Lando Norris shrugs off being booed after winning in Mexico to lead championship

Lando Norris brushed off being booed in Mexico City after moving into the championship lead by a single point with a commanding victory.

The British driver clinched a dominant win to overhaul team-mate Oscar Piastri’s 14-point advantage, taking the lead for the first time in 189 days.

He was a resounding 38.5 seconds clear of second-placed Charles Leclerc, with Max Verstappen claiming third to sit 36 points off the lead with four rounds remaining.

Norris was booed after qualifying on pole, on the pre-race parade and on the podium, but said he simply finds it amusing.

“I don’t know why, to be honest. People can do what they want honestly, that is sport sometimes, I can’t stop laughing when I get booed,” Norris said.

“You don’t want it, I’d prefer if people cheer for me. Who knows? I just concentrate on doing my thing. If they want to continue they can.”

A local journalist put it to Norris that Mexican fans feel he has been aided by McLaren in his title fight with Piastri, after the Australian was ordered aside in Monza following a slow stop for his rival.

“Sure, if they want to think that they can do whatever they want,” he responded. “For us as a team we tried to do things fairly. Same with last year in Budapest – I let Oscar win the race he deserved to win.

“If they want to have the three points back, they can. Oscar deserved the win in Budapest, I deserved the win in Monza.”

Norris survived a chaotic opening on the longest run to turn one on the F1 calendar, going four abreast with Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton and Verstappen.

He never looked back, comfortably completing a one-stop strategy to claim his 10th F1 win and sixth of the season.

Piastri has struggled all weekend and, despite a strong finish, could manage only fifth and is now without a podium in five races.

The Australian had led since round five in Saudi Arabia and was 34 points ahead of Norris and 104 points clear of Verstappen after winning at Zandvoort in August.

Norris is not dwelling on now being the hunted instead of the hunter, with 116 points still to fight for.

“My best performance across a whole weekend,” he added.

“The last few have been decent but there is still a long way to go so I have to try and keep doing what I am doing.”

Piastri acknowledged that he needs to turn his form around quickly.

Asked what he needs to do to reclaim the lead, he said: “Find some more pace and win some more races.

“For some reason, the last couple of weekends has required a very different way of driving.

“What’s worked well for me in the last 19 races has needed something very different the last couple of weekends.”

Verstappen struggled in the early stages and lost out to Haas’ Ollie Bearman after a ding-dong battle with Hamilton.

But he pulled off a superb stint on the soft tyres to charge after Leclerc, only to be denied a final push by a virtual safety car on the penultimate lap.

“I didn’t expect to be on the podium. Overall to be P3 is really good in, for us, a difficult weekend,” Verstappen said.

Bearman sealed a superb career-best fourth, with George Russell seventh ahead of Hamilton in eighth.