🔗 Share this article

Despite all excitement around the Sin City Grand Prix, Lando Norris is keeping a calm demeanor about his prospects of claiming his first world title.

Norris currently has a two-dozen point lead over teammate Oscar Piastri and leads Max Verstappen by 49 points, with only up to 83 points up for grabs across the remaining trio of events. However, after staging a remarkable recovery from a significant deficit his teammate following the Zandvoort race in the summer, Norris is focused on performing with the clinical precision that lifted him to the lead of the standings.

"It can quickly go in the other direction once more even though I don't want it to," he stated. "That's motorsport, as we all know. You can also have luck. You can end up unlucky. Whatever it may be. There's really no point getting excited or dwelling on it. I still do see it as something that's quite far away."

The 26-year-old has discovered his best form at a crucial juncture—after difficulties with the car in the first part of the season—while his teammate has lost the disciplined, nearly flawless composure that had for so long made him seem to be a future title winner. Importantly, Norris maintained a remarkable level of composure all along, asserting despite challenges—such as his retirement from the Dutch GP—that he would stick to his gameplan and approach each session with the identical unwavering attention to detail. This approach has yielded results.

Meanwhile, the team have gone to no little effort to try to maintain a level playing field for their two drivers, and it has at times been a rather torturous process, most notably at the Italian Grand Prix when the team instructed the Australian to cede second place to Norris after he had fallen behind because of a delayed tire change. Certain spectators did not take well to what was considered McLaren needlessly manipulating their drivers.

Norris has claimed victory in the last two grands prix, in Mexico City and Brazil, and was booed on the winner's rostrum at both, leaving him unmoved. "Once you are on top, a lot of people want to undermine you. They don't like seeing you succeeding. I see it as a positive sign," he said.

"It makes me laugh. While standing on the winner's stage in Interlagos, I really loved it. The experience was quite satisfying. At last you sense that you're doing something right.

"It doesn't bother me, provided that I win. If I believe I'm doing it the right way, and I think I am, so long as I feel like I'm putting 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 suited to the McLaren. It shares characteristics with Canada and Azerbaijan: low downforce, cool temperatures, and slippery surfaces. These are the sole pair of tracks this season where the papaya squad have failed to claim a single top-three finish, and the leader was circumspect again about their chances in Nevada. Yet, his task in the short term is straightforward: finish in front of Piastri and the points he requires will come.

Practice Sees Varied Results for Title Rivals

The Ferrari driver topped the leaderboard in first practice on what was remained a sandy and very slippery track. Alex Albon was runner-up, with Verstappen in fourth, Norris in P6, and the Australian eighth. In the more representative evening session of second practice, Norris was quickest from the Silver Arrows of the Italian rookie, with his teammate down in fourteenth; however, the session lost almost all of the last third of running to inspect a reported loose manhole cover at the penultimate corner.

The issue is taken seriously on a temporary track where, at the first Nevada GP held in 2023, a dislodged drain cover smashed into the Ferrari, heavily damaging it and causing the session to be ended.

The German Team Announce Ownership Transaction

The eight-time constructors' champions have confirmed that their team principal Toto Wolff has sold a fifteen percent share in his holding company, equating to a five percent ownership in the squad, to US tycoon the cybersecurity magnate. The investor is the CEO and founder of the cybersecurity company the tech giant. The team principal will remain as team principal and may receive up to £230m from the deal, with the Brackley-based outfit having been valued at £4.57bn, a new high for an Formula 1 constructor.