Norris added that knowing that a mistake can be costly is what makes tackling a qualifying session or a Grand Prix so difficult.
“When you get into Q3 or any qualifying round and have to perform, you always get butterflies in your stomach,” said Norris.
“The nerves are so strong, the pressure so great. And you know that if you do something – brake a meter too late, turn at the wrong time or whatever – then the game is over.”
“And that knowledge makes you feel very tense. But at the same time, it’s an amazing feeling that you might not be able to replicate with many other things.”
Norris admitted he had “changed a lot” since joining F1 in 2019 at the age of 19.
“When I came to F1, I almost cared too much about what other people thought instead of doing my own thing and being myself.
“I just feel like with time, with the pressure and the focus on the work I have to do, I have found a better balance in my life.
“My focus and the job I do here is the same, whether I laugh less or joke less – I’ve just changed – and I still love what I do, otherwise I wouldn’t be here.”
Norris admitted the odds were against him to overtake Verstappen, who finished second in his home race on Sunday.
But he and McLaren know that the constructors’ title, in which they are only 30 points behind Red Bull, is more realistic.
“We give it our all every weekend and our aim is to catch both,” he said. “From a constructor’s point of view it looks much more doable than from a driver’s point of view, but we give it our all and that’s all we can do.”
Verstappen has not won since the Spanish Grand Prix in June, six races ago, and said his lead could be “easily made up”.
The Dutchman said: “Whether I win or not, it will not change my life. Would I like to win? Yes, of course. But the performance of the car is not in my hands.”
“I’m just trying to do my best, give feedback and get faster. I don’t know if that will be enough until the end of the year. But I know that as a team we will do everything we can to be more competitive than we were in Zandvoort, because that was a bad weekend for us.”
