do it anymore. But he worked hard and gave both my brother and me the chance to get into racing. He made my dream come true.“
”I remember playing Gran Turismo on the PlayStation with my dad when I was three or four years old. That’s where it all started,” says Norris, looking back on his childhood, in which not only his father Adam played a decisive role.
Lando Norris: Valentino Rossi as a great role model
“Valentino Rossi was my great role model as a child,” adds the Formula 1 world champion, who has a strong passion for motorcycling. “I was more interested in motorcycles than cars when I was young. So, Valentino Rossi.”
“And then the next two, quite simply, Zak Brown,” Norris continues about the most important people in his career to date. “I’ve worked with Zak Brown for many years. I think it’s rare to find someone who works as hard as Zak Brown.”
“If you spend a day with him, the most you can talk to him is five minutes because he spends the rest of the time in phone calls, meetings, emails, text messages and so on. These days, I’m lucky if I get to play golf with Zak Brown at all.”
Andrea Stella “always opens your eyes”
“But he’s not just a pleasant guy to be around, on the golf course or anywhere else, he’s also a really impressive and very successful person in business,” Norris says. “So that would be one. And the last one to stay in the team is Andrea Stella, who I’ve worked with since I joined McLaren.“
”He came from Ferrari many years ago,” the Lando Norris driver recalls of the current McLaren team principal’s successful career. “You really have to get to know Andrea Stella, talk to him personally and understand him as a person to understand what he can do.”
“I think he’s proven that from a McLaren point of view with his performances and his contribution to McLaren over the last few years, but particularly over the last two or three years. He’s someone who always opens your eyes to things you would never have thought of, gives you new food for thought and makes you rethink a lot of things.”
