Lando Norris recalls the Lewis Hamilton F1 car that made him ‘fall in love’ with McLaren

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For every driver on the grid, there exists a car that sets them on course to become a Formula 1 driver. In the case of Lando Norris, it was a Lewis Hamilton challenger that saw him ‘fall in love’ with the McLaren F1 team.

Norris has been a staple of the McLaren F1 outfit since he joined the squad’s driver development programme in 2017. Hailed as a ‘fabulous prospect’ by CEO Zak Brown, the British driver has since returned McLaren to the very top of the F1 pecking order.

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Fast forward eight years, and Norris became the Woking-based outfit’s eighth world champion in the sport, with his 2025 drivers’ title feat marking the first individual championship for the British constructor since Lewis Hamilton’s world-beating form in 2008.

Hamilton’s feat that year came after a record-breaking rookie season that saw him lose out on a championship by just one point. Still, McLaren’s challenger from that year remains a big part of Norris’ F1 journey.

• READ MORE: Martin Brundle shares the ‘clumsy’ Lando Norris example to inspire George Russell amid F1 title bid

Lando Norris ‘fell in love’ with McLaren at the 2007 British Grand Prix

During an interview on McLaren’s official YouTube channel, the reigning world champion opened up about how much the Woking-based outfit means to him, while revealing the F1 car that got him hooked on the sport in the first place.

“My dream was just to race and to drive,” he began. “Then it was to eventually be a part of McLaren.

“McLaren was a team when I was a kid, and when I watched my first ever F1 race, I was watching Silverstone in 2007 and watching Lewis and Fernando [Alonso] go wheel-to-wheel.

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“I fell in love with McLaren because it was the chrome livery, and that was the coolest-looking car. So then I supported McLaren, and now I’m here with them.

“I think for anyone to get to drive for a McLaren at any point is cool. I love it here. They gave me the opportunity to come into Formula 1 as a young driver, so I feel like I owe a lot back to McLaren.”

Coincidentally, McLaren’s teammate dynamic from the 2007 season drew comparisons to their management of the 2025 title fight between Norris and Oscar Piastri.

Hamilton and Alonso regularly tripped over each other that year, leading former McLaren mechanic Marc Priestley to warn Brown about the dangers of ‘terrible teamwork’ in the midst of Woking’s intra-team title fight last season.

• READ MORE: ‘Paddock whispers’ suggest Zak Brown has now escalated his interest in Max Verstappen