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Amid all hype around the Sin City Grand Prix, McLaren's lead driver is maintaining a level head regarding his prospects of securing his first drivers' championship.

Norris presently has a 24-point lead over fellow McLaren driver Oscar Piastri and is ahead of Max Verstappen by 49 points, with just up to 83 points available across the final three races. But, after pulling off a extraordinary comeback from a significant deficit Piastri following the Zandvoort race in the summer, Norris is focused on performing with the methodical approach that lifted him to the lead of the standings.

"It can easily go the opposite way again even though I don't want it to," he stated. "That's racing, as we all know. Sometimes you also have luck. You can end up unfortunate. Whatever it may be. There's really no point getting excited or thinking about it. I still do see it as something that's quite distant."

Norris has found his peak performance at a crucial moment—after difficulties with the car in the first part of the campaign—at the same time that his teammate has shed the disciplined, nearly perfect composure that previously made him seem to be a champion in waiting. Notably, Norris maintained a impressive level of composure all along, insisting despite challenges—like his retirement from the Zandvoort race—that he would stick to his gameplan and work each session with the identical unwavering focus on specifics. This approach has paid off.

Meanwhile, McLaren have gone to no little effort to try to maintain a level playing field for their pair of racers, and it has at times been a rather difficult process, especially at Monza when the team instructed the Australian to cede the runner-up spot to his teammate after he had lost the spot because of a slow pit stop. Some fans were unhappy with what was considered McLaren unnecessarily manipulating their competitors.

Norris has won the last two races, in Mexico City and Brazil, and was booed on the podium at both, leaving him unmoved. "When you're on top, many people try to bring you down. They don't want to see you winning. I consider it a positive sign," he said.

"It just amuses me. When I was on the podium in Interlagos, I truly enjoyed it. The experience was quite satisfying. You finally feel like you are achieving something right.

"I don't mind, as long as I come out on top. As long as I believe I am competing the correct way, which I feel like that's the case, so long as I am confident I am dedicating hard work into being who I am and similar principles, then I am not concerned with external opinions."

Vegas, meanwhile, needs to be mastered, and it is not a track suited to the McLaren. It shares characteristics with Canada and Azerbaijan: low downforce, chilly conditions, and low grip. They are the only two circuits this season where the papaya squad have been unable to secure at least one top-three finish, and the leader was circumspect once more about their chances in Nevada. Yet, his task in the short term is simple: finish in front of Piastri and the points he needs will come.

Practice Shows Mixed Results for Championship Rivals

Charles Leclerc topped the times in first practice on what was still a dusty and very low-grip surface. Alex Albon was runner-up, with Verstappen in fourth, the McLaren ace sixth, and the Australian eighth. In the more representative night running of second practice, the Briton was quickest ahead of the Mercedes of Kimi Antonelli, with Piastri 14th; though, the practice lost almost all of the last third of running to check a reported unsecured drain cover at turn 17.

The issue is treated with caution on a street circuit where, at the inaugural Nevada GP staged in 2023, a dislodged drain cover smashed into Carlos Sainz's Ferrari, heavily damaging it and leading to the practice to be ended.

Mercedes Confirm Stake Sale

The eight-time constructors' champions have revealed that their team principal Toto Wolff has sold a fifteen percent share in his investment firm, representing a 5% share in the squad, to American billionaire the cybersecurity magnate. Kurtz is the chief executive and creator of the cybersecurity company the tech giant. The team principal will remain as boss and could earn up to £230m from the deal, with the Brackley-based outfit having been appraised at £4.57 billion, a new high for an F1 team.