F1 champion Lando Norris targets Le Mans as McLaren return to endurance racing

Lando Norris

Lando Norris targets Le Mans as McLaren return to endurance racing

Will we see Norris at Le Mans?

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Wednesday 20 May 2026 13:57

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Reigning F1 champion Lando Norris has also caught the endurance racing bug and expressed his desire to compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

GT and endurance racing have already captured the interest of four-time champion Max Verstappen, who contested his first 24-hour race at the weekend and took on the infamous Nurburgring 24 Hours.

Despite being cruelly denied the win, Verstappen still managed to tick off a bucket list challenge, proving himself in multiple disciplines across motorsport, not just Formula 1.

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Now, it appears, Norris is keen to do the same in the World Endurance Championship and revealed his interest in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

While it is too late this year for Norris to compete, with the 2026 race taking place on Saturday, June 13 and the same weekend as the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, the Brit could realistically compete in the 2027 event should he wish to do so.

Not only would it give Norris a year to prepare, but would also allow him to race Le Mans in a McLaren, as the team ramp up ahead of their WEC return next season.

McLaren reveal 2027 hypercar for WEC

McLaren have a brief but bright history at Le Mans. They took their first and only race win at Le Mans in 1995 with Yannick Dalmas, JJ Lehto and Masanori Sekiya in the McLaren F1 GTR.

In doing so, McLaren became one of the few teams who have secured the Triple Crown of Motorsport - winning the Monaco Grand Prix/F1 title, the Indianapolis 500 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

In 2027, McLaren will be able to attempt that feat once more, perhaps even managing it in the same year, if their respective cars in F1, WEC and IndyCar are competitive enough.

McLaren recently unveiled their hypercar challenger for the 2027 season, entering the top class with the MCL-HY GTR, in a mock-up video of the papaya car racing around a track at sunset.

CEO Zak Brown's ambitions were bold following the release, where he said: "McLaren Racing now has three race cars ready to contest the biggest motorsport series in the world; Formula 1, IndyCar and WEC.

"This means McLaren, its partners, customers and fans can challenge for the Triple Crown of Monaco GP, Indy 500 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans together – a unique cross-series story that sets us apart."

Speaking in a video on McLaren's YouTube channel, Norris himself referenced the project and suggested we could see him at Le Mans in the papaya hypercar - although was also sure to manage expectations.

"You know, I still feel like I want to go and try other things. Do Le Mans, now McLaren are doing Le Mans, so maybe go and do that at some point," he explained.

"But I don't know. I'm still young, so I've not thought of everything just yet. But, you know, in the future hopefully I have kids and they get into racing or something and then I can live the story again."

F1 McLaren Lando Norris Zak Brown 24 Hours of Le Mans World Endurance Championship