Lando Norris is clinging onto his Formula 1 world championship hopes with three rounds remaining this season.
The British driver is now 62 points behind Max Verstappen after a disastrous weekend last time out at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix in Brazil.
Norris stormed to pole position in qualifying the championship leader didn’t make the top 10. He failed to take advantage as Verstappen took a superb victory in the rain while Norris finished in sixth place.
Verstappen can leave the Las Vegas Grand Prix with his fourth world championship if he outscores the McLaren driver.
Norris explained in the FIA press conference in Las Vegas that one thing was very difficult as he battled Verstappen for the championship this year.
Lando Norris explained it was ‘impossible’ to replicate the margins Red Bull had in the opening rounds
Red Bull had a significant advantage over the rest of the field in the opening few rounds as the Austrian team won four of the first six races with Verstappen.
This gave the Dutchman a healthy advantage over the rest of the field in the championship as McLaren in particular began to catch up.
Verstappen’s early dominance was impressive, and they capitalised on McLaren’s underdeveloped car which was significantly updated in Miami. He has battled on track with Norris who was advised to be more decisive in combat.
Norris explained that it was tricky to replicate Red Bull’s early advantage as McLaren had less of a dominant car.
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He said: “We started miles off the pace. We started third, fourth, best team at the beginning of the year. We were for a long time.
“Red Bull were extremely dominant, more dominant than any other team has been for the rest of the year. We’ve been extremely quick and probably one of the quickest for the most part.
“But when we have been, it’s been by a much smaller margin. So to create the differences that they were able to create in the beginning of the year, it’s pretty much impossible.”
Lando Norris needs to stop making small errors to be world champion
Norris has performed admirably at times this season with dominant drives at Zandvoort and at the Singapore Grand Prix.
These wins were superb but both had small errors that could have changed the course of the race. He also lost time at Silverstone with missing his pit box slightly at the last pit stop.
This is the first year he is consistently fighting at the front and that comes with a different pressure to racing in the midfield.
Next season will be a challenge to go a step further against Norris’ ice-cool teammate Oscar Piastri at McLaren.
