Lando Norris has made it clear that unlike Lewis Hamilton, he has no intention of racing Formula One cars into his forties. The 26-year-old driver, currently preparing for the Monaco Grand Prix, shared his plans to eventually leave the sport and focus on starting a family.
Now in his eighth season on the Formula One grid, Norris reflected on his future in the sport compared to veterans like Hamilton, who began his career in 2007 and is poised to become only the second driver after Fernando Alonso to compete in 400 F1 races. Hamilton, who drives for Ferrari and is chasing an unprecedented eighth world title, has extended his contract well into the coming years.
When asked if he could see himself still racing at Hamilton’s age, Norris responded decisively: “No chance. Maybe I am wrong. But I want kids and I want out of here. I hope that my kids would be in Formula One, so maybe I’ll still be around in the future, and I will always love racing. But at the same time, I enjoy a lot of things outside Formula One and life is not very long.”
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Norris emphasized that while he is committed to his current long-term contract and still aims to achieve more within F1, his ambitions do not include competing into his forties. “I don’t want to spend half my life driving cars. I want to go and live my life doing other things.”
On the competitive front, Norris’ chances of defending his world championship title look slim as Mercedes currently dominates the field. After five rounds, he trails championship leader Kimi Antonelli by 73 points and experienced a setback during Friday’s second practice session when his car broke down after only seven laps.
Despite Mercedes' dominance, the Monaco Grand Prix offers potential for Ferrari to shine, making it a strong opportunity for Hamilton to secure his first win with the team. Norris expressed admiration for Hamilton’s resilience, saying, “It would be nice to see Lewis win. He is one of the best of all time. You never want to see someone struggle like he has.”
Norris looked back on Hamilton’s recent form, noting, “He had a good weekend in Canada finishing second. But one good weekend doesn’t prove anything. You need five, six, seven, eight races to go well, so let’s wait and see.”