Lando Norris identifies 'genuine' Max Verstappen threat and scoffs at Oscar Piastri claim

Lando Norris insists McLaren will not have to favour team-mate Oscar Piastri's title charge despite admitting the "genuine" threat they face from Max Verstappen. Piastri leads the championship by 25 points from Norris with seven rounds left in a season dominated by McLaren.

But back-to-back wins for Verstappen in his upgraded Red Bull in Monza and Baku have handed the Dutchman a lifeline in his quest for five titles in a row. The odds remain long on an unlikely comeback with Verstappen still 69 points behind Piastri, but Norris refuses to count the four-time champion out.

The Brit said: "He is genuinely a challenger. I expect him to be quick for many of the races this season. In Baku, we had the pace to win and we had the car to win and we didn't. I don't think we necessarily had the pace to be on pole, but I think we had the chance to fight Max.

"In Monza, they were just too quick for us. So if there are some races coming up where they are just too fast, which is very possible... We know there is opportunity for them. But as long as we are just focusing on ourselves, and I will try to maximize every result I can."

McLaren are likely to seal the constructors' title in Singapore on Sunday despite failing to get over the line in Baku. It will then be all about the drivers' championship, but Norris mocked the suggestion McLaren could prioritise Piastri to see off the threat of Verstappen.

Asked if he felt that could happen, he replied sarcastically: "I'm very concerned, yeah. Very worried about it, and scared, frankly. I was happy you asked that, actually. Yeah... No."

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Verstappen said he has "nothing to lose" in terms of his title hopes and hinted he does not expect to have much of a chance. He said: "As a team, we approach it like that, too. Sixty nine points is still a lot especially when you look at how the season has gone so far, and McLaren have been incredibly dominant. That doesn't suddenly change.

"But I am not too stressed about anything. I am enjoying what I am doing in F1 and outside of F1 and trying to do the best I can every time I jump into the car.

"Some tracks will be better, some worse, and this could be one of those. But if we win it, great, and if we don't we don't. Life goes on. If we can win a few more races that would be nice, and if that means we still didn't win the world championship then so be it."