Lando Norris reveals he was a Lewis Hamilton fan when he was growing up and watching F1

Lando Norris, opening up about his racing icons from childhood, named Lewis Hamilton as one of the drivers he watched and supported while growing up. In an interview with McLaren, the British driver named his compatriot and fellow F1 driver as his idol.

Norris, with his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri, spoke about their greatest sporting idols. They started with sports stars from other sports who were influential.

Piastri named NBA legend Michael Jordan, while Norris named another basketball player, Jimmy Butler. Piastri then picked the renowned American Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps.

Responding, Norris named Tiger Woods as his GOAT. Interestingly, the Briton also named the racing icon he followed when he was a kid. He said (as per an Instagram post by McLaren):

"If we're being honest, Lewis is up there as well. When I started watching, I was supporting Lewis. Lewis was the guy in McLaren, and he was kind of a reason I got into Formula 1 in the first place. He's pretty handy. He's pretty good. Seven world championships, over 100 wins, if I get anywhere close to that in my career of racing, I'll be pretty happy."

On more than one occasion, Lando Norris spoke about Lewis Hamilton being his inspiration. He said so when the seven-time world champion raced for the Papayas from 2007 to 2012 and claimed a championship and multiple race wins.

Currently, Lando Norris is racing against his idol in Formula 1. Norris is one of the title contenders alongside his teammate, Piastri. Meanwhile, Hamilton is figuring out his journey with his new team, Ferrari, where he arrived at the end of last season.

Lando Norris puts Valentino Rossi at par with Lewis Hamilton

In the aforementioned interview alongside Oscar Piastri, Lando Norris named MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi as his racing icon alongside Lewis Hamilton. The McLaren star said:

"For me growing up, some of my best moments were watching Rossi. Rossi was yeah, the guy I looked up to when I was a kid. I remember plenty of his great races. That was kind of my youth growing up watching Rossi."

Rossi is a seven-time MotoGP champion and has 89 wins, 55 poles and 199 podiums in 372 race starts. Nicknamed "The Doctor", he's regarded as arguably the greatest MotoGP rider in history.

About the author

Sabyasachi Biswas is a passionate motorsport journalist for Sportskeeda, with a Master's degree in Mass Communication and Journalism. He has over eight years of experience in the field and has over 10000 published articles on the internet.

As a dedicated follower of motorsport, Sabyasachi watches events closely, ensuring his reports are thorough and supported by reputable sources. He is inspired by Max Verstappen’s fearless attitude and dreams of attending the Indian GP if it returns to the calendar. An ardent F1 fan over the years, he enjoyed watching Felipe Massa and Sebastian Vettel and is now following Verstappen's dominant journey on the track.

Apart from F1, he is a big-time NASCAR and football (also soccer) fan. Sabyasachi supports Kyle Larson of Hendrick Motorsports and Spanish club, Real Madrid.

He was a sub-junior level footballer and won inter-district quizzes and debate competitions back in school. A travel freak by nature, Sabyasachi likes to try different cuisines and learn about new cultures. When away from his keyboard, he enjoys soccer, geopolitics, and playing with Khushi & Ubbu - his adorable beagles.

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Edited by Bhargav