Norris insists ‘nothing changes’ in his mindset after taking championship lead as he assesses chances in Brazil

Lando Norris has insisted that “nothing changes” in his mindset for the final four races of the season after becoming the new championship leader last time out in Mexico, with the Briton focused on having another strong outing this weekend at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

Norris arrives in Brazil with a lead of just one point over McLaren team mate Oscar Piastri, having taken a dominant victory two weeks ago in Mexico City. Max Verstappen, meanwhile, sits 36 points away in third place.

Despite this marking the first time that Norris has headed the standings since April, the 25-year-old stated during Thursday’s media day at Interlagos that the weekend ahead feels “exactly the same” as any other.

When asked about his mindset entering into these decisive final rounds of the campaign, Norris responded: “We'll see at the end of the year. At the minute, nothing changes. I feel the same.”

Norris was also adamant that having Verstappen behind himself and Piastri in the title fight “doesn't change anything”, but the 10-time race victor acknowledged that winning in Mexico with such a margin was a positive factor in terms of confidence.

“It helps. It's always nice to win,” he explained. “It's always a good thing. I wouldn't say I was lacking confidence before – I felt good in Austin and Singapore.

“I would definitely say things got a little bit better in the final two races. It boosts you a little bit, but I wouldn’t say it changes that much.”

Looking ahead to Round 21 in Sao Paulo – an event that will feature the penultimate Sprint of the season – Norris is mindful of the potential impact that weather conditions could have, with rain having memorably affected last year’s race.

“Of course I hope to have another weekend like Mexico, which will be tricky just because it's good competition,” the McLaren driver said. “I would say I expect also to be strong, to have another good weekend, but you never know with the weather and conditions here. It's easy for it to go anyone's way.”

And when quizzed on whether he would prefer a straightforward weekend or an eventful one with the weather in mind, Norris answered: “Just normal. Every time in Brazil it's always the same, so I think the expectation is be ready for anything, whether it's raining, dry, sunny, cold.

“I don't mind what it is, I'm happy with everything but of course it's just more simple for everyone when it's dry, and I can try and repeat a weekend like I had in Mexico. When it's raining, it's a little bit more luck involved.”