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Amid the excitement surrounding the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Lando Norris is keeping a level head about his prospects of claiming his first drivers' championship.

The British driver presently holds a 24-point lead over fellow McLaren driver Oscar Piastri and is ahead of Max Verstappen by 49 points, with just a maximum of 83 points up for grabs across the final three events. But, after staging a extraordinary recovery from 34 points behind Piastri after the Zandvoort race in the summer, Norris is concentrating on executing with the methodical approach that lifted him to the top of the championship.

"Things can quickly turn in the other direction once more as much as I hope it doesn't," he stated. "That's motorsport, you know. Sometimes you get lucky. You can end up unlucky. Whatever it may be. It's no point becoming overjoyed or thinking about it. I still do see it as something that's quite far away."

Norris has found his best form at a crucial moment—after difficulties with the vehicle in the first part of the season—at the same time that Piastri has shed the controlled, almost perfect composure that previously made him appear to be a champion in waiting. Importantly, Norris maintained a impressive level of equanimity all along, insisting despite challenges—like his retirement from the Dutch GP—that he would stick to his gameplan and approach every outing with the same unwavering focus on specifics. It has yielded results.

Meanwhile, the team have gone to no little effort to attempt to preserve a level playing field for their two drivers, and it has on occasion been a rather torturous process, especially at Monza when the team instructed Piastri to surrender second place to his teammate following he had lost the spot due to a slow pit stop. Certain spectators were unhappy with what was seen as the team needlessly interfering with their competitors.

Norris has claimed victory in the previous pair of grands prix, in Mexico and Brazil, and was booed on the winner's rostrum at both, leaving him unfazed. "When you're on top, many individuals want to bring you down. They don't want to see you succeeding. I consider it a positive sign," he said.

"It amuses me. While standing on the podium in Brazil, I truly enjoyed it. The experience was quite satisfying. You finally sense that you're doing success.

"It doesn't bother me, provided that I come out on top. If I feel like I am competing the correct way, and I think I am, so long as I am confident I am dedicating effort into being who I am and similar principles, then I'm not too fussed with the rest of it."

Las Vegas, on the other hand, needs to be conquered, and it is not a track suited to the McLaren. It shares characteristics with Canada and Baku: minimal aerodynamic grip, chilly conditions, and low grip. These are the sole pair of tracks this season where the papaya squad have been unable to claim at least one top-three finish, and Norris was cautious again about their chances this weekend. Still, his objective in the short term is straightforward: end the race in front of his teammate and the points he requires will follow.

Friday Running Sees Mixed Results for Championship Contenders

The Ferrari driver topped the leaderboard in first practice on what was still a sandy and extremely low-grip surface. Alex Albon was second, with the Red Bull star in fourth, Norris in P6, and Piastri eighth. In the more representative night running of second practice, the Briton was fastest from the Silver Arrows of Kimi Antonelli, with Piastri 14th; however, the session lost almost all of the final 20 minutes of track time to check a suspected loose drain cover at the penultimate corner.

This problem is treated with caution on a temporary track where, at the first Nevada GP held in 2023, a loose drain cover struck the Ferrari, severely harming it and leading to the practice to be ended.

The German Team Confirm Ownership Transaction

Mercedes have confirmed that their team principal Toto Wolff has divested a 15% stake in his holding company, representing 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 could earn up to £230 million from the deal, with Mercedes having been valued at £4.57bn, a record for an Formula 1 constructor.