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Amid the excitement around the Las Vegas Grand Prix, McLaren's lead driver is keeping a calm demeanor regarding his prospects of claiming his maiden drivers' championship.

The British driver currently holds a two-dozen point advantage over teammate Oscar Piastri and leads Max Verstappen by 49 points, with just up to 83 points available across the remaining trio of races. However, after pulling off a remarkable recovery from 34 points behind Piastri after the Dutch Grand Prix in the summer, Norris is concentrating on executing with the methodical approach that lifted him to the top of the standings.

"It can quickly go in the other direction once more even though I hope it doesn't," he stated. "That's racing, you know. You can get lucky. Other times you end up unfortunate. Whatever it may be. There's really no point getting excited or thinking about it. I continue to do see it as something that's quite distant."

Norris has found his best form at a crucial juncture—after difficulties with the car in the first part of the season—while Piastri has shed the disciplined, almost flawless ease that previously made him seem to be a champion in waiting. Importantly, Norris kept a impressive level of equanimity throughout, asserting even in the face of challenges—such as his withdrawal from the Dutch GP—that he would stick to his gameplan and work every outing with the same relentless attention to detail. It has yielded results.

All the while, the team have worked hard to attempt to preserve a fair competition for their pair of racers, and it has on occasion been a rather difficult process, especially at the Italian Grand Prix when the squad instructed Piastri to surrender second place to his teammate after he had lost the spot because of a delayed tire change. Some fans were unhappy with what was considered McLaren needlessly manipulating their competitors.

The championship leader has won the last two races, in Mexico and Brazil, and was jeered on the podium at each, leaving him unmoved. "Once you are on top, a lot of people try to undermine you. They do not like seeing you winning. I see it as a positive sign," he remarked.

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

"I don't mind, as long as I win. If I feel like I'm doing it the right manner, and I think that's the case, as long as I am confident I'm putting effort into remaining true to myself and similar principles, then I am not concerned with the rest of it."

Las Vegas, meanwhile, needs to be mastered, and it is not a track suited to the British team. The layout has similarities with Montreal and Azerbaijan: low downforce, cool temperatures, and low grip. These are the only two tracks in the current championship where McLaren have failed to claim at least one podium place, and Norris was circumspect once more about their chances this weekend. Yet, his task in the short term is straightforward: end the race in front of Piastri and the points he needs will come.

Friday Running Shows Mixed Outcomes for Championship Rivals

Charles Leclerc topped the times in FP1 on what was remained a dusty and very slippery track. Alex Albon was second, with the Red Bull star in fourth, Norris sixth, and Piastri eighth. In the more representative evening session of FP2, Norris was quickest from the Silver Arrows of Kimi Antonelli, with Piastri 14th; however, the session was interrupted for nearly the final 20 minutes of running to check a reported loose manhole cover at turn 17.

The issue is taken seriously on a temporary track where, at the inaugural Las Vegas GP staged in 2023, a dislodged manhole struck the Ferrari, heavily damaging it and causing the practice to be ended.

The German Team Announce Stake Sale

The eight-time constructors' champions have revealed that their team principal Toto Wolff has sold a fifteen percent share in his investment firm, equating to a five percent ownership in the team, to American billionaire George Kurtz. Kurtz is the chief executive and creator of the cybersecurity company CrowdStrike. Wolff will stay on as boss and may receive up to £230m from the sale, with Mercedes having been appraised at £4.57 billion, a new high for an F1 team.