British media see Verstappen "rub salt into Norris' wounds" in Brazil

After so much hope and fanfare, the British media have now concluded Lando Norris' title hopes have been "crushed" by Max Verstappen's performance at the Brazilian Grand Prix. This is how they reacted to Verstappen taking a 62-point lead with three Grands Prix and one sprint race remaining.

Over recent weeks, the BBC have been monitoring the gap between Norris and Verstappen by focusing on the average points per race the McLaren driver needed to take in order to become World Champion in Abu Dhabi. But now BBC sport see Norris' hopes "crushed" after a "drive to be ranked among the greatest wet-weather drives in history" from Verstappen.

The race summary then admits, "Verstappen’s fourth world championship never really looked under that much threat. But there can be no doubt now."

The British newspaper also see Norris as having no chance to win the World Championship. "A flash, and Lando Norris's dream surely died on a wet track as slippery as a chancellor's promise." The report later states that Verstappen is the greatest driver on the planet. The Daily Mail go on to suggest Norris simply wasn't good enough on the day by rubbishing Norris' "lucky" excuse. "More pertinently, you cannot start on pole and lose ground to a weapons-grade talent starting 16 places behind."

The Times were also critical of Norris' performance. They conclude it was "not the driver of a champion-in-waiting". They also see Verstappen with one hand on the World Championship trophy as "Norris' title hopes almost evaporated". They are also doing the maths and see that Verstappen can become champion in Las Vegas just by finishing ahead of the McLaren driver.

The British tabloid title with "Norris title hopes fade". At the aborted start, the paper noted how Verstappen "rubbed salt into Norris" wounds by pointing out the mistake Norris made by leaving the grid.