Lando Norris ‘seeing a lot of stars’ as alarming Italian GP footage emerges
McLaren driver Lando Norris at the 2026 Italian Grand Prix
An exhausted Lando Norris was left “seeing a lot of stars” during a post-race interview at last weekend’s Italian Grand Prix.
Norris finished fourth at Monza as Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli won from 19th on the grid.
Lando Norris ‘seeing stars’ after Italian Grand Prix
It marked the end of Norris’s winning streak, having triumphed at the previous two races in Hungary and the Netherlands.
The reigning world champion overtook McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri for fourth place in the closing stages.
The Italian Grand Prix was declared a heat hazard event by the FIA three days prior to the race due to high temperatures.
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The declaration of a heat hazard allowed teams to fit advanced driver cooling systems, with drivers also given the option of wearing a high-tech cooling vest in the cockpit.
In a television interview after Sunday’s race, which cannot be reproduced here due to broadcast rights restrictions, Norris appeared physically drained.
The 26-year-old took a moment to compose himself before the start of the interview, leaning on the fence separating television crews from the drivers in the media pen.
After starting the interview, Norris said to someone standing off camera: “Can I just get a still water? Thanks, man.”
He added: “I’m seeing a lot of stars right now.”
Asked light-heartedly by the reporter if he could see him, Norris quipped: “I never see you!”
The FIA’s heat hazard protocol was introduced in 2025 in response to the events of the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix, where a number of drivers struggled physically in sweltering conditions.
The use of the advanced driver cooling systems results in a minor increase in the minimum weight of the cars when a heat hazard is declared.
The Austrian Grand Prix, which took place in late June, was the last race to be declared a heat hazard event prior to Monza.
Antonelli’s seventh victory of the F1 2026 season means the Mercedes driver holds a 66-point lead over teammate George Russell with a maximum of 10 races remaining.
Norris trails Antonelli by 96 points following the Italian Grand Prix, with the McLaren driver now 20 points behind third-placed Lewis Hamilton.
With Hamilton’s teammate Charles Leclerc crashing out at Monza, McLaren has closed the gap to Ferrari to 59 points in the race for second place in the constructors’ championship.
Formula 1 will enter new territory at this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix as the new Madring circuit in Madrid hosts a race for the first time.
The Madrid race will be the second Spanish-based round of 2026 following the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix in June.
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