🔗 Share this article

Amid all hype surrounding the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Lando Norris is keeping a level head about his prospects of securing his first world title.

The British driver presently holds a 24-point lead over teammate Oscar Piastri and is ahead of Max Verstappen by nearly fifty points, with just up to eighty-three points available across the final three races. But, after pulling off a remarkable recovery from 34 points behind his teammate after the Zandvoort race in the summer, Norris is focused on executing with the clinical precision that propelled him to the top of the championship.

"Things can easily turn the opposite way again as much as I hope it doesn't," he stated. "That's motorsport, as we all know. Sometimes you also have luck. You can end up unlucky. Whatever it may be. There's really no point getting excited or thinking about it. I still do see it as something that remains far away."

Norris has found his best form at a crucial moment—after difficulties with the car in the first part of the season—at the same time that Piastri has shed the controlled, almost flawless ease that had for so long made him appear to be a champion in waiting. Importantly, Norris kept a remarkable level of equanimity all along, asserting despite challenges—such as his withdrawal from the Zandvoort race—that he would stick to his strategy and approach every outing with the identical unwavering attention to detail. This approach has paid off.

Meanwhile, the team have gone to no little effort to attempt to maintain a fair competition for their two drivers, and it has on occasion been a rather torturous experience, most notably at the Italian Grand Prix when the team directed the Australian to cede the runner-up spot to Norris after he had fallen behind due to a slow pit stop. Some fans were unhappy with what was seen as McLaren unnecessarily interfering with their competitors.

The championship leader has claimed victory in the last two grands prix, in Mexico and São Paulo, and was jeered on the winner's rostrum at each, leaving him unmoved. "Once you are on top, a lot of people try to bring you down. They do not want to see you winning. I see it as a positive sign," he said.

"It just makes me laugh. When I was on the podium in Interlagos, I truly enjoyed it. The experience was quite satisfying. You finally feel like you are achieving something right.

"I don't mind, as long as I come out on top. As long as I feel like I'm doing it the correct manner, which I feel like that's the case, as long as I feel like I am dedicating effort into being who I am and similar principles, then I am not concerned with the rest of it."

Las Vegas, on the other hand, must be mastered, and it is not a track suited to the McLaren. It shares characteristics with Canada and Baku: low downforce, chilly conditions, and low grip. These are the only two tracks in the current championship where the papaya squad have failed to claim at least one podium place, and the leader was cautious once more about their prospects in Nevada. Yet, his task in the short term is straightforward: end the race in front of his teammate and the points he requires will come.

Practice Shows Mixed Results for Title Contenders

The Ferrari driver topped the times in first practice on what was still a dusty and very low-grip track. Alex Albon was second, with the Red Bull star fourth, the McLaren ace sixth, and the Australian in eighth. During the more indicative evening session of FP2, Norris was fastest ahead of the Mercedes of the Italian rookie, with Piastri 14th; though, the practice was interrupted for almost all of the last third of track time to inspect a reported loose manhole cover at turn 17.

The issue is taken seriously on a temporary track where, at the inaugural Las Vegas GP held in 2023, a dislodged drain cover struck the Ferrari, severely harming it and causing the practice to be ended.

Mercedes Announce Ownership Transaction

Mercedes have revealed that their team principal Toto Wolff has divested a fifteen percent share in his holding company, equating to a five percent ownership in the squad, to American billionaire George Kurtz. The investor is the chief executive and creator of the digital protection firm the tech giant. Wolff will remain as boss and could earn as much as £230m from the sale, with the Brackley-based outfit having been appraised at £4.57 billion, a record for an F1 team.