Norris Advances Nearer to Championship as Max Verstappen Takes Las Vegas F1 Race Victory

The McLaren Lando Norris moved closer to his first championship with runner-up position in the Las Vegas Grand Prix behind the Red Bull of Max Verstappen

The British driver now leads fellow McLaren driver Oscar Piastri, who finished in fourth place behind Mercedes' George Russell, by 30 points heading to the penultimate race in Qatar next weekend

Norris will secure the title in the Qatar as long as he does not lose over five points to Piastri in Losail, or 17 to Verstappen

Piastri, so impressive in the opening stages of the season, has failed to finish on the podium for six consecutive events

"Verstappen had a strong performance. I made the mistake early on and was too punchy on that first turn," said Norris

"It's still a good result to secure second place. I've got to congratulate Verstappen and his team"

After Qatar, the last event of the championship follows in Abu Dhabi on 7 December

The key stories of one of Formula 1's most prestigious races included:

• Lando Norris maintained his momentum towards the championship despite the victory to Verstappen

• Oscar Piastri's challenging run of form continued as his championship chances diminish

• A superb win for Max Verstappen to maintain him in the title fight

• Recoveries for both Ferrari drivers, following a tough qualifying, with Lewis Hamilton securing a single point for tenth place following beginning at the back

From the beginning, Norris was faithful to his statement that he was "not here not to take risks" as he fought hard to protect his advantage from pole position from Verstappen

However after an aggressive cut in front of the Red Bull driver to head off the Verstappen's attack on the inside, Norris miscalculated his braking zone and ran deep into the turn

This allowed Verstappen to overtake into the first place while Norris also the runner-up spot to George Russell

Through two VSC periods for several opening-lap incidents, including at the start when the Racing Bulls Liam Lawson made contact with Piastri, Max Verstappen gradually established dominance on the event

Russell made an early tire change for the hard tyres, but Lando Norris and Verstappen remained on track

The McLaren driver pitted five laps following the Mercedes driver and Max Verstappen ten laps later

Verstappen was able to rejoin still in the first place, Russell having been failed to catch up on the Red Bull even with his newer rubber

Norris rejoined behind George Russell from his pit stop but following a few cautious laps to let his tires to settle, quickly closed his three-point-three second gap to the Mercedes driver and swept by into second place on the thirty-fourth lap

The British driver asked his engineer how to manage the rest of his race, essentially questioning whether he should settle for second place or challenge for the lead

He was instructed to "chase down Max" but it soon became clear he had no chance. Verstappen was easily could defend against Lando's attacks, and in the closing stages the margin extended substantially as the McLaren started to suffer a technical issue which has so far not been defined

Despite dropping nearly three seconds a circuit, Lando Norris was able to hold off Russell because of the extent of the lead he had built while chasing Verstappen

The Verstappen's sixth victory of the championship - only one behind the two McLaren teammates - was achieved in dominant fashion and keeps him in title contention, at least theoretically, although he needs problems for Lando Norris in the final two events to pass him

"It remains a significant margin, we consistently attempt to maximise everything we've have," Verstappen stated

"In upcoming weekends we will try to take victory in the race and by the conclusion of Abu Dhabi we will know where we end up, but I'm extremely pleased of everyone"

Oscar Piastri started fifth but lost two positions on the first circuit following being hit by Liam Lawson, who was soon taken out of the battle by a broken front wing

He trailed Liam Lawson's teammate Isack Hadjar for the first 15 laps before passing him on the Strip but also out to Leclerc, who he was able to overtake again during the pit-stop period

Piastri ended up after Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli, who competed nearly the entire race on the durable compound after pitting during the initial VSC, but was given a five-second penalty for a start-line violation, which was not immediately obvious on replays

"It proved to be a disappointing event from essentially start to finish in certain respects," Oscar Piastri informed race broadcasters

Questioned about how he would approach the final two races, he commented: "Just attempt to position myself in the best position I can. I obviously need several of things to go my way now to take the title, but all I can do is ensure I'm in the best position to capitalise if something happens"

Charles Leclerc hung on in sixth position, not close enough to benefit from Kimi Antonelli's penalty, while Carlos Sainz fell to seventh place at the flag, his Williams lacking the pace to challenge with the leading outfits in the dry, following his heroic showing to start third in the wet weather

Hadjar secured eighth before the Sauber of Nico Hulkenberg and Lewis Hamilton

The seven-time title winner executed a flying start, up to 13th on the opening circuit and proceeded to advance positions

He got stuck in a DRS train with a group of other cars but was able to use his strong beginning to salvage a championship point following the worst qualifying session of his career