Lando Norris makes ‘difficult’ Max Verstappen comment immediately after the Las Vegas Grand Prix

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McLaren driver Lando Norris took one step closer to winning his first world championship at the 2025 Las Vegas Grand Prix, but it was his Red Bull rival Max Verstappen who came away from the race victorious.

Once again, the first corner proved to be the pivotal moment for Lando Norris and Max Verstappen.

Norris moved to his left to immediately cut off Verstappen to try and preserve his advantage.

However, he misjudged his braking point, going wide and giving the Red Bull driver the lead, with George Russell also sneaking through.

Norris’ McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri was hit by Liam Lawson, and he could only recover to finish fourth, extending his run of results without a podium.

It means that Norris can win his first drivers’ championship at the upcoming Qatar Grand Prix if results go his way.

The 25-year-old was quick to praise his Red Bull rival immediately after the race, hailing his performance after taking the chequered flag with a 20-second advantage.

READ MORE: McLaren driver Lando Norris’ life outside F1 from parents to celebration

Lando Norris hails Max Verstappen after Red Bull star wins the Las Vegas Grand Prix

Norris was asked in his post-race interview how he felt after Verstappen tried to take the lead on lap one of the Las Vegas Grand Prix. He answered: “No, he didn’t go for it. It was more I went for it on no one else!

“I let Max have a win, I let him go, I let him have a nice race.

“I just braked too late, it was my f-up. I wanted to put on a show, it’s why we’re in Vegas, I guess.

“No, it was not my best performance out there, but when a guy wins by 20 seconds, it’s because he’s just done a better job and is a bit quicker.

“It was a fun race out there, difficult as always, but fun.”

David Coulthard then had to apologise on Norris’ behalf after he said that he ‘f—– it up,’ going into the opening corner.

Asked about his title hopes with two races to go, Norris continued: “Yeah, I’ve obviously had a good run.

“I thought the pace was still good today. Max just drove a good race. We were quick; I made the mistake going into turn one.

“You’ve got to be punchy going into turn one. I was just a bit too punchy, and that cost me.

“That’s just the way it is sometimes, still a good result, second and still good points, so I’m not too disappointed.

“I’ve got to congratulate Max and Red Bull, they drove a good race, so onto the next one.”

READ MORE: Red Bull driver Max Verstappen’s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend

How can Lando Norris win the Formula 1 drivers’ championship at the Qatar Grand Prix?

Attention for Norris, Piastri and Verstappen will immediately turn to the Qatar Grand Prix and what each driver needs to do to secure the championship.

Verstappen cut Norris’ lead to 42 points by winning in Las Vegas, while Piastri fell 30 points behind his teammate after only managing to come home in P4.

It means that Piastri needs to outscore Norris by five points in Qatar, and Verstappen needs to go into Abu Dhabi having taken a further 17 points out of Norris’ advantage.

Therefore, even if Verstappen takes a maximum of 33 points from Qatar, if Norris finishes second in the main race, he would have eliminated the Red Bull driver from the equation.

Then, it’s simply a matter of Norris finishing ahead of Piastri for an eighth consecutive race to become McLaren and Britain’s newest world champion.