🔗 Share this article

Despite the excitement around the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Lando Norris is keeping a level head regarding his prospects of securing his first drivers' championship.

Norris currently holds a two-dozen point lead over fellow McLaren driver Oscar Piastri and is ahead of Max Verstappen by nearly fifty points, with just up to 83 points up for grabs across the remaining trio of events. But, after pulling off a remarkable recovery from a significant deficit Piastri following the Zandvoort race in the summer, Norris is focused on performing with the methodical approach that propelled him to the lead of the standings.

"It can quickly turn in the other direction again as much as I hope it doesn't," he stated. "That's racing, you know. Sometimes you also have luck. You can also be unfortunate. Whatever it may be. It's no point becoming overjoyed or thinking about it. I continue to view it as something that's quite distant."

Norris has found his best form at a critical moment—having struggled with the car in the first part of the season—at the same time that his teammate has shed the disciplined, almost perfect composure that had for so long made him seem to be a future title winner. Notably, Norris kept a remarkable level of equanimity throughout, asserting despite setbacks—such as his withdrawal from the Zandvoort race—that he would adhere to his gameplan and work each session with the same unwavering focus on specifics. It has yielded results.

Meanwhile, McLaren have gone to no little effort to attempt to preserve a level playing field for their pair of racers, and it has at times been a rather difficult process, most notably at Monza when the squad instructed Piastri to surrender the runner-up spot to Norris following he had lost the spot because of a delayed tire change. Certain spectators were unhappy with what was considered McLaren unnecessarily manipulating their competitors.

The championship leader has claimed victory in the previous pair of races, in Mexico City and Brazil, and was jeered on the podium at both, leaving him unmoved. "When you're leading, a lot of individuals try to bring you down. They do not like seeing you succeeding. I consider it a good thing," he said.

"It just makes me laugh. When I was on the winner's stage in Brazil, I truly enjoyed it. It was quite enjoyable. You finally sense that you are achieving something right.

"It doesn't bother me, provided that I come out on top. If I believe I am competing the right manner, and I think I am, so long as I am confident I am dedicating effort into remaining true to myself and similar principles, then I am not concerned about external opinions."

Las Vegas, meanwhile, must be conquered, and it is not a track ideal for the McLaren. The layout has similarities with Canada and Azerbaijan: low downforce, chilly conditions, and slippery surfaces. These are the sole pair of tracks in the current championship where McLaren have failed to secure at least one podium place, and the leader was cautious again about their chances this weekend. Yet, his task in the immediate future is simple: end the race in ahead of his teammate and the championship tally he needs will come.

Friday Running Sees Mixed Results for Championship Rivals

The Ferrari driver led the times in first practice on what was remained a dusty and very slippery track. The Williams racer was runner-up, with Verstappen fourth, the McLaren ace in P6, and Piastri eighth. In the more representative night running of second practice, the Briton was fastest from the Mercedes of Kimi Antonelli, with his teammate 14th; though, the practice lost almost all of the last third of running to inspect a suspected loose manhole cover at the penultimate corner.

The issue is treated with caution on a street circuit where, at the inaugural Nevada GP held in 2023, a dislodged manhole smashed into Carlos Sainz's Ferrari, severely damaging it and causing the session to be ended.

The German Team Confirm Ownership Sale

Mercedes have confirmed that their team principal the Austrian executive has divested a fifteen percent share in his holding company, equating to a 5% share in the squad, to US tycoon George Kurtz. Kurtz is the CEO and founder of the digital protection firm CrowdStrike. Wolff will remain as team principal and may receive as much as £230 million from the deal, with Mercedes having been appraised at £4.57 billion, a new high for an F1 team.