Lando Norris tightened his grip on the Formula 1 championship in São Paulo on Sunday, claiming his second straight victory to extend his lead over McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri to 24 points with three races remaining.
The Briton delivered a flawless weekend at Interlagos, taking pole and winning both the sprint and the grand prix to move a step closer to a first world title. Max Verstappen, despite producing one of his finest drives of the season to finish third from the pit lane, now trails Norris by 49 points with only 83 still available.
Asked after the race whether he was thinking about the championship, Norris was quick to play it down. “Not at all,” he said. Yet, after a run of seven wins in 21 grands prix, and a turnaround of 58 points on his team-mate since late August, he is in total control heading into the next round in Las Vegas.
Piastri had left the Dutch Grand Prix with a 34-point lead and seven wins, but since then his campaign has unravelled. A series of costly errors and inconsistent pace have opened the door for Norris, whose calm and precision have marked a dramatic evolution from the first half of the season.
“It was a great win,” Norris said. “But seeing how quick Max was today, I’m pretty disappointed we weren’t faster. That’s where my mind is now, to see where we can improve. Obviously, not a long way to go, but things can change quickly. I just need to focus on myself, keep my head down and keep pushing.”
Saturday’s sprint win had already given Norris a nine-point advantage and underlined his progress. The 25-year-old said he has learned to handle pressure and outside scrutiny more effectively after admitting earlier in the year that he “cared too much” about how he was perceived.
“I’ve learned to deal with things better,” he said. “Not by not caring, because I still always want to have a good impression. But I’ve learned to be true to myself, have confidence and speak my mind.”
For Piastri, the weekend was another setback. His crash from third in the sprint handed Norris the championship lead, while a collision with Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in the grand prix earned him a 10-second penalty, though he recovered to finish fifth.
The Australian accepted the stewards’ decision but was more concerned about his lack of pace. “It kind of is what it is,” he said. “The penalty was one thing, but the speed wasn’t where I wanted it to be. I just need to get on top of that and finish the season as strongly as I can.”
Verstappen, meanwhile, acknowledged that his title hopes are virtually gone after a season of inconsistency. “We didn’t lose the championship here,” he said. “We lost it from race one to Zandvoort. We had too many weekends where we were not quick enough. Over the whole season, we haven’t been good enough, but we’ll keep fighting for wins.”
For now, though, it is Norris who stands on the brink of fulfilling the promise many saw from the start of the year, with the championship firmly in his hands.
