Lando Norris admits that his Formula 1 success meant he felt a bit more violated in his personal life

The Briton clinched his first Formula 1 Title in 2025, beating Max Verstappen after a season-long battle.

With the 2026 Formula 1 regulations, McLaren are nowhere near as competitive as they were in their Championship season, but Norris is still going through the aftermath of success, and not all is positive.

Speaking to the media in Spa, he touched on how his personal life has been affected and said: "I ​think the next ⁠level is paparazzi, you know, waiting for you in places or tailing you.

"I drove to my friend's house in London, and I knew a paparazzi who was just following me the whole way and followed me for, like, 40 minutes through London, just waiting to ⁠see who ​I was going to see, who I was going to meet, where I ​was going.

"You start to just feel a bit more violated in your life... I can't leave my hotel or my house without someone literally trying to see ​every move I'm doing... I won't accept people kind of following you. I think that's just odd," he maintained.

On the sporting side, the 26-year-old has gone through 12 Grands Prix without winning. He only has two podiums this season with two DNFs and one non-start.

While he insists he is still motivated to deliver the best performance, he admits the fire within has dimmed due to the incompetitiveness of McLaren.

Norris explained: "Every time I put my helmet on, I'm just as motivated to do the best job I absolutely ​can. I just simply miss the success. I miss standing on a podium, spraying the champagne, holding a trophy.

"Of course ​you get used to winning races and fighting for a podium every weekend, and now I'm just missing it.

"There is that little fire you get when success comes your way and ​you are fighting for the world championship... that kind of is a little bit dimmer.

"But I wouldn’t go out on track not wanting to ‌do ⁠my absolute best,” the McLaren driver concluded.

Norris will not taste any success in Spa this weekend after being on pole last year and finishing runner-up. In addition to the fact that his McLaren is not competitive to take the fight to Mercedes or Ferrari, he will have a ten-place grid penalty for taking an extra power electronics unit for his MCL40. (Reporting by Agnes Carlier from Spa-Francorchamps)