Lando Norris makes junior team announcement ahead of F1 Italian GP

Lando Norris has launched a new junior single-seater team, LN4 Fusion, to try and help drivers reach Formula 1. 

The reigning world champion announced his plans on Wednesday on the eve of the Italian Grand Prix at Monza.

LN4 Fusion will be run by former Prema boss Rene Rosin and will compete in the Italian F4 championship, the FIA Formula Regional European Championship, and Formula 3 next season. 

It also has its sights set on joining Formula 2 and has started a British F4 testing programme. 

Norris, who won his maiden F1 world title last year, is putting his own money into the project, as well as setting up a driver development programme called LN4 Legacy Programme, which will be led by former Alpine sporting director Julian Rouse. 

“I’ve been really lucky to have some amazing people around me throughout my career, and I know that getting to Formula 1 takes so much more than just talent,” the McLaren driver said. 

“You need the right people around you, the right support and the right opportunities at the right time. That’s what these two projects are all about.

“LN4 Fusion is about building a race team that can compete with the best in junior motorsport, with great people and a great environment for drivers to develop. The LN4 Legacy Programme is about helping talented young drivers get opportunities they might not otherwise have.”

LN4 Fusion has the backing of an investment group led by Dan Richards, who has acquired selected assets of F3 team AIX Racing in order to race in the championship in 2027. 

The team’s headquarters will be in Veneto in northern Italy, while there will also be a base in Cambridgeshire in the UK. 

“What we have created is far more than simply the acquisition of a racing team,” Richards said. 

“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.

"It has taken an enormous collective effort to bring the different elements together, but the objective from the beginning has been to build this properly and for the long term. Giving every element space and independence will provide the exceptional people within the organisation, starting with René, the right environment to perform at their best."