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Despite the excitement surrounding the Sin City Grand Prix, Lando Norris is keeping a calm demeanor about his chances of claiming his maiden world title.

The British driver presently holds a 24-point advantage over teammate Oscar Piastri and is ahead of Max Verstappen by nearly fifty points, with just a maximum of 83 points available across the final three events. But, after staging a remarkable comeback from 34 points behind Piastri following the Dutch Grand Prix in August, Norris is focused on executing with the methodical approach that propelled him to the top of the championship.

"It can quickly turn in the other direction again even though I don't want it to," he stated. "That's racing, as we all know. You can also have luck. Other times you end up unfortunate. No matter what happens. It's not worth becoming overjoyed or dwelling on it. I still do see it as something that's quite distant."

Norris has discovered his peak performance at a crucial moment—having struggled with the vehicle in the opening half of the campaign—while Piastri has lost the disciplined, almost flawless ease that previously made him appear to be a future title winner. Notably, Norris kept a impressive level of composure throughout, insisting even in the face of challenges—like his withdrawal from the Dutch GP—that he would adhere to his gameplan and approach every outing with the same relentless attention to detail. It has yielded results.

All the while, McLaren have worked hard to try to maintain a level playing field for their two drivers, and it has at times been a rather torturous process, especially at Monza when the squad directed the Australian to cede the runner-up spot to his teammate after he had fallen behind because of a delayed tire change. Certain spectators were unhappy with what was seen as the team needlessly manipulating their drivers.

Norris has claimed victory in the previous pair of races, in Mexico City and São Paulo, and was jeered on the winner's rostrum at both, yet he remained unfazed. "Once you are leading, many people want to undermine you. They do not like seeing you succeeding. I consider it a positive sign," he said.

"It amuses me. While standing on the podium in Interlagos, I really enjoyed it. It was very satisfying. You finally sense that you're doing success.

"It doesn't bother me, provided that I win. If I feel like I am competing the right way, and I think that's the case, so long as I am confident I am dedicating effort into being who I am and those kinds of things, then I am not concerned about the rest of it."

Las Vegas, meanwhile, needs to be conquered, and it is not a track ideal for the British team. The layout has similarities with Canada and Baku: low downforce, cool temperatures, and slippery surfaces. These are the only two tracks this season where the papaya squad have been unable to secure a single podium place, and Norris was cautious once more about their prospects this weekend. Still, his task in the immediate future is straightforward: finish in ahead of his teammate and the championship tally he needs will come.

Friday Running Sees Mixed Outcomes for Title Contenders

The Ferrari driver topped the times in first practice on what was remained a sandy and very low-grip track. The Williams racer was second, with Verstappen in fourth, Norris in P6, and Piastri eighth. During the more indicative evening session of FP2, Norris was fastest from the Silver Arrows of the Italian rookie, with Piastri down in fourteenth; however, the session lost nearly the final 20 minutes of running to inspect a reported unsecured manhole cover at turn 17.

This problem is treated with caution on a temporary track where, at the first Las Vegas GP held in 2023, a dislodged drain cover smashed into the Ferrari, heavily damaging it and causing the session to be aborted.

The German Team Announce Ownership Transaction

Mercedes have confirmed that their team principal the Austrian executive has sold a 15% stake 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 cybersecurity company the tech giant. The team principal will stay on as team principal and may receive up to £230 million from the deal, with Mercedes having been appraised at £4.57 billion, a record for an F1 team.