After sealing his maiden championship victory, Lando Norris has announced he will proudly display the number 1 on his McLaren next season.
In Formula 1, the number 1 is reserved explicitly for the current World Champion. Max Verstappen has been the driver entitled to use it ever since earning his first crown in 2021, and he chose to run the number throughout the 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025 campaigns.
Lando Norris has always been associated with the number 4 on the nose of his McLaren, but his dramatic two-point championship triumph in the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix has inspired him to claim the sport’s most prestigious number for 2026, symbolising his new status as the title holder.
“It’s tradition, it’s there for a reason,” Norris told Sky Sports News. “It’s there because you can go and try grab it and you can work hard to try and get it.
“All of us as a team that gets to have a role in McLaren, or my car, will get to wear that with pride. It’s all my mechanics, my engineers, everyone that’s part of McLaren gets to have that acknowledgement too.
Norris stressed that the honour of running number 1 extends beyond just himself.
“So, it’s not for me, it’s for them as well. It’s their pride, knowing that they put a lot of work and effort into everything that they can also go ‘we’re number one’.
“It’s not as cool when you say ‘we are number four’ so they will be even happier than I am!”
Since the start of the 2014 regulations, F1 drivers have had the right to select a fixed personal race number for their careers. Importantly, the reigning World Champion always has the option to swap to number 1 — though using it is their decision.
Lewis Hamilton is the only champion in that era who chose not to take up the offer, continually keeping his iconic 44 instead. Verstappen previously raced under his long-held number ‘33’ before his title wins, and with Norris now taking number 1, the Dutchman could decide to return to 33 — or potentially request a different number for 2026.
Norris will therefore appear at next year’s pre-season sessions with not just a fresh McLaren and a new race number, but also a level of confidence that only comes with entering the sport as its reigning World Champion.
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