F1 World Champion Lando Norris to Retire Number 44 Used by Lewis Hamilton
Lando Norris has confirmed that he will be using car number one on his McLaren next year after winning the F1 Drivers' Championship. The news comes as a result of the new regulation change for the 2026 season, which allows drivers to change their car numbers at the start of each year.
As reigning F1 world champion, Lewis Hamilton had used the iconic number 44 on his Mercedes car since the 2014 season. Norris, who has driven for McLaren since 2019 and was pipped by Max Verstappen to win this year's championship, will now be wearing the number one jersey.
Norris says that he chose to use the number one because it is a "tradition" and allows him to work hard to earn the right to wear it. He also stated that it is not just about personal preference, but also about acknowledging the hard work of his team and mechanics who will all be wearing the same car number.
The new regulation change means that Norris will no longer be able to use number 44, which has been a part of Lewis Hamilton's career for many years. However, Verstappen will have had to find a new number after losing number one to Norris.
Verstappen had previously used the number 33 on his Red Bull car before becoming world champion in 2022. He has stated that his favorite number is actually three, which was previously worn by Daniel Ricciardo.
Norris' victory has been met with congratulations from many sportspeople and celebrities around the world, including UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, NBA star Jimmy Butler, six-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz, and reigning world darts champion Luke Littler.
Lando Norris has confirmed that he will be using car number one on his McLaren next year after winning the F1 Drivers' Championship. The news comes as a result of the new regulation change for the 2026 season, which allows drivers to change their car numbers at the start of each year.
As reigning F1 world champion, Lewis Hamilton had used the iconic number 44 on his Mercedes car since the 2014 season. Norris, who has driven for McLaren since 2019 and was pipped by Max Verstappen to win this year's championship, will now be wearing the number one jersey.
Norris says that he chose to use the number one because it is a "tradition" and allows him to work hard to earn the right to wear it. He also stated that it is not just about personal preference, but also about acknowledging the hard work of his team and mechanics who will all be wearing the same car number.
The new regulation change means that Norris will no longer be able to use number 44, which has been a part of Lewis Hamilton's career for many years. However, Verstappen will have had to find a new number after losing number one to Norris.
Verstappen had previously used the number 33 on his Red Bull car before becoming world champion in 2022. He has stated that his favorite number is actually three, which was previously worn by Daniel Ricciardo.
Norris' victory has been met with congratulations from many sportspeople and celebrities around the world, including UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, NBA star Jimmy Butler, six-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz, and reigning world darts champion Luke Littler.
so now that the reigning champ is outta the number 44 game, it's like they're just giving all the cool numbers to the winners of the championship 
lmao what's next? gonna be like a sports draft or something?! 
anyway, congrats to Lando on the win 
, I guess using number one is a big deal now 
but at the same time i get why he wants to wear it Norris said he chose the number one because it's a tradition and shows hard work, and i agree with him 
maybe he's been thinking of changing numbers for a while already?
. I guess it's a big change for him after winning the F1 championship 
. Too bad Lewis Hamilton has to hang up his 44 jersey 
. But hey, Max Verstappen gets to wear the new number... um, is it three now? 
And what's up with Verstappen having to find a new number? It feels like they're just changing them for the sake of change 
The F1 community can be so rigid sometimes... 
I need to see more info on how these numbers are chosen. Is it like a big secret or something? And what about Verstappen saying he likes number three, but ends up losing the number one spot? 
. I love the new rule change btw, it's gonna be interesting to see how teams adapt next year 
. Can't wait to see him rocking the number 1 on his McLaren car next season 
I'm literally dyin over this news!! Lando Norris becoming the new number one driver is everything I've been wishin for! 
. I love how he's all about acknowledging his team and mechanics, they must be hyped too 
. And can we talk about Verstappen having to find a new number? Like what was he even gonna do with 33 anyway? 
! He chose number one for 2026 and it's awesome how he wants to work hard to earn the right to wear it. It shows he respects his team and mechanics too 
. whats interesting is max verstappen gets to go back to his number one jersey, maybe he'll actually like it 
. on a more serious note, congrats to lando norris for winning the championship 
And now, Lando Norris is rocking the number one? It's still pretty cool, but it feels a bit... sterile. 
Number 44 will always be associated with Hamilton's dominance on the track. Max Verstappen's switch to number three is interesting, though! He was already wearing 33 before that and I kinda like him in his old number... 
