“This Kid Is Exceptional”: Lando Norris’ Karting Team Boss Reveals the First Impression McLaren Star Gave Him 12 Years Ago

Lando Norris has been the talk of the town after registering his maiden F1 Grand Prix win in Miami. To get a few insights into his early racing days, F1 Nation podcast’s Tom Clarkson invited Norris’ karting team boss, Ricky Flynn, to the latest episode.

The very first impression Flynn could remember of the future McLaren star was him being really tiny. Flynn also recalled the first time Norris arrived for a test where they assembled his kart in a way that he could reach everything.

Flynn said, “They brought a lot of stuff with him that had already been adapted so we put that on the kart. We’d done probably six-seven races there in the past and the last hour of the first day, Lando was quicker than we’d ever gone around there before. So, we thought, this kid is mighty special. And he was probably above my waistline and I’m not a tall guy. So, he was so so tiny, less than 40 kilos or whatever it was back then.”

| oscar piastri alongside lando norris at the ricky flynn motorsports karting event in italy today! ️

ricky flynn was the former karting team for oscar, lando, zhou and logan.

what a lovely way to reminisce! pic.twitter.com/eQvRUvBByR

— Piastri Updates (@PiastriNews) September 4, 2023

Lando Norris joined Ricky Flynn in 2012. After just one year under his tutelage, the Briton won three championships. Barring just two championships, Norris finished in the top five in every single league in 2013.

Since then, Norris has carried the name of Ricky Flynn Motorsport and made them proud. He is the first from the team to make it into Formula 1. Now, the recent Grand Prix win makes him their first F1 race winner.

The other drivers from Ricky Flynn Motorsport to make it into the premier class are Zhou Guanyu, Logan Sargeant, and Norris’ McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri. Earlier last year, Piastri became their first driver to win a Sprint race in F1.

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri on the path to greatness

Ricky Flynn could see some proud moments through Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in the near future. The duo is currently having some sublime form while McLaren is making long strides in development. The recent win in Miami is a testament to that as the flurry of upgrades proved.

Piastri’s car did not feature all the upgrades that Norris’ car carried. The changes to Norris’ car were so radical that team CEO Zak Brown called it a B-spec car. Given that the Australian will now drive the same car his teammate did in the upcoming race in Imola, there is no reason why he should not be able to replicate Norris’ Miami GP feat.

Miami was also the very first time that Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc & Lando Norris all shared a podium.

Maybe the first of many… pic.twitter.com/PdNTkljr4I

— Daniel Valente ️ (@F1GuyDan) May 6, 2024

There is, however, one big threat to those prospects. Ferrari is preparing to bring a major upgrade to Imola to potentially bag a win in front of their home crowd. Needless to mention, the competition is heating up and Red Bull is the target.