2009 Formula 1 champion Jenson Button has praised Lando Norris for speaking openly about mental health.
While reflecting on his own career in the championship, Button detailed how every driver is "flawed" and "insecure", which he argued could be seen in some of Lewis Hamilton's Ferrari radio messages.
"As drivers, we're flawed. We are insecure," Button told Tom Clarkson during an appearance on the F1 Beyond The Grid podcast. "And I'll go for any driver. When I heard Lewis Hamilton on the radio last year in the Ferrari, when he asks a question, they don't come back to him, and he's like, 'Have I done something wrong?' You're a seven-time world champion. The confidence you should have is out of this world, but insecurities creep in.
"You forget what you've achieved, and you just think about that last session. You're like, 'I'm not good enough.' You know, 'I was two-tenths behind my team-mate.' It's crazy. And the pressure you put yourself under, it's enormous.
"And that's why you see so many drivers fail in the sport even though they have the talent. Mentally, they're just in a really dark place. And I've heard it from many drivers. We think of it as a weakness, so we don't talk about it, and that's what amazed me with Lando. The way he's been outspoken over the last couple of years on mental health. Really, really good. And I think that gives you a lot of strength."
Norris was very open about his mental health battles during his championship fight against his McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri and Red Bull's Max Verstappen. After clinching the title, he spoke to Sky Sports News about the importance of speaking to a psychologist throughout the season.
“Very,” he said when asked about the significance of a psychologist to his championship fight.
“When you look at the end of the season, two points were all I needed, you know? There are plenty of places that I could have got more points. There’s also plenty of places I could have lost more points, and it’s hard to quantify, ‘Did this one meeting help you get this many points?’
“You don’t really know this thing, because it’s just a collection of work, and you go through everything, ‘Is this going to help you potentially do a better job?’
“If it’s a yes, you’ve got to do as many of those different things as you can. Certainly, working with a psychologist and different people in many different areas all played a part.
“How much? Very difficult to know. But did it make me perform better? Did it allow me to get wins in the second half of the season and have that run, which I would say effectively got me the championship in the end? Yes.
“So every small piece can add up and make a big difference.”
