Formula 1, Lando Norris: his beginnings, career and statistics in Formula 1

Lando Norris becomes the 114th driver in history to win a victory in Formula 1 and does so in Miami after 110 career Grands Prix. From his beginnings as a baby phenomenon in karting to his successes in F2 up to his debut among the ‘big names’, here is the story of one of the most loved drivers, who from an early age never hid his love for Valentino Rossi

GP MIAMI, HIGHLIGHTS

Lando Norris interrupts the taboo succeeding in his 110th GP of his career to center his first success. TO You love me the McLaren driver thus becomes the 114th winner in history, 21st for McLaren and 21st for Great Britain. At the 16th podium of his career, the 3rd this year, Norris is the 3rd winner of the season, the same number as the entire last season.

Lando Norris: early career

At just 24 years old he is a ‘veteran’ being already at his fifth season in F1 – all on McLaren – and for a ‘life’ now in Motorsport. It was his father Adam, a rather well-known entrepreneur in the United Kingdom, who put him on karts: in 2010 the boy from Bristol was third in the Super 1 National Comer Cadet and four years later he became – just 14 years old – the youngest winner of a karting world championship, a record previously held by a certain Lewis Hamilton. And we are only at the beginning: in 2015 he won the MSA Formula Series, the following year triumphs in three championships: Formula Toyota, Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 and Formula Renault 2.0 NEC, also winning the driver of the year award at Autosport Awards. In 2017, with the Carlin Motorsport team, he also made the European Formula 3 (still the youngest ever) and gains access to the McLaren universe. In 2018 he contributed to the conquest of the world title for the teams in Formula 2 (with him at Carlin there was Sérgio Sette Câmara) and debuts among the greats…

Norris’ story in Formula 1

His first approach to the Circus slopes dates back to August 2nd 2017 on the occasion of Budapest test, in the Hungaroring circuit: Lando is a chip and gets the second best time behind Sebastian Vettel’s Ferrari, deserving a third driving role on the McLaren for the following year in place of Jenson Button. August 24, 2018 debuts on a race weekend in the first free practice session of the Belgian Grand Prix and is promoted with full marks: in 2019 he is a starter in the team alongside Carlos Sainz. His first season ended with 49 points and 11th placeThe 2020 opens with a bang: in Austria – thanks to the penalty suffered by Hamilton – gets on the podium (3rd) and in the end he will be 9th, almost doubling the points of the previous year. 2021 is his best year in Formula 1: 4 times on the podium (Italy brings him good luck with 3rd place in Imola and 2nd in Monza) and ends the season at 6th place with 160 points. In the 2022 loses one position in the standings (7th), but remains constant and the only rider outside of the top three teams in the World Championship to get on the podium (still 3rd in the Emilia Romagna GP). In 2023 it closes at 6th place in the Championship with 205 points and other seven podiums, including six second places. This year he had already reached the podium in Melbourne and China, until the triumph of You love me.

The idol Valentino Rossi

In 2019 at Silverstone realize his dream: meets Valentino Rossi for the first time. “I love the way Valentino approaches the races and challenges of the MotoGP – the words of Norris, guest in the ‘Doctor’ box – has always been number one, the reference model that inspired me“. In the same year in Monza he races with a yellow-blue helmet in homage to Vale and in 2022 he made a wish: “One day I would like to run with him, my hero when I was a child.”