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Despite the excitement surrounding the Sin City Grand Prix, McLaren's lead driver is keeping a level head regarding his chances of claiming his first drivers' championship.

Norris presently has a 24-point lead over fellow McLaren driver Oscar Piastri and leads Max Verstappen by nearly fifty points, with just up to 83 points up for grabs across the remaining trio of events. But, after pulling off a remarkable recovery from 34 points behind his teammate following the Zandvoort race in August, Norris is concentrating on performing with the clinical precision that lifted him to the top of the championship.

"It can easily go the opposite way again as much as I don't want it to," he stated. "That's racing, as we all know. You can also have luck. You can also be unfortunate. No matter what happens. It's not worth becoming overjoyed or thinking about it. I still view it as something that's quite far away."

Norris has discovered his best form at a crucial juncture—after difficulties with the car in the opening half of the season—while his teammate has shed the disciplined, nearly flawless composure that previously made him appear to be a champion in waiting. Notably, Norris maintained a impressive level of equanimity throughout, insisting even in the face of setbacks—like his retirement from the Zandvoort race—that he would adhere to his strategy and approach each session with the same relentless attention to detail. This approach has paid off.

Meanwhile, the team have worked hard to attempt to maintain a level playing field for their two drivers, and it has on occasion been a rather torturous experience, especially at the Italian Grand Prix when the team directed the Australian to cede second place to Norris following he had lost the spot because of a delayed tire change. Certain spectators were unhappy with what was seen as McLaren unnecessarily interfering with their drivers.

Norris has claimed victory in the previous pair of grands prix, in Mexico City and São Paulo, and was jeered on the podium at each, yet he remained unmoved. "When you're leading, many people try to bring you down. They don't want to see you winning. I see it as a good thing," he said.

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

"It doesn't bother me, provided that I win. As long as I feel like I am competing the correct manner, and I think that's the case, so long as I feel like 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, on the other hand, needs to be mastered, and it is not a track suited to the McLaren. It shares characteristics with Canada and Baku: low downforce, chilly conditions, and slippery surfaces. These 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 once more about their chances this weekend. Yet, his task in the short term is simple: finish in front of Piastri and the championship tally he requires will follow.

Practice Shows Mixed Results for Championship Rivals

The Ferrari driver topped the leaderboard in first practice on what was still a dusty and extremely low-grip surface. The Williams racer was runner-up, with the Red Bull star in fourth, Norris sixth, and the Australian in eighth. In the more indicative night running of second practice, the Briton was quickest from the Silver Arrows of Kimi Antonelli, with Piastri 14th; however, the practice was interrupted for nearly the final 20 minutes of running to check a reported unsecured drain cover at the penultimate corner.

This problem is treated with caution on a street circuit where, at the inaugural Las Vegas GP held in 2023, a loose manhole struck the Ferrari, heavily harming it and leading to the practice to be aborted.

The German Team Confirm Ownership Transaction

The eight-time constructors' champions have revealed that their team principal the Austrian executive has divested a 15% stake in his holding company, equating to a five percent ownership in the squad, to US tycoon the cybersecurity magnate. The investor 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 £230m from the deal, with Mercedes having been appraised at £4.57bn, a record for an F1 team.