Lando Norris had given an interesting interview ahead of the 2024 season. During the interview, the Briton shed some light on how he enjoyed his winter break and caught up with former McLaren teammate Daniel Ricciardo in Australia. In his interaction with the interviewers of The Fast and The Curious podcast, Norris revealed that he had a dangerously fun adventure with the Honey Badger.
The hosts asked Norris about how much did he enjoy Ricciardo’s company and the Briton revealed the list of all the fun activities they did. Norris said, “Bit of a swim, bit of gym, bit of training. Little cool things, little Motocross bike.” As soon as he mentioned Motocross, the 24-year-old realized that he should not have revealed that.
Norris clarified, “I probably shouldn’t say that because I don’t think I was allowed to do it”. Apparently, many F1 drivers’ contracts prohibit them from undertaking adventure sports like skiing, skydiving, or anything that could injure them seriously. Perhaps, Motocross is a similar activity for the #4 driver.
When the hosts asked him about the protective gear he was wearing during doing Motocross, Norris replied, “Was just helmet, nothing else”. Usually, Motocross riders wear all sorts of padding on elbows and knees to avoid injuries if they fall off.
So, it could be possible that Ricciardo and Norris may not have done it on an extreme course like the Motocross pros since they did not wear all the protective gear. Regardless, Norris was quite happy and revealed that they had a lot of fun.
Lando Norris inching closer to his maiden F1 win
Lando Norris was right in the thick of things at the Australian GP as he fought for the podium spots. While Carlos Sainz cruised to victory, the McLaren driver was not letting Charles Leclerc run away with P2. Norris gave it everything but eventually had to settle for P3, behind the Ferrari duo of Sainz and Leclerc.
Overall it was a great race for the Woking-based outfit as they maximized their result with a 3-4 finish. Oscar Piastri backed Norris’ podium finish with his fourth place and in the process sacrificed a home race podium.
Just in his sophomore season, Piastri seems to be challenging and matching the British driver well but still has some scope to improve his race pace. Meanwhile, Norris extended his podium tally in Melbourne to 14, which earned him an unwelcome record.
The 24-year-old now has the most podiums (14) without a Grand Prix win in F1, ahead of Nick Heidfeld (13). Norris will want to change this soon in the 2024 season itself.
Norris’ podium in Australia shows promising signs for McLaren. The MCL38 is proving to be a reliable and consistent car, with a solid performance foundation.
So, when the Papaya outfit brings in-season upgrades, they could see a big jump in performance like they did in the second half of 2023. If that happens, Norris could be in prime position to get the monkey of not winning a race off his back.
