Verstappen and Norris dismiss the 'tape-gate' controversy.

      "It was rather entertaining to see them attempt and fail."

      The 'tape-gate' controversy that started on the Austin grid has continued in Mexico City, but Max Verstappen is keeping himself away from the drama and from McLaren's increasing internal tensions. Red Bull faced a fine after one of its mechanics disregarded marshals to remove a piece of tape McLaren had placed on the pitwall to denote Lando Norris' grid position. Since that incident, discussions about sportsmanship have taken center stage in the paddock. "Anyone who needs this kind of tape should utilize it," Verstappen remarked. "I don't require it."

      Carlos Sainz from Williams, a former member of the Red Bull team, was less lenient. "Clearly, someone saw a competitive edge by attempting to take that away from him," the Spaniard stated. "You won't get any headlines from me here, but I understand the principles of sport and how I'd react if I were in that situation with my team." Norris, for his part, maintains that he only found it humorous. "It was quite amusing to watch them try and fail to remove it," he said. "I didn’t even need it, but we put it on the wall just in case. "This wasn't their first attempt to get rid of it," revealed the McLaren driver. "That’s why we made it so resilient - much like those Formula 1 parking stickers that you place on your windshield that never come off."

      More urgent for McLaren is Verstappen's late push in the championship. Following disputes and accusations in Singapore and Austin, Oscar Piastri confirmed that any internal "consequences" for Norris have now been "lifted." "I believe there is some responsibility on my end in the (Austin) sprint," Piastri admitted. "We’re starting this weekend with a clean slate for both of us - simply going out and racing to see who finishes on top."

      Verstappen, now within close range of both McLaren drivers, claims he is taking the final stretch in stride. "We’re not overly stressed about it," he said. "We’re just aiming to enjoy it, trying to make the most of it until the end. If it works out, fantastic. If it doesn’t, we can still take pride in the progress in performance that we’ve shown."

      He also dismissed Red Bull advisor Dr. Helmut Marko’s assertion that the excitement of the chase has unlocked "two-tenths" of additional speed in Verstappen alone. "No, I don’t agree with that," Verstappen countered. "It's more enjoyable to come to race weekends like this than when you know you have no chance of winning. But I always strive to optimize everything when I’m in the car."

      Marko had further indicated that Verstappen might be easing off on his new GT3 racing venture to concentrate on F1, but the Dutch driver refuted that as well. "It was planned a long time ago," he clarified. "It was just the first opportunity. Nothing has really altered in how professionally I approach my race weekends."

      Bookmakers currently assess Verstappen's title chances at around 40 percent, but Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies is uninterested in figures. "We don't engage in this kind of calculation," he stated. "It's just that simple." Meanwhile, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff claims Verstappen has the "psychological" edge as the pursuer, a sentiment not shared by Fernando Alonso. "I don’t think so," the Spaniard told reporters. "The championship can shift entirely in an instant. Lando could also win a race by 30 seconds, and then Max would be out of the title race again. Max is driving incredibly, there’s no question about that - but ultimately, the car will determine who becomes world champion."