How Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri deal with threat of Max Verstappen after Las Vegas disaster

Verstappen has re-emerged as a serious title contender following a double disqualification for McLaren's Norris and Piastri at F1's Las Vegas GP

Lando Norris says he now sees Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri as an "equal threat" after being disqualified from the Las Vegas Grand Prix, while Piastri says the result is a "net negative" despite being closer to the top of the Formula 1 drivers' world championship standings.

Norris and Piastri were disqualified from second and fourth in Las Vegas results due to excessive plank wear, with both cars failing post-race inspections.

That meant Verstappen, who won his second Las Vegas GP, gained a full 25 points on both drivers in the championship heading to the penultimate weekend in Qatar, just 24 points behind leader Norris and on par with Piastri - ahead of the Australian on countback.

Before the Las Vegas disqualification it looked like Norris' maiden world title was all but wrapped up, while now the two final race weekends could yet become a nervy affair for the 26-year-old.

Speaking ahead of the Doha weekend, Norris didn't feel like his situation has changed much, though, and he still sees both Verstappen and Piastri as an equal threat.

"I mean, we've treated [Verstappen] as a threat the whole year, even when he was a few more points behind," Norris said. "We know what he's capable of, we know what Red Bull is capable of, so therefore nothing changes now because he's still the threat and he's always been through the whole year.

"I really try and not treat it any differently because there's no point - nothing needs to be treated any differently. We know Red Bull have just been quick lately, so we expect them to be quick here this weekend and we expect them to be good next weekend."

Oscar Piastri, McLaren

Photo by: Kym Illman / Getty Images

Asked about how much of a threat his team-mate Piastri is, he replied: "Both are the same, I think they're both just as good as one another. Oscar is capable of exactly the same as what Max can do.

"Both have pros and cons, both him being in a different team and Oscar also being in the champions' team. But each driver wants to fight for their own thing and prove that they're the best, so I think they're both competitive, they're both very strong, they're both incredible drivers and I'm excited to give them a good fight on track."

Will Piastri be asked to help Norris? "The answer is no"

In Piastri's case, his disqualification saw him lose an additional 13 points to Verstappen, who has now drawn level. But it has also allowed him to stay closer to Norris at the top of the table, instead of losing six points.

"Overall, it's still a net negative," Piastri said about the maths involved. "Ultimately it's never a good thing, having the result we had. Yes, obviously it kind of prevents me losing those six points to Lando, but it also brings Max much closer into the fight."

Piastri said the team had a discussion on whether the championship outlook means he should now play a supporting role in helping Norris win the title, but as Piastri can still beat Verstappen in his own right, that won't happen.

"We've had a very brief discussion on it and the answer is no," the Australian explained. "I'm still equal on points with Max and I've got a decent shot of still winning it if things go my way, so that's how we'll play it. There's still a chance and it's played out that way a couple of times, before so I know it's not impossible.

"Obviously, I also know that it's a bit of an outside shot. Even if I have a perfect final two weekends, I can't just rely on that. I need other things to go my way and I'm very aware of that. I'm just going to try and have the best weekends I can, which I try and do every weekend, and see what happens to everyone else."