Lando Norris Edges Nearer to Title as Verstappen Claims Las Vegas F1 Race Victory

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

The British driver now leads teammate Oscar Piastri, who finished fourth behind Mercedes' George Russell, by 30 points going into the penultimate race in Qatar this coming weekend

The Briton will win the title in the desert as long as he doesn't surrender more than five points to Piastri in Losail, or seventeen to Verstappen

Piastri, so strong in the opening stages of the championship, has failed to finish on the podium for six races

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

"It remains a good result to get second. 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 among Formula 1's most high-profile races were:

• Lando Norris continued his progress towards the championship losing the victory to Max Verstappen

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

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

• Fightbacks for both Ferrari drivers, following a tough qualifying session, with Lewis Hamilton claiming a single point for tenth place after beginning at the rear

At the start, Norris was true to his statement that he was "not here not to take risks" as he battled aggressively to defend his advantage from pole position from Max Verstappen

But following an forceful cut in front of Verstappen to head off the Verstappen's challenge on the inside, the McLaren driver miscalculated his braking zone and went too deep into the corner

That allowed Max Verstappen to overtake into the first place while Norris lost second place to Russell

Through two virtual safety cars for several opening-lap incidents, including at the beginning when the Racing Bulls Liam Lawson collided with Oscar Piastri, Max Verstappen slowly established dominance on the race

George Russell undertook an early pit stop for the more durable compound, but Lando Norris and Max Verstappen stayed out

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

The Red Bull driver was able to rejoin still in the first place, Russell having been unable to close in on the Red Bull despite his newer rubber

Lando Norris returned after Russell from his pit stop but after a few cautious laps to allow his tires to warm up, quickly reduced his 3.3-second deficit to the Mercedes driver and swept by into runner-up position on lap 34

The British driver asked his engineer how to run the remainder of his event, essentially asking whether he should settle for second or challenge for the lead

He was told to "chase down Verstappen" but it quickly became apparent he had no chance. Verstappen was easily could defend against Lando's challenges, and in the closing stages the margin extended substantially as the McLaren began to experience a technical issue which has so far not been defined

Despite dropping nearly three seconds a circuit, Norris was able to hold off George Russell because of the size of the advantage he had built while pursuing Max Verstappen

The Red Bull driver's sixth win of the season - just one less than the two McLaren drivers - was taken in emphatic style and maintains him in title contention, at minimum theoretically, even if he requires problems for Norris in both remaining races to pass him

"It remains a big gap, we consistently attempt to optimize everything we've got," Max Verstappen said

"In upcoming weekends we will attempt to take victory in the race and at the end of Abu Dhabi we will see where we finish, but I'm extremely pleased of everyone"

Piastri started fifth but dropped two places on the first circuit after being clouted by Liam Lawson, who was quickly taken out of contention by a broken front wing

He followed 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 could overtake again during the pit-stop period

Piastri ended up after Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli, who ran almost the entire race on the durable compound after stopping during the first virtual safety car, but was awarded a five-second penalty for a starting procedure violation, which was not clearly visible on replays

"It was a disappointing 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 put myself in the optimal situation I can. I clearly need several of factors to favor me 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, insufficiently close to benefit from Kimi Antonelli's time penalty, while Sainz fell to seventh at the finish, his Williams missing the pace to challenge with the top teams in the dry, after his impressive showing to qualify in third in the wet weather

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

The seven-time title winner made a strong getaway, rising to 13th on the first lap and proceeded to advance positions

He became trapped in a DRS train with a group of additional vehicles but was could use his strong beginning to salvage a point after the worst qualifying performance of his racing life