Despite the hype surrounding the Sin City Grand Prix, McLaren's lead driver is maintaining a calm demeanor regarding his chances of securing his maiden world title.
Norris presently has a 24-point advantage over teammate Oscar Piastri and leads Max Verstappen by nearly fifty points, with just up to 83 points up for grabs across the remaining trio of races. But, after staging a remarkable comeback from 34 points behind Piastri after the Zandvoort race in the summer, Norris is focused on executing with the methodical approach that propelled him to the lead of the standings.
"Things can easily go the opposite way again as much as I don't want it to," he stated. "That's motorsport, as we all know. You can also have luck. Other times you also be unfortunate. Whatever it may be. It's no point becoming overjoyed or thinking about it. I still view it as a goal that's quite distant."
Norris has discovered his peak performance at a critical juncture—after difficulties with the vehicle in the first part of the campaign—at the same time that Piastri has lost the controlled, almost perfect ease that had for so long made him seem to be a champion in waiting. Notably, Norris kept a remarkable level of equanimity all along, insisting even in the face of challenges—like his retirement from the Zandvoort race—that he would adhere to his gameplan and approach every outing with the same unwavering focus on specifics. This approach has yielded results.
Meanwhile, the team have worked hard to attempt to preserve a level playing field for their two drivers, and it has at times been something of difficult process, most notably at the Italian Grand Prix when the squad instructed Piastri to cede second place to his teammate following he had fallen behind because of a delayed tire change. Some fans did not take well to what was considered McLaren unnecessarily interfering with their competitors.
The championship leader has claimed victory in the previous pair of grands prix, in Mexico and São Paulo, and was booed on the winner's rostrum at both, yet he remained unmoved. "Once you are on top, many people want to bring you down. They don't want to see you winning. I consider it a positive sign," he said.
"It just makes me laugh. When I was on the podium in Brazil, I really enjoyed it. The experience was quite satisfying. You finally sense that you're doing something right.
"I don't mind, as long as I win. If I feel like I am competing the correct way, and I think I am, so long as I feel like I'm putting hard work into remaining true to myself and similar principles, then I am not concerned with the rest of it."
Vegas, on the other hand, must be mastered, and it is not a track suited to the British team. The layout has characteristics with Montreal and Baku: low downforce, cool temperatures, and slippery surfaces. These are the only two tracks this season where McLaren have been unable to claim a single podium place, and the leader was circumspect again about their prospects this weekend. Still, his objective in the short term is straightforward: finish in ahead of his teammate and the championship tally he needs will come.
The Ferrari driver led the leaderboard in first practice on what was remained a sandy and extremely low-grip track. Alex Albon was runner-up, with the Red Bull star in fourth, Norris sixth, and Piastri eighth. During the more indicative night running of second practice, the Briton was quickest ahead of the Mercedes of Kimi Antonelli, with his teammate 14th; however, the session lost nearly the final 20 minutes of track time to check a reported loose drain cover at the penultimate corner.
This problem is taken seriously on a temporary track where, at the first Las Vegas GP held in 2023, a loose drain cover struck Carlos Sainz's Ferrari, heavily damaging it and leading to the session to be aborted.
Mercedes have revealed that their boss the Austrian executive has divested a 15% stake in his investment firm, representing a five percent ownership in the team, to American billionaire the cybersecurity magnate. Kurtz is the CEO and founder of the cybersecurity company the tech giant. Wolff will remain as boss and may receive up to £230m from the sale, with the Brackley-based outfit having been valued at £4.57bn, a new high for an F1 team.
