Nico Rosberg pinpoints Singapore Grand Prix moment that shows Lando Norris ‘has a shot’ at F1 title

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Lando Norris laid down a marker in his title battle with Max Verstappen in Singapore after winning the race by 20 seconds.

Whereas Red Bull could conjure up similar margins at the start of the season, McLaren has now produced a car capable of doing the same and it has put pressure on the Milton Keynes squad in the final six races of the season.

Max Verstappen could still win the title by coming second at every race, regardless of whether Lando Norris wins after a controversial fastest lap from Daniel Ricciardo denied the McLaren driver an important bonus point.

But after such a dominant display over the Singapore GP weekend by taking pole, leading every lap and winning, former F1 driver and 2016 World Champion Nico Rosberg has explained why Norris ‘has a shot’ at winning the title when speaking on the Sky Sports F1 podcast.

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

Lando Norris pure speed in Singapore enough to win title claims Nico Rosberg

Norris could comfortably extend his gap to Verstappen when asked to create a margin to the Red Bull driver ahead of his first pit stop, which Martin Brundle branded ‘astonishing’ in commentary.

He briefly held the fastest lap of the race before it was beaten on the final lap by Ricciardo, who pitted late for a set of soft to deny him of the extra point.

Rosberg believes the way Norris could consistently set quicker times showed he still had more pace over Verstappen, making him a genuine threat to his title defence.

“In the race, the pace that he had was off the charts because for so many laps he was one second quicker than anybody else on the grid. Within 30 laps he pulled out 30 seconds on Verstappen,” said Rosberg.

“At the end of the race he slowed down otherwise, that gap would’ve been 50 seconds towards the end of the race. Crazy pace and a very impressive display. That tells us Lando definitely has a shot at this world championship.”

Max Verstappen was stunned by Lando Norris moment during Singapore GP

Norris controlled the race from the front but he suffered two close moments at Turn 14 and Turn 8, where he nearly put his McLaren into the wall.

Either crash would have been at a relatively slow speed and would have resulted in a broken front wing, but it could have changed the outcome of the race for Norris.

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

Watching replays of the moment in the podium cooldown room, Verstappen was stunned when he saw his title rival nearly crash.

Verstappen heads into the final six races with a 52-point lead in the Drivers’ Championship over Lando Norris.