Lando Norris believes his 2024 Formula One season will be classed as a success regardless of whether he beats Max Verstappen to the drivers' championship.
Ahead of the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas this weekend, Norris is 52 points behind the Dutchman at the top of the standings.
Norris won his third race of the season last time out in Singapore four weeks ago, gaining seven points as he finished just ahead of Verstappen, who has won the last three championships.
But the 24-year-old has never finished higher than sixth in the drivers' championship, with this season marking significant progress whatever happens in the final six races.
As a result, Norris is conscious that success should not be defined by whether he and McLaren end the season with silverware.
"We're fighting against the best of the best but no matter what, it has still been a successful season," he said. "If I finish second it's because Red Bull and Max have done a better job.
"We started [the season] a long way behind. Everyone thought Max was going to have an easy win.
"For that not to be the case after the gap they had after race one, it's still a year to be proud of.
"But as the season goes on, you always reevaluate what are our expectations, and now we are a top team and fighting for drivers' and constructors' championships.
"I've been doing a good job. I have been happy with the job I have been doing and what we are doing as a team, and confident if we keep our heads down and keep pushing, we can close the gap.
"It's not easy, we need more than me first and Max second, but I can't change that, just keep my head down and focus on myself."
Given the current gap between Norris and Verstappen, the British driver will require other drivers to finish between them in the final races of the season to claw back the deficit.
Verstappen has not won a race since the Spanish Grand Prix in June, his worst run since an 11-race streak in 2020, and only finished second in three others.
Norris, meanwhile, only needs to earn two points in Texas to become the driver with the most points in the history of McLaren and surpass Lewis Hamilton's tally of 913.
Hamilton 'still loves' Mercedes and will give everything in final races
Lewis Hamilton has pledged to give everything in his final three races for Mercedes, despite admitting he had thoughts of an early exit after struggling at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Hamilton finished 10th in the grand prix and 11th in the sprint race in Brazil three weeks ago, then described the weekend as a "disaster" and suggested he was not averse to an early exit.
The seven-time world champion – who will join Ferrari ahead of next season – said over team radio: "If this is the last time I get to perform, it was a shame it wasn't great."
However, with just three races remaining before his 12-year stint with the Silver Arrows comes to an end, Hamilton has put those troubles behind him and is determined to finish 2024 on a high.
Speaking ahead of this weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix, Hamilton said: "In the moment, that's how I felt. I didn't really want to come back after that weekend but that's only natural.
"In the heat of the moment, for sure I'd much rather be on the beach and chilling. I don't need to do this.
"It wasn't a great feeling in that moment but I'm here, I'm standing strong and I'm going to give it absolutely everything for these last few races.
"Nothing can take me down. I've got a team that I genuinely still love and even though I'm leaving, I want to give them the best that I can in these next races.
"If they provide a car that wants to stay on track, then hopefully we'll have a better result."
Sunday's race will take place exactly 10 years since Hamilton won the second of his seven drivers' championships, sealing his 2014 title triumph at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
He is currently seventh in the drivers' championship standings, just two points adrift of Mercedes team-mate George Russell.
Russell has won 50.26% of Mercedes' points this year to Hamilton's 49.74%. That is the smallest percentage split between any pair of team-mates in F1, with Red Bull pair Max Verstappen (72.24%) and Sergio Perez (27.76%) having the largest split.
Las Vegas Grand Prix: To be a champion, you must race 'on the limit', says Verstappen
Max Verstappen explained that his quest for a fourth world championship title has seen him race "on the limit" ahead of this weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Verstappen has the chance to become one of the greatest to grace the sport under the bright lights of Sin City this weekend, should he finish ahead of McLaren's Lando Norris.
Though the world championship isn't officially decided yet, after a phenomenal wet weather performance in Brazil last time out, Verstappen is within touching distance.
He has a 62-point lead over Norris with two races and a sprint left, and if the Briton finds himself 60 points behind after Las Vegas, his title bid will officially come to an end.
The pair have exchanged battles on the track this season, most notably at the United States and Mexican Grands Prix last month, with Verstappen criticised for his driving.
"I know on track if you want to win, if you want to be a champion, you do need to be on the limit," the Red Bull driver told BBC Sport.
Should he emerge victorious on Sunday, he would become the sixth driver in history to win at least four world titles, after Michael Schumacher (seven), Lewis Hamilton (seven), Juan Manuel Fangio (five), Alain Prost (four) and Sebastian Vettel (four).
"Of course, the championship is in the back of my mind, naturally," he says. "But I will always try to get the best result out of it first and then see what’s possible.
"I always demand a lot from myself. I always try to get the best possible result out of it. I hate making mistakes.
"I put that pressure on myself every weekend. If you want to win a championship, you cannot afford bad results."
But Verstappen's season has been far from plain sailing, with Red Bull's remarkable mid-season dip allowing McLaren and Ferrari to close in.
Prior to his win in Interlagos, the Dutchman had gone nine races without a pole position and 10 without a win, his worst streak since the penultimate round in 2020, when he went 17 qualifying rounds without a pole and 11 consecutive races without a victory.
After winning seven of the first 10 races of the 2024 season, Verstappen said he was surprised by the other teams' slow start to the campaign.
"We started really dominant, but I also feel like some teams didn’t start as well as they should have compared to last year, so we were a bit surprised about that," he said.
"We felt it’s a bit weird how the others are not really making the step forward. So then I guess they got their stuff sorted out.
"I already said from the beginning of the year that I was not entirely happy with how the car was handling."
Despite a fourth title almost being sealed and 62 wins already in the bag, Verstappen has revealed that he plans to explore the world of motorsport before he retires.
He is relaxed about his future, though he has been open-minded about where he might drive in F1 in coming years and how much longer he will stay.
"It is not like when I started in F1. I had that target, seven titles, 100-plus wins. At the time, Michael (Schumacher) was the record-holder. It’s not how I see life any more.
"Maybe when I was a bit younger, yeah, I wanted to drive F1 as long as I could. But now when you have already achieved so much, it is not about wanting to drive forever.
"I also want to enjoy life. I definitely don’t want to be racing in F1 until I’m 40 years old. You only live once, and I don’t want to spend half of it racing cars."
DRIVERS TO WATCH
Max Verstappen – Red Bull
Verstappen has the chance to become only the third driver in the competition’s history to break the 3,000-point barrier (2,979.50 currently), something only Hamilton (4829.50) and Vettel (3098) have achieved.
The Dutchman has scored 72.24% of Red Bull's points in 2024, the widest gap to the second driver of any team this season in Formula One (44.49 – 27.76% for Sergio Perez). On the other hand, Mercedes is the team with the smallest percentage difference between its drivers in terms of total points (0.52 - George Russell's 50.26 and Hamilton's 49.74).
But, if either Verstappen or Perez achieve the fastest lap at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Red Bull (99) will become the fifth team in Formula One history to achieve 100 fastest laps after Ferrari (263), McLaren (170), Williams (133) and Mercedes (109).
Oscar Piastri – McLaren
Piastri has scored points in 23 consecutive F1 grand prix. It is the seventh-best historical run in the competition (also 23 for Fernando Alonso between Europe 2011 and Hungary 2012) and the best of any McLaren driver.
The Australian is the only driver on the grid to have finished 100% of races in 2024. Not only is this the longest current run, but if he finishes in Las Vegas, it will be the 11th longest streak in Formula One history, equalling Perez's record between France 2022 and Singapore 2023 (26).
However, Piastri will be aiming to return to the podium places having gone three races without a top-three finish since ending the Singapore Grand Prix in third. It is his worst streak since the first seven races of the season.
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
Drivers
1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) – 393
2. Lando Norris (McLaren) – 331
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) – 307
4. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) – 262
5. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) – 244
Constructors
1. McLaren – 593
2. Ferrari – 557
3. Red Bull – 544
4. Mercedes – 382
5. Aston Martin – 86
Russell: Drivers 'a bit fed up' of FIA leadership
George Russell says a number of Formula One drivers are "probably a bit fed up" of governing body FIA.
The Grand Prix Drivers' Association (GPDA), which Russell is the director for, put out a statement after the last race in Brazil to raise concerns about multiple issues.
The GDPA asked president Mohammed Ben Sulayem to "consider his own tone and language", having previously punished Max Verstappen for using bad language at a press conference.
Speaking ahead of this weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix, Russell confirmed the FIA had yet to respond to the letter as he expressed further disappointment.
"We recognise everybody's working as hard as they can to do the best job possible," Russell told reporters. "There is obviously a huge amount of change within the FIA quite regularly, so it's clearly not the most stable of places.
"And maybe that's why it's been a bit challenging to get some of the changes that we've wanted implemented. Of course, everyone has their own side to their own story.
"I think if we feel that we're being listened to and some of the changes that we are experiencing, requesting, are implemented, because ultimately we're only doing it for the benefit of the sport, then maybe our confidence will increase.
"But, I think there's a number of drivers who feel probably a bit fed up with the whole situation. And it only seems to be going in, to a degree, the wrong direction."
Russell also said he and his fellow drivers were not aware of race director Niels Wittich being removed three races before the season ends.
"Talking as a fellow driver as opposed to my role with the GPDA, everybody felt with certain things that have happened that we wanted to stand united," he said.
"At the end of the day, we just want to be transparent with the FIA and have this dialogue. And the departure of Niels is a prime example of not being part of these conversations. [The letter] is kind of us putting the pressure back on them."
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