Norris: It's disappointing we weren't quicker

The 25-year-old dominating proceedings around the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace from the off, winning the Sprint race from pole position and following that up with another pole lap in Qualifying.

He subsequently held off the Mercedes of Andrea Kimi Antonelli on the opening lap, and pulled out a second's gap by the end of the very same tour.

Victory never looked in doubt for Norris, who ultimately crossed the line over ten seconds ahead of Antonelli in P2. The latter managed to fend off a very fast Max Verstappen, who did well to rescue a podium after starting the Grand Prix from the pitlane.

Despite winning the 71-lap event, Norris couldn't ignore the fact that Verstappen was markedly faster than him. If the Dutchman hadn't qualified so poorly, he likely would have won the race.

Speaking after the race, Norris stated that his first port of call would be to figure out exactly why McLaren didn't have the fastest package on Sunday.

He said: "It's a great win. But seeing how quick Max was, it's disappointing we were not quicker.

"That's where my mind is at the minute. I will see the team, congratulate them, and see why we were not quick enough.

"There's a long way to go. It can change so quickly. I will focus on myself, keep my head down, ignore everyone and keep pushing," stated the Briton.

Norris made sure to extend his gratitude to the fans at the Interlagos Circuit, who cheered him on unlike the spectators at the Mexico City Grand Prix.

He added: "Crazy race! Nice to win here in Brazil. It's an amazing track, amazing fans.

"This was for one of my mentors Gil [de Ferran]. A perfect weekend."

There were contrasting fortunes between the two McLaren garages, as Piastri could only muster a fifth place finish. The Australian is now 24 points behind his teammate in the Drivers' Championship.

The 24-year-old moved up to second place with an aggressive overtake into the first corner after the first Safety Car restart. However, this involved punting both Antonelli and Leclerc off the track, with the latter suffering suspension damage and ultimately retiring from the Grand Prix.

As a result, the McLaren driver received a ten-second penalty which he served on his first pitstop on lap 39. This proved costly, as Piastri was one of the fastest drivers on circuit but couldn't find a way through on the Mercedes of George Russell by the end of the race.

The Aussie racer was asked by Sky Sports F1 if he regretted his opportunistic move into Turn 1; his response was swift and decisive.

He said: "No I don't think so [about any regrets].

"I had a very clear opportunity, I went for it. The other two on the outside braked quite late. There was obviously a bit of a lock-up into the corner but that's because I could see Kimi was not going to give me any space.

"I can't disappear but the decision is what it is," lamented Piastri.

With the gap in the Drivers' Standings continuing to increase to Norris, does Piastri still have a chance at a maiden Title? He seems to think so.

He continued: "Just try and get the most out of it that I can.

"Today, the penalty was one thing, but I don't think the pace was at a level that I wanted it to be. The second half of the race was potentially not too bad but the first stint was a little bit tough.

"Just trying to get back on top of things with that and have the best weekends we can," concluded the McLaren driver.

Formula 1 will return for the Las Vegas Grand Prix in a fortnight's time, with the race commencing Sunday 23 November at 04:00 GMT (Saturday 22 November at 20:00 local time).