Lando Norris maintains his confidence in the championship battle remains undiminished despite a dramatic disqualification that reshaped the Formula One title fight. The McLaren driver saw a substantial points advantage diminish after both he and teammate Oscar Piastri were excluded from the Las Vegas Grand Prix results due to a technical infringement.
The ruling propelled Red Bull’s Max Verstappen back into serious contention, reducing Norris’s championship buffer to just 24 points over both Verstappen and Piastri as the series heads to Qatar for the penultimate round.
“We’ve considered him a threat throughout the entire season, even when the points gap was larger,” Norris stated. “We understand his capabilities and what Red Bull can achieve, so our approach remains unchanged. There’s no reason to alter our strategy when we’ve been performing effectively.”
The British driver acknowledged the disappointment of losing valuable points but emphasized the team’s resilience. “Naturally, it’s frustrating when significant effort yields limited results,” he noted. “However, we’ve quickly shifted our focus to the upcoming challenges in Qatar.”
McLaren’s team leadership defended their strategic decisions in Nevada, attributing the technical violation to unexpected aerodynamic behavior during the race. “Our data from practice sessions indicated we operated within acceptable parameters,” explained team principal Andrea Stella. “The extensive vertical oscillations we encountered during the race exceeded our predictions and contributed to the excessive wear.”
Piastri confirmed the team’s competitive dynamic remains intact, stating he wouldn’t employ team orders to assist Norris’s championship bid while mathematically remaining in contention himself.
With 58 points available across the weekend’s events, Norris can secure his maiden championship in Qatar under multiple scenarios, though the reduced margin for error adds intensity to the season’s climax.
