Norris misses karting’s relaxed days as Leclerc recalls its lessons

As the FIA marks 70 years of karting, Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc have looked back on what the sport gave them: Norris misses its relaxed, social atmosphere, while Leclerc recalls learning the fundamentals of racing and how to cope with pressure.

Norris, the 2014 FIA Karting KF champion, said karting teaches a driver to sense what feels right or wrong in a car and how to drive quickly. For anyone hoping to reach Formula 1, he said, starting early in karting is probably key. He also misses its more relaxed, social side: “I miss the karting days.”

Leclerc, winner of the FIA Karting Academy Trophy in 2011, described karting as a practical education in teamwork, set-up, overtaking and approaching a race. He said it also taught him to handle pressure when qualifying mattered most.

Looking at today’s F1 grid, Leclerc said it was special that many drivers who had raced one another in karting 15 or 20 years ago were now competing there. He said the passion and motivation to win had not changed; his karting years, he recalled, involved little marketing or media, with the focus on racing.

The sport traces its roots to California, where Art Ingles and Lou Borelli built the first kart by fitting a 2.5-horsepower lawnmower engine to a steel-tube chassis. The FIA established the International Karting Commission in 1962, and the first Karting World Championship followed in 1964.

The FIA launched its Global Karting Plan in 2024 to make the sport more affordable and accessible. Its Arrive and Drive format supplies every competitor with identical loaned equipment; it cuts costs by two-thirds compared with standard international events. The initiative has also produced dedicated championships in Asia-Pacific, South America and Europe.