Norris Edges Closer to Championship as Max Verstappen Secures Las Vegas F1 Race Win

McLaren's Lando Norris moved closer to a maiden championship with second place in the Las Vegas Grand Prix following Red Bull's Max Verstappen

The British driver now leads fellow McLaren driver Oscar Piastri, who ended up fourth behind Mercedes' George Russell, by 30 points heading to the second-to-last race in Qatar next weekend

The Briton will claim the title in the desert as long as he does not lose over five points to Piastri in Losail, or seventeen to Verstappen

The Australian driver, so impressive in the opening stages of the championship, has not finished on the top three for six consecutive events

"Verstappen had a strong performance. I made the mistake at the beginning and was too punchy on that opening corner," stated Norris

"It remains a positive outcome to secure second place. I've got to congratulate Max and his team"

Following Qatar, the final race of the season takes place in Abu Dhabi on December 7th

The main developments of one of Formula 1's most prestigious races included:

• Norris maintained his momentum towards the championship losing the victory to Verstappen

• Oscar Piastri's difficult performance streak persisted as his championship chances diminish

• A superb victory for Max Verstappen to keep him in the championship battle

• Fightbacks for both Ferrari drivers, after a difficult qualifying session, with Lewis Hamilton securing a point for 10th following beginning at the back

At the start, Lando Norris was faithful to his claim that he was "not here to avoid risks" as he battled aggressively to protect his advantage from pole position from Max Verstappen

However following an aggressive cut in front of the Red Bull driver to head off the Dutchman's challenge on the inside, Norris miscalculated his braking zone and ran deep into the corner

That allowed Verstappen to drive past into the lead while the British driver also the runner-up spot to Russell

Through two virtual safety cars for several opening-lap incidents, including at the beginning when the Racing Bulls Liam Lawson collided with Piastri, Verstappen slowly stamped his authority on the event

Russell undertook an early pit stop for the more durable compound, but Norris and Verstappen remained on track

The McLaren driver stopped five laps after the Mercedes driver and Verstappen ten laps later

The Red Bull driver was could rejoin still in the first place, George Russell having been unable to catch up on the Red Bull despite his fresher tyres

Norris rejoined behind Russell from his stop but following a few cautious laps to allow his tires to settle, soon reduced his 3.3-second deficit to the Mercedes and swept by into runner-up position on lap 34

Norris inquired his engineer how to manage the rest of his race, essentially asking whether he should accept second or challenge for the lead

He was told to "chase down Verstappen" but it quickly became apparent he had no chance. Max Verstappen was easily could defend against Lando's attacks, and in the closing stages the margin extended significantly as the McLaren car started to experience a mechanical problem which has thus far remained unidentified

Despite losing nearly three seconds a lap, Norris was could hold off George Russell because of the size of the advantage he had built while pursuing Verstappen

The Red Bull driver's sixth win of the championship - only one behind the two McLaren teammates - was achieved in emphatic style and maintains him in title contention, at least mathematically, although he requires issues for Lando Norris in the final two events to pass him

"It remains a significant margin, we always try to maximise all we've got," Verstappen stated

"In upcoming weekends we will try to take victory in the race and at the end of Abu Dhabi we will see where we end up, but I'm extremely pleased of the entire team"

Oscar Piastri began in fifth but dropped two positions on the opening lap following being clouted by Lawson, who was quickly taken out of the battle by a damaged front wing

He trailed Lawson's teammate Isack Hadjar for the opening fifteen circuits before overtaking him on the Las Vegas Strip but also out to Charles Leclerc, who he was able to repass during the pit-stop period

Piastri finished behind Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli, who competed almost the entire race on the durable compound after stopping during the first virtual safety car, but was given a five-second time penalty for a start-line infringement, which was not immediately obvious on video reviews

"It proved to be a frustrating race from pretty much start to finish in certain respects," Oscar Piastri told race broadcasters

Asked about how he would tackle the remaining events, he commented: "Just attempt to position myself in the best position I can. I clearly need quite a lot of things to go my way at this stage to win, but all I can do is ensure I'm in the ideal situation to capitalise if circumstances change"

Leclerc held on in sixth place, insufficiently close to benefit from Kimi Antonelli's time penalty, while Carlos Sainz dropped to seventh at the flag, his Williams lacking the speed to compete with the leading outfits in the dry, after his impressive showing to start in third in the wet weather

Isack Hadjar took eighth ahead of Sauber's Nico Hulkenberg and Lewis Hamilton

The seven-time champion executed a strong getaway, up to 13th on the opening circuit and proceeded to move forwards

He became trapped in a DRS train with a group of other cars but was able to employ his strong beginning to salvage a point after the poorest qualifying session of his racing life