Formula 1 superstar Lando Norris has told talkSPORT why he failed his theory test and finds driving on the road scarier than a race track.
McLaren’s British talent is destined for the big time, having already achieved six podiums and a pole position in what’s considered a midfield car.
Debuting in 2018, the now 23-year-old is regularly the best of the rest outside of the big three teams, finishing seventh in last year’s championship and sixth the season before.
Rated as a future world champion by many in the paddock, driving hasn’t always come so easily to Norris, as he’s now revealed he feels safer on a track than a motorway.
“100 per cent! [I feel safer],” he said. “I’ll probably be driving with you on the road, I don’t trust you in any way.
“It’s definitely not myself, it’s just the people that you’re on the road with that scare me, but when I’m on a race track I trust the people around me, to a certain extent, not everyone.
“That’s my comfort zone, the quicker I drive the safer I feel, so when you have to drive slowly on the road that’s when I don’t feel safe, plus you’ve got people coming the other way, it’s not Mario Kart in real life so I do get more scared.”
Norris also candidly revealed he failed the theory part of his driving test.
“My theory, that was an old me, that’s the part that really uses your brain,” he explained.
“You get questions and think ‘nah that doesn’t really matter’ when it probably does, whereas the driving part I nailed the first time.
“So the practical part, mega, I nailed it, the theory, forget all that.
“My friends do tell me I’m a bad driver on the road, not because I drive quickly but because I drive too slowly for what they expect.
“I’m a bit late on the brakes sometimes, a bit too aggressive, but it doesn’t matter at the end of the day, if they want a chauffeur they shouldn’t call me.
“I guess it’s very different, it’s not racing, it’s driving on the road and I do get quite scared driving with people I don’t trust but I trust the people I race against on a track, so there’s a big difference.”
