Max Verstappen may have been able to halt the charge of Lando Norris last time out, but a controversial end at the United States Grand Prix has added more vigour to an already ambitious Brit.
Verstappen’s lead in the drivers’ championship sits at 57 points with five grands prix and two sprint races left in the season.
For Norris to deny Verstappen a fourth world championship, he has the difficult task of scoring on average more than 11 points over the Dutchman in the remaining five race weekends.
It is a task that will be exceptionally challenging to overcome, but Norris has experienced a banner year in his F1 career.
The Briton thought he had made a late pass on Verstappen to claim third last time out, but a penalty for passing off track demoted him back to fourth behind his title rival.
He and his team were not thrilled with the penalty, believing Verstappen had forced him off the circuit — pointing to the fact Verstappen also went off track as evidence of that claim.
Now with a seemingly implausible mountain to climb, Norris said he is happy that F1 is on track again this weekend after the ending just days before.
“Just missing out on the podium in Austin was a tricky one, but I look forward to going again this weekend in Mexico,” he said.
“We’ll once again be giving it our all and aiming to finish strong.”
McLaren is in a strong position in the constructors’ championship, holding a 40-point lead over Red Bull.Â
But Ferrari’s first and second last weekend has launched them into the title picture, 48 points adrift of McLaren.
The constructors’ championship determines the prize money for each team, adding to the motivation to be crowned champions.
It is one of the factors driving Norris’s teammate Oscar Piastri, who has been a shining light in just his second season.
The Australian has two grand prix wins and has proven to be a genuine drivers’ championship challenger in the years to come.
“We’ve got five races left this season and I am determined to finish the season strongly and round off the year with more success.
“There’s a lot that I want to achieve before the end of the season.
“We got strong points in Austin, but we want to improve on that in Mexico City.”
The Mexico City Grand Prix will be held on Monday at 7am AEDT.
The cars will be on track from Saturday morning, AEDT, for practice sessions.
