“We’re very proud”- McLaren takes pride in Lando Norris mental health awareness work

“We’re very proud”- McLaren is pleased with Lando Norris’ work for mental health awareness, and call him a genuine person in real life.

Lando Norris is often seen as that humorous guy or a wholesome person on the paddock who wants to lighten the mood, whenever there is a requirement for it.

But early in 2020, Lando Norris talked about how his mental health affected while making a big move into Formula 1 with McLaren in 2019. He also wrote a blog about mental health awareness and highlighted the need for a change in its discussions.

This move by him made fans admire him even more. Talking about this to Autosport, McLaren also feels pride in Norris for talking about a crucial topic, often sent under the rug in a sport always high on adrenaline.

“I think it’s great,” Zak Brown said. “I was talking to someone this morning about Lando, they were asking as they only know him through social media, and they said, ‘is that what he’s really like? Is that what he’s really like with Carlos?’ What you see is what you get with both of our drivers.”

“I think that’s one of the reasons why they have been so popular and why Lando is so popular. Everything that you see him do, that’s him. He takes that upon himself, it’s genuine, it’s authentic.”

“It’s great to have someone who spotlights issues and agendas, and it’s done in a very authentic way. I think it’s essential. I think Lando has been a breath of fresh air for the sport, and he’s enjoyable to watch.”

“He’s actually a fairly shy person, but that doesn’t come through in his social media. He’s very authentic. I think he’s very comfortable in that environment.

“We’re very proud that he is so comfortable bringing that issue forward in such a positive way.”

2020 was easier for Lando Norris

Lando Norris confessed to Autosport that 2020 was comparatively more settling for him, as he was calmer than the previous year. Still, he also said that his people’s expectations significantly also increased in 2020, which is obviously not expected from a rookie.

“From a confidence level perspective, it’s been much easier, and I’ve been able to come in a lot more prepared to races and with a lot more confidence and a better idea of what to do,” Norris said.

“But there’s also a lot of things which are still very tough, no matter if you are in your second season, just because of the perspective of things has changed.

“When you come in as a rookie, people see you as a rookie, so when you make these little mistakes, it’s not the end of the world, as you’ll improve it for next year.

“When you come in in your second year, they don’t expect to see these things any more, or a lot less than what they saw. You have this kind of different pressure of having more expectation in some ways,

“And you need to perform on that next level, which is a lot of circumstances, I’ve managed to do, with my race pace and so on. But there are still callous things.”

About the author

Tanish Chachra

Tanish Chachra is the Motorsport editor at The SportsRush. He saw his first race when F1 visited India in 2011, and since then, his romance with the sport has been seasonal until he took up this role in 2020. Reigniting F1's coverage on this site, Tanish has fallen in love with the sport all over again. He loves Kimi Raikkonen and sees a future world champion in Oscar Piastri. Away from us, he loves to snuggle inside his books.

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