Lewis Hamilton is arguably the most successful F1 driver in history and is statistically clear of anyone else from the UK who has made it to the sport so far. Hamilton’s achievements have been so extraordinary that he was Knighted for his contributions to F1. However, ahead of the British GP now, a fellow compatriot, who has zero race wins, is rising up to challenge him to prove himself on home soil.
Lando Norris is a driver who is oozing confidence at the moment. He performed spectacularly in Austria, and with McLaren’s recent upgrades, he got a P4 finish. Now, he is focusing on the British GP, where he will drive the ‘Chrome’ McLaren MCL60. It will be a special weekend for him, mainly because he grew up watching Hamilton win the world title, also driving a ‘chrome’ McLaren livery in 2007.
Speaking about the livery, Norris admitted that it has always been his favorite. “Always been my favourite livery,” he said to the BBC. “It’s just for one race but it’s kind of cool to relive what got me into F1”.
Lando Norris is hopeful of taking the challenge to Lewis Hamilton
Lando Norris feels that he is fairly confident of outperforming both Mercedes drivers in Silverstone next Sunday. The upgrades that McLaren introduced in last weekend’s race in Spielberg, have also added a boost in his hopes of outscoring his compatriots, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton.
Talking about this, the 23-year-old stated as per BBC, “I would say we have good potential to compete against them again and for me to be top Brit. That would be a pretty cool thing to do at Silverstone.”
Norris went on to add that even though he expects to give Hamilton a tough fight in Silverstone, there will be a lot of pressure. Competing in one’s home Grand Prix is never easy due to people’s expectations, but the McLaren star seems ready to tackle it. Norris expects the British GP to be the most “fun and exciting” race of the season.
Norris holds Hamilton as his inspiration
Despite speaking about challenging him this weekend, Lando Norris holds Hamilton as his inspiration. The 23-year-old has been following the seven-time world champion from his early McLaren days and has looked up to him for motivation ever since.
“I have so much respect for him and what he’s been able to achieve in F1. He’s part of the reason I’m an F1 driver, so it’s weird thinking I’m now racing against him,” the McLaren driver added.
He distinctly remembers the Stevenage-born driver’s early days’ tussle with Fernando Alonso in the chrome McLaren MP4-22 in the 2007 F1 season and it was one of the reasons he entered F1. Norris is now hoping for a strong performance in Silverstone, and get the better of the man who inspired him to join F1 in the first place.
