Lando Norris has committed his future to McLaren until at least 2030 in a deal worth up to £30million a year.
The world champion made the news known to his team on Saturday at their factory in Woking and will continue at the organisation that has underpinned his career since he joined their junior programme in 2017 as test and simulator driver.
He has since driven in 163 grands prix – more than any other McLaren driver in history – and taken 13 wins, 18 pole positions and 48 podiums.
Norris, who is 26, will, therefore, continue in tandem with Oscar Piastri, the Australian who signed up to McLaren on a similarly long-term deal last year.
He believes the announcement could boost the team, saying: ‘It’s best for what will motivate them and make them more comfortable and give them a push.
‘So, it’s perfect timing from that perspective. I want them to know that there’s no other place I’d rather be than right here. And that’s a good thought for me to have, but it’s also a very good thought for every individual here in McLaren to have, I hope.’
Lando Norris has committed his future to McLaren, signing a £30million-per-year deal
Norris remains one of the grid’s best-paid drivers, alongside the likes of Charles Leclerc at Ferrari, and perhaps slightly ahead of George Russell at Mercedes.
Lewis Hamilton, at Ferrari, and Max Verstappen, at Red Bull, are Formula One’s chief earners in deals worth £80m a year, perhaps more with bonuses added.
‘I’m open to staying at McLaren for the rest of my career,’ added Norris. ‘I’d be very, very proud at the end of my career to say that has been the case.
‘I’ve not been someone who’s jumped from team to team, or jumped to a potential opportunity to the next potential opportunity.
‘I’ve stuck with McLaren through times when there was a chance in the past to go elsewhere. And I am very happy to just stay where I am.’
