Lando Norris appears to have been outed as the F1 driver conducting private tests in WRC machinery, a rumour that captivated the paddock when it first spread last season.
The story originated from former F1 journalist Peter Windsor, who claimed he would not reveal the identity of the mystery driver involved.
Valtteri Bottas and Lance Stroll are two names that have been floated as potential suspects, but neither was ultimately unmasked.
The former has competed in rallies in his native Finland in the past and the latter was spotted behind the wheel of a rally car shortly before F1 pre-season testing earlier this year.
However, Windsor has now seemingly backtracked on his previous pledge, saying: "I know Lando is a serious WRC fan," when being interviewed on the Cameron Cc: YouTube Channel.
"And I hope I’m not giving away too many secrets here when I say I know he’s been out in WRC cars and he’s unbelievably good."
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Golf and WRC
F1 drivers dabbling in other motorsport disciplines is not unprecedented and rallying has attracted its fair share of suitors over the years.
Kimi Raikkonen left F1 after the 2009 season to pursue a career in WRC, although it was reasonably short lived. He returned to single-seaters for the 2012 campaign.
Robert Kubica suffered a serious crash whilst rallying, which resulted in life-altering injuries, before the 2011 F1 season. It ended his career in the championship until he made an impressive and popular comeback for Williams for a year in 2019.
As for Norris, Windsor attributed the skill he displayed in tricky conditions at Albert Park last month to his experience behind the wheel of a WRC car - and his love of golf.
"And he's also a very good golfer... one of the reason's he did a really good job [in the Australian Grand Prix] is he's now got everything assembled in front of him that he needs in order to do the job," Windsor added.
"And I think the touch and the feel and the rhythm that he knows he has in golf and WRC rally cars showed itself a little bit in the semi-wet and wet [in Melbourne]. We saw some beautiful slides from Lando.
"He's leading the race, he's got Max [Verstappen] and George [Russell] and [Oscar] Piastri and all those lot behind him, and he's having moments with the car, and he's got the back end out... and he's got the power on beautifully, and the way he held the car when he nearly ended in tears mid-race, that was pure WRC talent mixed with golf sensitivity around the green.
"That was just superb to watch... he's got so much capacity around him, which a lot of people don't give him credit for."
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