Lando Norris knows exactly what it takes to climb the ladder to Formula 1, and now the world champion is building a ladder of his own — one set up in the rolling hills of Veneto, Italy, with the first rungs ready for 2027.
Norris is launching LN4, a junior racing programme built to find and lift talented young drivers toward the very top of motorsport. "You need the right people around you, the right support and the right opportunities at the right time," Norris said. "That's what these two projects are all about."
The project splits into two parts. LN4 Fusion is a full racing team designed to compete with the best in junior motorsport, offering drivers a great environment to develop. The LN4 Legacy Programme focuses on opportunity itself — helping talented young drivers get chances they might not otherwise have.
The numbers are just as ambitious as the idea. In 2027, LN4 will field cars in three major championships: the Italian F4 Championship, the FIA Formula Regional European Championship, and the FIA Formula 3 Championship. The team also hopes to compete in Formula 2 the following year, though that application is still being finalised.
Norris won't do it alone. He co-owns the project with an investment group run by businessman Dan Richards, who brings a background in technology. The leadership is stacked with proven names. Julian Rouse, who previously ran the young driver programme for the Alpine F1 team, will lead the driver development side. On the UK front, Dan Hazlewood, head of the Fusion Motorsport karting team, will run a programme in British F4 from a base in Cambridgeshirelint while the main headquarters sits in Veneto.
Richards frames it as far more than buying a team. "We have assembled a rare combination and secured the right sporting leadership in the industry: an established operation, a Formula 1 world champion, the most successful team principal in junior single-seater racing over the past two decades, world-class motorsport expertise, significant investment and a shared ambition to build a team capable of competing at the highest levels of the sport."
Rouse, for his part, believes Norris' personal story is the project's secret weapon. "Having Lando on board adds a further dimension to this project. He has come through the junior single-seater ranks and understands its demands. His involvement will make a real difference to the team."
The venture is a striking vote of confidence in the next generation — a world champion using his platform to hand young racers the same opportunities that once launched him. As LN4's engines prepare to fire in 2027, the message to aspiring drivers is simple: the road to F1 just got a little wider, and a little more welcoming.