Lando Norris takes defiant stand against 'turning point' narrative

Lando Norris has rejected the suggestion that the São Paulo Grand Prix was a "turning point" in the F1 season as he hurtles towards a maiden drivers' championship.

Following the round at Interlagos, the McLaren driver now enjoys a healthy 24-point margin over team-mate Oscar Piastri, who endured yet another messy weekend.

In the past six rounds, Norris has turned a 34-point deficit to the Australian into his current advantage, a 58-point swing in just a quarter of the campaign.

Further alleviating the pressure on the now-11-time grand prix winner is that the gap to Max Verstappen in third grew by 13 in Brazil as well, now standing at 49 points.

With 83 points available over the remaining three grands prix — and one sprint — Norris is poised to clinch the first title of his F1 career.

However, when he was asked after he stormed from pole to victory across the 71-lap race at Autódromo José Carlos Pace, whether it was a turning point, he flatly replied to media, including RacingNews365: "No."

Elaborating on his answer, he explained why his dominant performance in the previous round, in Mexico City, was also not pivotal.

"It just feels like another weekend where I came here to try and win, to get the most points I could, and did that," the 25-year-old said.

"I did that also last weekend. So yeah, I think neither are turning points."

The British driver insisted it was important not to get ahead of himself, given the jeopardy that could lie in wait over the final three rounds of the season.

"They're just strong results, which is exactly what I need, exactly what I'm fighting for every single weekend and every day," he said.

"So just very pleased, but it's still a long way to go. So, no point getting too happy or excited just yet."