Lando Norris fumes at Max Verstappen as they clash in 2024 Mexican Formula 1 race; Carlos Sainz, Ferrari, McLaren, Oscar Piastri

Norris, who set the fastest pace of the grand prix late, ate into Verstappen’s lead in the driver standings, but with just four rounds left in the championship, the Red Bull star has one hand on his fourth-straight title.

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Still, it was a dirty day for his team in Mexico, with out-of-form local hope Sergio Perez slugged a penalty for starting the race outside the boundaries of his grid box and finishing a distant 16th, well off the pace.

After a disastrous end to his qualifying, Australian star Oscar Piastri started 17th on the grid and had a frustrating opening to the race on his medium tyres as he struggled to overtake the backmarkers around him.

But as the race progressed, his pace improved, and he clinched a series of telling overtakes under braking – ultimately finishing eighth after pitting late on lap 39.

The action-packed day of racing started with controversy with an incident involving Pierre Gasly, Alex Albon, and Yuki Tsunoda – taking the latter two out of the race and bunching up the rest of the field behind the safety car until the end of lap six.

More to come

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