Did you think the summer break would give the F1 drivers some time away from the race tracks and their dangerous drives? Well, Lando Norris is here to prove you wrong. The McLaren racer has decided to up the thrilling game during the summer holidays by taking on a whole new challenge. Norris just drove the Porsche Carrera GT–the car that has caused quite a few high-profile accidents.
In June 2008, when Lewis Hamilton was in a fight for his maiden World Championship, he got some shocking news about his father. Anthony Hamilton had crashed his Porsche Carrera GT into a children’s park as he lost control of the car he had borrowed from a friend. At the time of the accident, Anthony was just 200m away from his home in Hertfordshire. Now, this is the same car that Lando Norris was driving in Monaco yesterday.
And if Anthony Hamilton’s accident sounds like nothing, the Porsche Carrera GT is also the reason behind the famous actor’s death. In 2013, while returning from a charity event in Santa Clarita, Fast and Furious star Paul Walker got into the passenger seat of a Porsche Carrera with his friend Roger Rodas, a race car driver. Suddenly, Roads lost control of the car and slammed it into a tree. And then, the car burst into flames and neither Roger Rodas nor Paul Walker could survive the accident. So, Top Gear’s Jeremy Clarkson had to describe the Carrera, saying that it has a “savagery that’s hard to explain“.
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LANDO AND HIS NEW GREEN PORSCHE CARRERA GT 😍 pic.twitter.com/Cg2xcJmLls
— comfort lando (@safeforlando) August 3, 2024
However, if the Porsche Carrera’s history intimidates you, it doesn’t do anything to Lando Norris. Having grabbed his maiden F1 Grand Prix victory this year, the 24-year-old perhaps feels at the top of his game. And thus, he did not hesitate to lay his hands on the limited edition Porsche Carrera for a drive through Monaco.
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So, Lando Norris seemed quite fearless while handling the Porsche Carrera in his video. But, the McLaren racer has a much bigger challenge in front of him than the racecar that caused Lewis Hamilton‘s father to crash—beating Max Verstappen in the World Championship this year. But how much does his current fight with the Dutch lion scare him?
Lando Norris speaks on whether he feels afraid to go up against Verstappen
Having debuted for McLaren in 2019, Lando Norris has always been a bright star for his team. In fact, his boss, Andrea Stella, has even said that the Belgian-British racer is “World Championship material“. And proving Stella right, Norris now stands second only to Max Verstappen on the World Drivers’ Championship Standings. However, the gap between Lando and Max stands at 78 points. So, does this intimidate the papaya army racer in any way?
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Lando Norris has spoken on whether challenging a 3-time World Champion for the F1 title is scary for him. He said, “I believe I can achieve a championship at McLaren, that’s why I signed another contract. I absolutely think I can go up against Max and give him a good challenge. I am not afraid in any way of Max, I’m excited to be against Max.” Thus, Norris has confirmed the current World Championship fight against Red Bull‘s Dutch lion does nothing to intimidate him. Rather, it “excites” him.
Well, the thoughts of winning a Championship are definitely not flocking into Lando Norris’ mind right now. The 24-year-old only wants to enjoy the summer break in F1 with his brand-new Porsche collectible supercar. But do you think the McLaren prodigy should take risks by driving such a dangerous car?