Lando Norris: McLaren driver says speaking about his mental health struggles in F1 career saved lives

McLaren’s Lando Norris in dealing with social media criticism, spoke to GQ: “You’re not going to please everyone. There are people who support you and people who don’t. Some people say I saved their lives. That suits you”

Lando Norris believes that speaking out about his own mental health in the early stages of his Formula 1 career has helped others who are struggling.

Norris earned star billing on and off the track when he entered the sport aged 19 in 2019, becoming the youngest British F1 driver in history and thrust into the public eye.

The McLaren driver spoke last year about the impact of his quick-found fame on his personal life, including receiving heavy criticism on social media, and he has learned how to open up to the benefit of others.

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Speaking ahead of his fifth season in the sport, Norris said GQ: “It’s a choice [to speak about mental health]because I am quite struggling in 2019 and 2020.

“I just don’t know how to deal with it. I keep everything inside and it really destroys my confidence and self-belief, that is until the end.

“I doubted myself: ‘Am I good enough to be in Formula One? Can I come back from this?’

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“You’re not going to please everyone. There are people who support you and people who don’t. I know I’m doing my best.

“Some people say I saved their lives. That suits you.”

Norris finished seventh in last year’s constructors’ championship, scoring 85 points more than team-mate Daniel Ricciardo, with the 23-year-old now partnering Australian rookie Oscar Piastri for the upcoming season.

MCL37 – McLaren’s car for 2023 – is set to launch on February 13, with Norris setting realistic expectations for next season as he looks for that long-awaited race victory.

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Relive some of the best individual drives in Formula 1 this year as Carlos Sainz and George Russell secure their first wins, while Max Verstappen and Fernando Alonso stage incredible recovery drives.

“I feel defeated, but I’ve always been a very harsh person to myself. I’m very critical of my own performance,” added Norris. “I always think, What could we have done better? Then, What could the team have done better?

“With everything I’ve learned, maybe I can win the race [in 2023]but it is impossible for me to win the championship until then [2024 or 2025]. I knew I had to be at the top of my game in those years.

Watch the pre-season test in Bahrain from February 23-25 ​​live on Sky Sports, ahead of the calendar of 23 bumper races that start at the same venue on March 5. All 23 races in 2023 will be shown on Sky Sports F1.