McLaren driver Lando Norris has enjoyed a stellar campaign in 2022, especially compared to his teammate Daniel Ricciardo, who on paper at least, was supposed to give him a much bigger run for his money.
Such has been Norris’ impact through the season that the young Briton was contacted by Red Bull boss Christian Horner over the possibility of joining the team and partnering with Max Verstappen next season.
While that would have been a mouth-watering duo at Red Bull, Norris indirectly saved Mexican driver Sergio Perez by declining the offer made to him and subsequently signed a contract extension with McLaren.
The new deal with McLaren ties Norris up with the team till 2025.
Some may argue that he has a long career ahead of him and still plenty of time to try out different teams, but for Norris, the intention isn’t quite to stay in F1 for a prolonged period of time.
The McLaren ace wants to explore other racing avenues, much like Fernando Alonso.
He has already competed in the 2018 24 Hours Daytona alongside Alonso for Zak Brown’s United Autosports team.
Mechanical issues meant his chances of winning the race came to a tame end, but it has not extinguished Norris’ desire to test his skills outside the realms of F1.
“I would love to drive more, I would love to get more opportunities,” Norris said.
“Formula 1 is my life at the minute, I understand that. But doing the Daytona 24 hours and things like that, I would love to do, and I’m sure in maybe 10 or 20 years I will have that opportunity, or more opportunities to do it.”
Norris keen to try other motorsport events
With the F1 schedule increasing with every passing year, Norris doesn’t believe there will be enough time for him to compete in events outside the sport while being a part of McLaren.
He believes that the increasing number of races in the calendar will want him to just completely detach from motorsport racing altogether whenever he gets the chance.
With McLaren entering IndyCar, he is excited to try out different vehicles and test his abilities in various circumstances and not be limited solely to F1 cars.
“He [Ricciardo] got to drive the number three Dale Earnhardt car, I don’t really have anyone I’ve looked up to like Daniel and Earnhardt,” he added.
“Maybe [I’ll try] a motorbike, but I probably wouldn’t be able to come back to four wheels if I went motorbiking because I’d crash!”
For now, Lando is very much committed to making the most of his time at McLaren F1, but you would probably not expect him to stay in F1 till his late 30s.
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