Just to Get Lando Norris to Try Sushi, Carlos Sainz Once Offered Him a Free Overtake at Japanese GP

Whenever anyone visits Japan, most always want to try authentic sushi, and F1 drivers, other than Lando Norris, are no different. Although the Briton does not mind eating sushi now—even though he still does not like it—there was a time when he was afraid of it.

Around five years ago, when Carlos Sainz was Norris‘ teammate at McLaren, he tried everything possible, including offering a free overtake, to try and get the Briton to eat sushi. However, Norris just would not.

In a video for the McLaren team back in 2019, both Norris and Sainz had to try different Japanese food. While the #4 driver seemed happy to have most of what he tasted, he seemed to be literally disgusted by sushi.

As soon as sushi was presented to them, Sainz, in excitement, said, “Oh yeah boy”. However, Norris, looking at it, seemed to immediately fall sick. “I don’t want it anywhere near me,” he said. That is when the Spaniard tried his best to convince Norris to try it.

Sainz told him that the sushi had no fish, one of the probable reasons the Briton did not want to try it. Sainz then hilariously told Norris that he had to “mature” and “grow up” by overcoming the fear of sushi. However, Norris was insistent that he had no interest in maturing if eating sushi was the way to do so.

That is when Sainz made his final attempt to convince Norris, and this time, the Bristol-born driver actually took some time to consider the offer. “If you make me this favor, I let you by at the start on Sunday,” Sainz said. Norris then took a look at the sushi and thought for a few seconds before disappointingly telling Sainz a simple “No“.

Cut to the present day, Norris finally seems to have matured, as he said in an interview ahead of this weekend’s Japanese GP that he will try sushi after competing in the race.

“We have a race in Suzuka, might just head back to Tokyo for a bit and eat some sushi,” Norris said.

The interviewer, knowing the kind of history Norris has with sushi, was surprised to hear that the British driver is keen on eating this dish now. However, Norris once again disappointed everyone by replying, “No, I didn’t say I like it”.

“Sushi is disgusting”: Norris’ dislike for Japanese dish continues

Norris and his current McLaren teammate, Oscar Piastri, answered a few questions in a segment last year when the Briton once again expressed his dislike for sushi. They were asked to state if they agreed or disagreed that Italy had the best food out of all the countries they visited for a race.

Both Norris and Piastri replied yes before the Australian added that Japan was a close second. However, as soon as Norris heard Japan, he already seemed to have a face of disgust and quickly replied, “Nah, it’s got sushi and sushi is disgusting”.

With Norris having such a dislike for sushi and fish, Piastri once revealed how the Briton used to get annoyed after seeing him eating smoked salmon. “I used to get smoked salmon and he (Norris) used to absolutely hate (it),” Piastri revealed in an interview with F1 presenter Lissie Mackintosh last year.

Maybe if Norris were to win this weekend’s Japanese GP from second on the grid, he will decide to treat himself with some sushi.