Lando Norris reacts as Las Vegas GP disqualification slashes 42-point lead over Max Verstappen to just 24 points

Lando Norris was looking to move on from the F1 Las Vegas GP disqualification as the driver saw his championship lead get slashed to just 24 points. The race weekend had been more or less ideal for the McLaren driver, who came into the event on the back of a strong showing in Brazil.

After securing pole position on Saturday for the race, Lando Norris would lose the lead into the first turn to Max Verstappen and then another position to George Russell. After struggling to get the tires up to temperature, the McLaren driver settled into the race and started hunting down the top 2 drivers.

By the end of the race, Lando Norris was able to jump George Russell on the track as the Mercedes driver struggled with tire degradation. Max Verstappen was, however, out of reach, and hence the Brit finished the race in P2. The result was more than satisfactory for the driver, as it meant that his lead over the Dutch driver would be 42 points with only two races left.

At the same time, he extended his lead over Oscar Piastri to 30 points. It was during this point in time that the news broke that the McLaren duo had failed the post-race inspections. Both drivers had excessive plank wear and hence were disqualified from the race.

As a result, Lando Norris lost his 18 points that he scored in the race and is now looking at a much smaller 24-point lead over Max Verstappen in the championship with 2 races left. In the press release issued by McLaren, the driver just wanted to move on from the weekend and focus on Qatar, as he said,

“A frustrating end to today. We had to do some managing towards the end of the race and now we know it was due to some issues on our car, which have unfortunately resulted in us being disqualified."

He added,

"It’s frustrating to lose so many points. As a team, we’re always pushing to find as much performance as we can, and we clearly didn’t get that balance right today. Nothing I can do will change that now, instead full focus switches to Qatar, where we'll aim to go out and deliver the best possible performance in every session.”

Lando Norris' teammate Oscar Piastri reacts to the disqualification

Just like Lando Norris, his teammate Oscar Piastri was also disqualified from the race. The Aussie, however, would be looking at the positives of the team's disqualification, as due to the penalty, Norris wasn't able to extend his championship lead this weekend. Talking about the decision, he said,

"Disappointing to come away from this weekend with no points after an unfortunate disqualification due to skid wear. With how close the grid is, we’re always looking at where we can gain performance, and we didn’t get it right this time. We now need to reset, refocus and push to get the best points possible in the final two rounds, both tracks that we've been strong at previously."

Heading into the last two races, we have three drivers in contention for the title, with the leader having a lead of 24 points. As it appears to be the case this season, it's still all to play for.