Lando Norris aspired to reach Formula 1 on his own merit, refusing his father’s financial support to prove his capabilities and earn his position genuinely.
Norris asserts that he wanted to earn his place in Formula 1 based on his merit, not his father’s wealth.
Norris’s father, Adam, had an estimated fortune of €250 million when his son Lando joined McLaren’s junior driver programme in 2017.
But while the family funded Norris’s rise up to Formula 2, he says he wanted “people to recognise that it’s through my abilities that I’ve reached the ultimate peak, F1, and not make comments like: I am in this position because of my father.”
“I never wanted him to pay for me to get to Formula 1. It was a goal. He could support me up to Formula 1, or let’s say up to Formula 2, to reach that point, give me those opportunities, etc.”
“But personally, I didn’t want to reach Formula 1 by paying for a seat. It was partly a question of mentality, not having the mentality of ‘I’m not here because I deserve it, I’m here because I paid for it.’ I never really wanted that at all.”
“I’m much prouder to say that I’m here because McLaren hired me and that I was a McLaren junior driver. They hired me, I improved, and then I became an official driver. That makes me much happier to say than the opposite.”
However, Norris acknowledged that he had been fortunate to have more support early in his career than some of his rivals.
“I must recognise that, to some extent, I’m lucky for the opportunities I’ve had and the fact that my father was able to support me in Formula 2 was already much more than what young drivers typically receive. Usually, from F1 onwards, one must primarily rely on sponsors to progress. So, I also know that’s the other side of the coin.”
Norris: F1 Dream Earned, Not Bought. Norris: F1 Dream Earned, Not Bought
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