I never enjoyed school and I was never that good at school so leaving wasn't the biggest thing, but the social aspect of school, leaving your friends, you lose contact with them a bit and now I have more friends at the race track than the friends I keep in touch with at school.
Lando Norris
I'm a fighter, I'm a winner, and I'm not interested in just battling my team-mate for the back of the grid.
I think Weetabix and full-fat milk is what it is all about.
Well, it's looks like I've a love-hate thing going on with Monaco.
I will be unhappy if I know I have not accomplished something I should have done that was possible.
I can't remember what made my dad take us karting for the first time, I can't remember really. I was into motorsport by then and I knew everything, and every driver, it was around 2009, 2008. That's when I first properly knew about Formula One. Those were the days.
Even though I had won in other categories, I didn't have any expectations when I came into F1. Qualifying fifth, finishing sixth? I didn't expect it.
I am absolutely my own biggest critic.
Confidence is always a good thing to have going into the weekend. Especially where it's quite difficult to put the lap together.
I probably work harder, putting in a lot of time and effort, than a lot of drivers because all I think about, and all I do, is to do with racing, trying to make myself a better driver.
I'm an all-or-nothing kind of guy, I guess.
Of course it would be nice for everybody and myself if we could win but we can still have a personal or a team win if we achieve a target that is effectively a win for us.
I don't think there's any point going for second or third.
I want to go down in the history books with what I've achieved.
I turned away from bikes when I got a bambino kart for my seventh birthday and started doing some karting, just around some cones at home, but I didn't think at that point I knew I wanted to go into F1, it was more just for fun.
I started off riding motorbikes and at that point my hero was Valentino Rossi.
The 'Pro-Sim' is pretty much the best simulator you can buy, because of the steering motor and the pedals. The force feedback we get through the steering is pretty much exactly the same as what we get in the actual car in terms of how heavy it is.
I started off with sim driving, playing 'Gran Turismo,' and my Dad had some sort of Logitech steering wheel with pedals for the PlayStation 2.
The biggest difference in the wet between F2 and F1 is that there's so much more power in F1 as being on the throttle earlier has a bigger advantage.
When I was five - it's not even bad - I stole a sweet from the sweet shop.
I've been away since I was pretty much eight, traveling to the car tracks, and then going to Europe and traveling more.
I used to watch some F1 races but I was never straightaway thinking 'that is what I want to do.'
F2's much harder physically on the arms and almost on the whole body than F1 is.
To be announced as a race driver for McLaren is a dream come true.
McLaren were one of the first teams I liked and supported.
I definitely wasn't anything special when I first started but I think I adapted quite quickly into racing and it became a bit better slowly. All of cadets, the first four years of karting, I only won one proper race, one! Which was the British Open Championship at PFI and I started 21st and I won.
Sometimes I'm a bit under-aggressive and sometimes a bit over. But I think it's good to have both.
I need to do well and show I'm a worthy driver in F1.
In karting, you turn up and drive, look at the data and go home. But I like doing more, learning about the engines and how to make them go even better.
In the ideal world, if I was perfect, I'd be able to beat every teammate that I have, in every race.
You can only get to a certain point when you feel confident with the simulator and it always changes when you get to the track and you actually drive it for real for the first time.
The McLaren prizes can only help me in my quest to ultimately reach Formula One.
The first time I used a simulator was in 2014 when I was competing in the Ginetta Junior Championship.
I left school to concentrate on racing. It was a family decision between my mum, dad and myself.
The Pirellis you can push for a couple of laps and then you've got to start saving. It's not easy.
I am sure there's going to be times when I do things wrong that no one's going to like and everyone's going to think I'm terrible and rubbish but I know I'm going to go through those times, and it's just about understanding that that's going to happen.
That's one of the biggest things. Never being home, always traveling, having different interests and focusing on different things, just the time aspect of going back home and seeing them, you don't have that at all. It was a big sacrifice but, at the end of the day, it was worth it.
F2 cars have downforce; they're quick. But it's difficult for your brain and eyes to keep up with everything that's going on once you're in an F1 car. You get used to it and you learn to stay calm, because if you react too quickly the opposite will happen. Being more relaxed is when it becomes more natural and controlled.
If McLaren give me a car, that's fine, but I don't tend to buy fancy stuff anyway or super-nice clothes.
On the RFactor model that comes with the 'Pro-Sim,' everything is balanced and measured. If you go up on the rear ride height, for example, it changes the airflow and the downforce of the car. You learn by trying different things, which gives you a better idea when you're on a race weekend.
I am sure as everyone knows that I am not the happiest if I don't do a good job in qualifying or the race.
Every time I get in the McLaren I feel more comfortable, my confidence increases and I feel more at home with the team.
It's what counts, isn't it, on the Sunday, rather than pre-season testing. If you lock up, you do a little mistake, it's nothing, but if you do it on Sunday, you lose a place or you have to box for a flat spot or something like that. It's a much bigger problem.
I guess for every driver the aim is to beat their teammate.
I had to drive with a roof in LMP2, and I managed to get used to that quite quickly - although it's still not a Halo, it's still different to what I'm used to.
I liked watching Rossi, his style, his colours and everything. He was someone I looked up to and until now he is still my only hero. He is the king of motorbikes and most people like Rossi mainly because he comes across as a pretty fun and good character. He is cool and has a good style and look.
Joining McLaren didn't add a lot of pressure but of course you want to make sure you can impress them.
I had a much better view with the halo than I expected.
I'm sure like everyone else I'm not always the happiest if I don't do a good job in quali or the race or whatever, so I think beating myself up sometimes makes me work harder.
It's just trying to do the best job I can in these opportunities that I get to show what I can do, be consistent, have good feedback, be fast, at the same time not make mistakes.
