McLaren, Norris seek to pressure Red Bull

Singapore, AP: McLaren is ahead of Red Bull in the Formula 1 constructors' race. Now for Lando Norris to put pressure on Max Verstappen for the drivers' title. Oscar Piastri's win last week at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix put McLaren top in the teams' standings the key to F1's lavish prize money but teammate Norris only took a small bite out of Verstappen's lead. After starting 15th, Norris passed Verstappen late in the race to finish fourth, but the Dutch driver still leads by 59 points heading into the Singapore Grand Prix. The talk in F1 has focused on McLaren's seemingly flexible rear wing, which might help at high speed.

Piastri said Thursday it's legal and isn't a “magic bullet” for their recent success. F1 looks wide open right now with Ferrari and Mercedes both fighting for wins. McLaren will still have to battle hard even if Red Bull isn't on the pace at a track where Verstappen has never won. Piastri is the on-form driver in recent races, but in only his second season, he's heading into a lateseason swing of tracks like Singapore that he doesn't know well.