When the final stretch of the 2024 Formula 1 season finally starts in Austin, Texas next week, Lando Norris and McLaren will have a very clear task set out before them.

Beat Max Verstappen by an average of just under nine points at each of the six remaining race weekends, and they will win one of the most unexpected championship titles in the seven-decade history of F1.

That the 25-year-old and the Woking-based squad are even contention is nigh on miraculous given how far off the leading pace they were a year ago, and the advantage Red Bull built up at the start of the season. That the possibility of so comprehensively outperforming Verstappen and Red Bull during the run in is actually pretty realistic based on recent form is even more staggering.

That is not to say Norris and McLaren are strong favourites, but the fact that McLaren are indisputably clear out front, while Red Bull appear far off coming up with a consistent solution to their performances woes? The numbers suggest that there’s a real title fight on the cards.

Had McLaren not spurned so many points in late spring and early summer, the advantage would have been even further reduced.

But those races have been and gone, and all the papaya team – and they’ve clearly been trying – can do now is maximise their results from here on out. In order to do so, Norris is setting a new kind of tone.

What has Lando Norris said about Max Verstappen?

Norris has now won three F1 grands prix

When McLaren became the quickest team on the grid around the time of Norris’ maiden victory in Miami in May, they failed to rejig their approach to race strategy and in-race communications quickly enough.

Rather than relentlessly focusing on hauling in as many points as possible for Norris, the team – which had delivered spellbinding development work – to put themselves in contention for not just race wins but the title itself. They dithered over prioritising Norris over team-mate Oscar Piastri, spending extended periods of time on the team radio politely asking their drivers to fix errors of the team’s making and preaching about the so-called ‘papaya rules’ governing racing between the pair.

By the time the events in Azerbaijan and Singapore rolled around, the team seemed to have a better grasp on how serious their chances of stealing the title from Verstappen’s grasp was. As it stands, Norris is trying to make clear that he possesses the requisite ruthlessness to take on the triple world champion, who is both friend and foe all at once.

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“As soon as I put the helmet on, I hate everyone,” Norris told The Athletic in an interview. “A lot of people think, because I get along with someone here or just play on a game with someone, that you are just best mates in life, no matter what you do.

“That is just nonsense. We do those things. We have similar interests. We play padel together, that kind of stuff. And I like Max as a guy, I think he is a very genuine guy. But that does not change anything when I am on the track.”

“I think the people you actually get along with more out of the track are the people you want to beat more when you are on the track, which is the opposite thought to what a lot of people have [in their minds]. They think because you are mates, you are too nice on the track. I think it is the complete opposite.”

What will Norris’ comments means for the title race?

Norris and Verstappen spend time together away from the race track

That notion of ‘hating everyone’ once a race begins gives an interesting insight into Norris mindset.

Here he is, six races from glory, a place in history bestowed upon by him by a title victory that seemed an utter impossibility just four or five months ago. He has been criticised for his own self-deprecation following errors throughout the course of the season, and doubts over his ability to win the title tend to focus more on his perceived laidback attitude than his skill behind the wheel.

And now he is attempting to set out a very different stall. A tone of anger, of seriousness, of ruthlessness that both driver and team have probably not demonstrated enough of until this point.

If they are able to combine the speed of their car with solid decision making and this newfound clinical edge that Norris seems determined to instil, then they will give themselves a serious shot of causing one of the most significant upsets in F1 history.

And if Norris demonstrates a more bullish, combative attitude with Verstappen out on track, then the thrill of the title race could be further ignited by fiery sparks which leave friendship by the wayside.