McLaren enjoyed a brilliant Singapore Grand Prix as Lando Norris closed the gap on Formula One drivers' championship leader Max Verstappen.
Norris led from pole position on Sunday, and never looked likely to let that lead slip as he controlled the race from the off in a statement victory - his third race win of the season.
The Briton, who did have a few brushes with the barriers, ultimately finished 20.94 seconds clear of second-place Verstappen, whose championship lead has now been cut to 52 points, though the Dutchman nevertheless remains the firm favourite to retain his crown.
Oscar Piastri, the victor in Baku last time out, completed a superb weekend for McLaren by finishing third ahead of Mercedes' George Russell, though Daniel Ricciardo did do Red Bull a favour.
In what could well prove to be the final grand prix of his career, Ricciardo - racing for Red Bull's second team - pitted at the end in order to come out on soft tyres and take the fastest lap, which Norris had held.
"Thank you, Daniel," Verstappen said on the team radio when he was informed of the Australian's effort.
Charles Leclerc, who is third in the championship, completed the top five, but it was a day that belonged firmly to Norris and McLaren, who nudged themselves further clear at the top of the constructor standings.
Lewis Hamilton, who had been in the hunt for a record-equalling fifth win in Singapore, crossed in sixth.
Data Debrief: Lights to flag
The driver occupying pole had only won two of the last five races in Singapore (Hamilton in 2018 and Carlos Sainz in 2023), but Norris was in a league of his own this time out.
Norris has now equalled Stirling Moss and John Surtees on 24 podiums, meaning David Coulthard (62) and Eddie Irvine (26) are the only Britons in F1 history to have secured more podium finishes without winning a world championship.
McLaren, meanwhile, have had at least one driver on the podium in the last 14 races, matching their second-best such streak, only behind a run of 19 they managed between Australia 2007 and Malaysia 2008.
Ricciardo did at least steal some of McLaren's thunder. Ten drivers have secured at least one fastest lap in 2024. The last season with at least 10 different drivers to record a fastest lap was 2012 (12).
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
Drivers'
1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) - 331
2. Lando Norris (McLaren) - 279
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) - 245
Constructors'
1. McLaren - 516
2. Red Bull - 475
3. Ferrari - 441
Ricciardo to leave RB with Lawson named as replacement
Daniel Ricciardo will leave RB with Liam Lawson replacing him for the remainder of the Formula One season.
Speculation surrounding Ricciardo's future has been confirmed as the Australian's second F1 stint was brought to an end after he lost his seat at RB.
Ricciardo is 14th in the drivers' championship standings, while he recorded the fastest lap during last weekend's Singapore Grand Prix - the 258th and final race of his F1 career.
The 35-year-old has chalked up eight wins and 32 podiums along the way, notably finishing third in the drivers' championship in 2014 and 2016.
Lawson, who deputised for the injured Ricciardo in five races last season, will step up from his reserve role to partner Yuki Tsunoda for the final six races of the 2024 campaign, starting at next month's United States Grand Prix in Austin.
The 22-year-old recorded an impressive ninth-place finish in Singapore during his short stint, and RB boss Laurent Mekies feels it will be "a natural transition" for him.
"Everyone would like to thank Daniel for his hard work across the last two seasons with us," Mekies said.
"He has brought a lot of experience and talent to the team with a fantastic attitude, which has helped everyone to develop and foster a tight team spirit.
"Daniel has been a true gentleman both on and off the track, and never without that smile. He will be missed, but will always hold a special place within the Red Bull family.
"I'd also like to take this opportunity to welcome Liam. He already knows the team well. He drove for us last season, and coped well under difficult circumstances, so it'll be a natural transition.
"It's great to see young talent from within the Red Bull family make the next step. We're looking forward to getting our heads down and focusing on the rest of the season together."
Norris: Overhauling Verstappen for F1 championship 'definitely possible'
Lando Norris believes overhauling Max Verstappen to win the Formula One driver's championship is "definitely possible", though he knows McLaren have no room for error.
Norris produced a magnificent performance at the Singapore Grand Prix on Sunday, leading from the front and finishing some 20 seconds clear of Verstappen.
That victory – his third of the year – lifted him to within 52 points of Verstappen at the top of the drivers' standings, while McLaren lead Red Bull by 41 points in the battle for the constructors' crown.
Norris has now won from pole in two of the last four races (Singapore and the Netherlands), becoming the 49th driver to achieve that feat on at least two occasions in F1.
In the last 30 grands prix in which Norris has scored points, he has averaged 15.3 points (460 in total), having only averaged 6.8 across his previous 66 (452 in total).
With Verstappen now winless in eight races, Norris does not see ending his three-year reign as an impossible objective, if McLaren can maintain their pace.
"This is what I've got to do, this is what I need, this is what we need to do as a team," Norris told Sky Sports F1.
"We've executed things perfectly as a team, especially to get Oscar [Piastri] into P3, but we need to do it at every race until the end of the year if I want to have a chance to get Max.
"We're working hard and if I keep doing what I've done this weekend, then it's definitely possible."
Verstappen won 19 of 22 races in the 2023 season – the most dominant campaign ever witnessed in F1 – but Norris hopes he can take this year's title battle to the final race, set for Abu Dhabi on December 8.
"I hope so. I still have a lot of points I've got to catch up and it's not going to be easy to do it," Norris added.
"It's against Red Bull and it's against Max, the most dominant pairing you've ever seen in Formula One, from last year.
"That's not necessarily changed in terms of… It's the same team and it's the same driver. So, I have some of the toughest competition that Formula One has ever seen.
"I'm working my heart out, I'm working my butt off, to try and make sure that happens. He's trying to make sure it doesn't happen. So we'll have to wait and find out."
Red Bull would be 'foolish' not to target Russell, says Horner
Red Bull would be "foolish" not to consider an approach for George Russell when his Mercedes contract expires next year, says team principal Christian Horner.
While three-time world champion Max Verstappen is under contract with Red Bull until 2028, the poor form of team-mate Sergio Perez has cast doubt on their lineup.
Perez started 2024 with four podium finishes in his first five races, but he has since endured a run of 13 outings without a top-three finish to slip to eighth in the drivers' championship.
Russell is set to become Mercedes' lead driver for 2025 when Lewis Hamilton joins Ferrari, but with the Silver Arrows' team principal Toto Wolff repeatedly talking up the possibility of moving for Verstappen, his long-term future is in doubt.
With Russell's contract expiring after next season, Horner says Red Bull could swoop for him to fill a "gap" between their current drivers and those coming through their academy.
"We've got a gap now but we just want to take time to consider what those options look like for the future," Horner told Sky Sports F1.
"And we're not afraid to go out of the pool. You know, George Russell is out of contract at the end of next year. It would be foolish not to take that into consideration.
"There are other talented drivers that could well be out of contract as well."
Russell claimed his second F1 race win in Austria earlier this year and currently sits seventh in the drivers' standings, 11 points ahead of Perez.
Horner's comments on Russell were put to Mercedes boss Wolff, who accused his counterpart of "stirring".
"He is always stirring s*** up on his part," Wolff said. "It's part of the game.
"George is a Mercedes driver, has been forever and hopefully will be forever. He has a long contract with the team."
The Silver Arrows endured a frustrating outing at last weekend's Singapore Grand Prix, Hamilton finishing fourth and Russell sixth after early difficulties with the team's split strategy.
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