RacingGran Turismo on a PlayStation with his dad lit the spark. Lando Norris says that is where racing began for him, and as a kid he looked up to Valentino Rossi more than any Formula 1 driver. In a video posted by McLaren on social media, the McLaren Formula 1 driver named four people who shaped his path: his father Adam, MotoGP legend Rossi, McLaren CEO Zak Brown, and team principal Andrea Stella.
“Number one is my dad,” Norris said, giving Adam top billing for backing a dream that started at home. He explained that his father “had his love for racing when he was a kid,” then “worked hard” to create chances for both Lando and his brother. Norris tied the first spark to shared game time: “I remember playing on the PlayStation with my dad when I was three or four years old, playing Gran Turismo. That’s where it all really started,” Lando Norris, McLaren Formula 1 driver, in a video posted by McLaren on social media.
He then pointed outside F1 for his early hero. “Valentino Rossi, a guy that I looked up to as a kid,” Norris said, adding a window into those early years: “I was more into motorbikes when I was younger than I was into four-wheel.” The comments came from Lando Norris, McLaren Formula 1 driver, in a video posted by McLaren on social media.
Inside McLaren, he ranked Zak Brown next and focused on workload and example. “I don’t think you’ll genuinely ever find someone who works as much as Zak,” Norris said. “If you ever spend a day with Zak, you’ll be able to talk to him for about five minutes because the rest is on calls, meetings, emails, texts, and everything else.” Both quotes were from Lando Norris, McLaren Formula 1 driver, in a video posted by McLaren on social media.
Norris closed with Andrea Stella, the engineer-turned-team boss he has worked with since joining the team. He noted Stella “came over from Ferrari many years ago,” then spelled out why he values him. “You’ve really got to meet Andrea and have personal talks with him and understand him as a person to understand what he’s capable of doing,” Norris said. He described Stella’s impact on how he thinks and decides: “A person who always opens your eyes to something you’ll never have thought of, gives you extra thoughts, someone who makes you rethink many things,” Lando Norris, McLaren Formula 1 driver, in a video posted by McLaren on social media.
Norris debuted in Formula 1 with McLaren in 2019 and has stayed through the team’s climb to back-to-back constructors’ championships in 2024 and 2025, along with his first drivers’ title in 2025. The way he tells it, that journey stretches back to a living room, a console, and a childhood hero on two wheels.