Lando Norris' practice pace shows he's driver to beat in Formula 1 title decider

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The Formula 1 title fight is Lando Norris' to lose, and he doesn't look like losing.

The British driver went fastest in both of Friday's practice sessions as he laid down a marker ahead of the three-way title decider at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Norris beat title rival Max Verstappen by just .008 of a second in the first session and stretched that gap over the Red Bull driver to .363 in the second, which was more representative of the day-night conditions for Sunday's race.

The only way Norris can lose the title is if he finishes the race outside the top three. Norris leads Verstappen by 12 points and teammate Oscar Piastri by 16.

Norris and Piastri are each looking to win their first title and Verstappen is aiming for his fifth in a row.

“Of course, I have the most to lose because I am the one at the top,” Norris said Thursday. “I’ll do my best to stay there till the end of the year, a few more days. At the same time, if it doesn’t go my way, then I'll try again next year. It’ll hurt probably for a little while, but that’s life.”

Piastri skipped the first session and was only 11th in the second, .680 off Norris' time, and the Australian is yet to show much competitive pace.

Norris has denied he'll ask Piastri to help out to at least ensure one McLaren driver becomes champion if it seems Verstappen will take the title.

McLaren CEO Zak Brown has opened the door to team orders, but if Norris has the sort of pace he showed Friday, they won't be necessary.

Verstappen’s chances were revived when McLaren botched a strategy call in Qatar, one race after Norris and Piastri were disqualified in Las Vegas.

The one contender who's been in a final-race decider before, Verstappen said he's “just enjoying being here” in a season when his title defense often seemed impossible.

“I have four of those at home, so it’s nice to add a fifth,” he said Thursday, looking at the trophy standing next to him.

“I’ve already achieved everything that I wanted to achieve in F1 and everything is just a bonus. I just keep doing it because I love it and I enjoy it and that’s also how I go into this weekend. Have a good time out there, try to maximize the result.”

Verstappen was 104 points off the lead at one stage, and wrote his chances off again when he wasn't competitive in qualifying for the Brazilian Grand Prix, three races ago.

“It’s probably fair to say that the world discovered an even more extraordinary Max this season,” team principal Laurent Mekies said Friday. “A bit because of the magnitude of the comeback. A bit because he has been so relaxed.”

Piastri had a 34-point lead in August and seemed on target to become the first Australian champion in 45 years. He hasn't won in eight races since.

He showed good pace to take second spot in Qatar last week, though he was left “speechless” after a race dominated by McLaren's wrong strategy call.

“Obviously, I need a fair few things to happen this weekend to come out champion," he said, "but I’ll just make sure I’m in the right place at the right time and see what happens.”

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AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing