Reigning Formula 1 champion Lando Norris had a “surreal” feeling seeing the No.1 on his McLaren in Barcelona.
The Briton hung on to end Max Verstappen’s four-year stint as champion, beating the Dutchman by just two points after a tense finale in Abu Dhabi.
But as preparations began for the new season at last week’s shakedown, a new reality dawned on Lando.
“It was just nice to be back, nice to see a number one on my car – pretty surreal still,” Norris said.
The Number 1️⃣ is back on a McLaren 🔥
Lando Norris is the first driver for the Woking-based team since Jenson Button to display the number on their car 👊#F1 pic.twitter.com/1Kz9xFEbVV
— Formula 1 (@F1) January 29, 2026
“I saw it on the timing screen; I still find it just unbelievable. It’s still a crazy thing to see.
“Now it’s really the first time I get to see it on my suit, on the car, on timing screens, all of these things, and it looks good.”
Now, Norris will try to retain his crown as F1 embarks on major changes with new cars and new power units being introduced in 2026.
“It’s pretty different. It’s a step slower in terms of cornering speeds,” he said, offering his first impressions.
“In terms of acceleration and straight-line speed, it probably feels quicker than it did last year. You get to 340, 350kph quite a bit quicker than we did in previous years.
“But then you have a bit more to understand from the battery, the power unit, all of those things are in some ways more complicated and just different.
“And whenever something’s different, it always takes a bit of time to figure out the best way to manage it.”
Is McLaren in the hunt?
McLaren was one of the last teams to begin running in Spain, and all eyes are on how they stack up against their main rivals at Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull.
“I think it’s so easy to get caught up in comparisons,” Norris told F1TV.
“It’s just because we’re all competitive, so you always want to see yourself doing well and feel like you can be quick.
“What we came here to do is to understand the car, especially from a reliability point of view, make sure that all the sensors are working as they should, the PU is working as they should, gearbox, whatever it is.
“Everything is just doing as we expect, because reliability is one of the most important things.
“A lot of it is from that side, and a lot of it is stuff over the next few days and weeks that the team will look into and try to improve and make better.”
