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Despite the excitement around 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 two-dozen point advantage over teammate Oscar Piastri and leads Max Verstappen by 49 points, with just a maximum of 83 points available across the final three events. However, after pulling off a remarkable comeback from a significant deficit Piastri after the Dutch Grand Prix in the summer, Norris is focused on performing with the clinical precision that propelled him to the lead of the standings.

"Things can quickly turn the opposite way again even though I don't want it to," he stated. "That's racing, as we all know. You can get lucky. You can also be unfortunate. Whatever it may be. There's really not worth becoming overjoyed or dwelling on it. I continue to do see it as something that's quite distant."

The 26-year-old has found his peak performance at a critical moment—after difficulties with the vehicle in the first part of the season—at the same time that Piastri has shed the disciplined, nearly flawless ease that previously made him seem to be a future title winner. Notably, Norris maintained a impressive level of composure throughout, asserting even in the face of setbacks—like his retirement from the Zandvoort race—that he would adhere to his gameplan and approach each session with the same relentless focus on specifics. It has paid off.

All the while, the team have worked hard to try to maintain a level playing field for their pair of racers, and it has at times been something of torturous experience, most notably at Monza when the team instructed Piastri to surrender second place to Norris after he had lost the spot because of a delayed tire change. Certain spectators were unhappy with what was seen as the team needlessly manipulating their drivers.

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 each, leaving him unfazed. "When you're leading, a lot of people want to undermine you. They do not want to see you winning. I see it as a positive sign," he said.

"It makes me laugh. When I was on the podium in Brazil, I truly enjoyed it. It was very satisfying. At last you sense that you're doing something right.

"It doesn't bother me, as long as I come out on top. As long as I feel like I am competing the correct manner, which I feel like that's the case, so long as I am confident I'm putting effort into being who I am and those kinds of things, then I am not concerned about the rest of it."

Vegas, meanwhile, must be conquered, and it is not a track suited to the McLaren. It shares similarities with Canada and Baku: minimal aerodynamic grip, chilly conditions, and low grip. They are the sole pair of tracks this season where McLaren have been unable to secure a single top-three finish, and the leader was cautious again about their prospects this weekend. Yet, his objective in the short term is simple: finish in front of his teammate and the points he needs will follow.

Practice Shows Varied Results for Championship Rivals

The Ferrari driver topped the times in first practice on what was remained a dusty and very low-grip track. The Williams racer was runner-up, with Verstappen in fourth, Norris sixth, and the Australian eighth. During the more representative evening session of second practice, the Briton was quickest ahead of the Silver Arrows of the Italian rookie, with his teammate 14th; though, the session was interrupted for nearly the final 20 minutes of track time to check a reported loose manhole cover at the penultimate corner.

The issue is treated with caution on a temporary track where, at the inaugural Las Vegas GP staged in 2023, a loose manhole smashed into Carlos Sainz's Ferrari, heavily harming it and leading to the session to be aborted.

The German Team Confirm Ownership Transaction

Mercedes have revealed that their team principal Toto Wolff has sold a fifteen percent share in his holding company, equating to a 5% share in the team, to US tycoon the cybersecurity magnate. Kurtz is the CEO and founder of the cybersecurity company the tech giant. Wolff will remain as team principal and could earn up to £230 million from the deal, with the Brackley-based outfit having been valued at £4.57bn, a record for an F1 team.