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Amid the hype surrounding the Las Vegas Grand Prix, McLaren's lead driver is maintaining a calm demeanor about his chances of claiming his maiden drivers' championship.

Norris presently holds a 24-point lead over teammate Oscar Piastri and leads Max Verstappen by 49 points, with just up to eighty-three points up for grabs across the remaining trio of events. However, after pulling off a remarkable comeback from 34 points behind Piastri following the Zandvoort race in August, Norris is focused on executing with the methodical approach that lifted him to the top of the standings.

"It can easily go in the other direction once more as much as I don't want it to," he stated. "That's motorsport, you know. Sometimes you also have luck. Other times you end up unlucky. No matter what happens. It's not worth becoming overjoyed or thinking about it. I still do see it as something that remains distant."

Norris has discovered his best form at a crucial moment—after difficulties with the vehicle in the first part of the campaign—at the same time that Piastri has lost the disciplined, nearly perfect ease that previously made him seem to be a champion in waiting. Importantly, Norris maintained a remarkable level of equanimity all along, insisting even in the face of setbacks—like his withdrawal from the Zandvoort race—that he would adhere to his gameplan and approach every outing with the identical relentless attention to detail. This approach has yielded results.

All the while, the team have gone to no little effort to attempt to maintain a level playing field for their two drivers, and it has on occasion been a rather torturous process, most notably at Monza when the squad instructed Piastri to surrender second place to Norris after he had lost the spot due to a delayed tire change. Some fans were unhappy with what was considered McLaren unnecessarily manipulating their competitors.

The championship leader has claimed victory in the previous pair of races, in Mexico City and São Paulo, and was jeered on the winner's rostrum at each, leaving him unmoved. "When you're on top, many people try to undermine you. They do not want to see you succeeding. I consider it a good thing," he said.

"It makes me laugh. While standing on the podium in Brazil, I really loved it. It was quite enjoyable. At last you feel like you're doing success.

"I don't mind, provided that I come out on top. As long as I believe I'm doing it the right manner, which I feel like that's the case, so long as I am confident I'm putting hard work into remaining true to myself and those kinds of things, then I'm not too fussed about the rest of it."

Las Vegas, on the other hand, must be conquered, and it is not a track suited to the McLaren. It shares characteristics with Canada and Azerbaijan: minimal aerodynamic grip, cool temperatures, and slippery surfaces. They are the only two circuits in the current championship where the papaya squad have been unable to claim at least one top-three finish, and the leader was circumspect again about their prospects this weekend. Yet, his objective in the immediate future is simple: finish in front of his teammate and the championship tally he needs will follow.

Practice Sees Varied Outcomes for Title Rivals

The Ferrari driver led the leaderboard in FP1 on what was still a sandy and extremely slippery track. Alex Albon was runner-up, with Verstappen in fourth, the McLaren ace in P6, and Piastri eighth. During the more representative evening session of second practice, Norris was quickest ahead of the Silver Arrows of the Italian rookie, with Piastri 14th; though, the session lost nearly the last third of running to check a suspected loose drain cover at the penultimate corner.

This problem is taken seriously on a temporary track where, at the inaugural Nevada GP held in 2023, a dislodged drain cover struck Carlos Sainz's Ferrari, severely damaging it and leading to the practice to be aborted.

Mercedes Confirm Ownership Sale

Mercedes have confirmed that their boss Toto Wolff has divested a 15% stake in his investment firm, equating to a 5% share in the squad, to US tycoon the cybersecurity magnate. The investor is the CEO and founder of the cybersecurity company the tech giant. Wolff will stay on as team principal and may receive as much as £230m from the sale, with the Brackley-based outfit having been appraised at £4.57 billion, a new high for an Formula 1 constructor.