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Despite all hype surrounding the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Lando Norris is maintaining a calm demeanor about his prospects of securing his maiden world title.

The British driver presently holds a two-dozen point lead over fellow McLaren driver Oscar Piastri and is ahead of Max Verstappen by 49 points, with only a maximum of 83 points available across the remaining trio of races. But, after pulling off a remarkable recovery from a significant deficit Piastri following the Dutch Grand Prix in August, Norris is focused on performing with the clinical precision that propelled him to the lead of the championship.

"Things can quickly turn the opposite way once more even though I hope it doesn't," he commented. "That's racing, you know. Sometimes you also have luck. You can also be unlucky. No matter what happens. There's really not worth getting excited or thinking about it. I continue to view it as something that remains far away."

The 26-year-old has found his best form at a crucial moment—having struggled with the vehicle in the first part of the season—while Piastri has shed the disciplined, almost perfect ease that had for so long made him seem to be a future title winner. Notably, Norris maintained a impressive level of equanimity all along, insisting even in the face of challenges—like his withdrawal from the Zandvoort race—that he would adhere to his gameplan and approach every outing with the same unwavering focus on specifics. It has paid off.

Meanwhile, the team have worked hard to attempt to maintain a fair competition for their pair of racers, and it has on occasion been a rather torturous experience, especially at Monza when the squad directed the Australian to cede the runner-up spot to Norris following he had fallen behind due to a delayed tire change. Certain spectators did not take well to what was considered McLaren needlessly interfering with their competitors.

The championship leader has won the last two grands prix, in Mexico and São Paulo, and was jeered on the winner's rostrum at each, yet he remained unfazed. "Once you are leading, a lot of people want to undermine you. They do not like seeing you succeeding. I see it as a good thing," he remarked.

"It amuses me. When I was on the winner's stage in Brazil, I truly loved it. The experience was quite enjoyable. You finally sense that you're doing something right.

"I don't mind, provided that I win. As long as I believe I'm doing it the correct way, and I think that's the case, so long as I am confident I'm putting effort into remaining true to myself and those kinds of things, then I'm not too fussed with external opinions."

Las Vegas, meanwhile, 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 slippery surfaces. They are the sole pair of circuits in the current championship where McLaren have been unable to secure a single top-three finish, and Norris was cautious again about their prospects in Nevada. Still, his task in the immediate future is straightforward: end the race in ahead of Piastri and the points he needs will come.

Practice Sees Mixed Outcomes for Championship Contenders

Charles Leclerc topped the leaderboard in first practice on what was still a sandy and very low-grip track. The Williams racer was runner-up, with the Red Bull star in fourth, the McLaren ace in P6, and Piastri in eighth. In the more indicative evening session of FP2, Norris was fastest ahead of the Mercedes of the Italian rookie, with Piastri 14th; however, the practice was interrupted for nearly the final 20 minutes of track time to check a suspected loose manhole cover at turn 17.

This problem is taken seriously on a temporary track where, at the first Las Vegas GP staged in 2023, a dislodged drain cover smashed into the Ferrari, heavily damaging it and leading to the practice to be ended.

Mercedes Announce Ownership Transaction

Mercedes have confirmed that their boss the Austrian executive has divested a fifteen percent share in his investment firm, equating to a five percent ownership in the team, to US tycoon George Kurtz. The investor is the CEO and founder of the digital protection firm CrowdStrike. Wolff will remain as boss and may receive up to £230m from the deal, with the Brackley-based outfit having been appraised at £4.57bn, a record for an F1 team.