Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen talk.

In what could be Daniel Ricciardo’s final F1 race, he took a critical point away from Lando Norris as Max Verstappen bids to outrun his title challenger.

With Verstappen and Red Bull having seen their Formula 1 dominance fizzle out, McLaren’s Lando Norris has been whittling down the reigning three-time champion’s F1 2024 title lead, Verstappen’s run without a win reaching eight races after Singapore, where he finished runner-up to a dominant Norris.

Max Verstappen thanks Daniel Ricciardo for fastest lap snatch

Norris was set to take the perfect 26-point haul, which would have seen him reduce Verstappen’s lead to 51 points, but VCARB driver Ricciardo – Verstappen’s former Red Bull team-mate – clawed back a point for the Dutchman by sticking on a set of soft tyres and taking the fastest lap bonus point away from Norris.

And after the chequered flag, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner came over the radio to deliver the news to Verstappen.

“Your old pal Daniel picked up fastest lap,” said Horner, to which Verstappen replied: “Thank you, Daniel!”

Ricciardo finished last of the classified runners in Singapore, crossing the line P18, in what is being billed as potentially his last race, with Liam Lawson reportedly in line to replace Ricciardo at VCARB as of the United States Grand Prix.

But, while Verstappen was happy to cling on to that point, he wants to also be able to build that gap up again with six rounds of the season remaining, rather than looking to limit the damage each time.

Put to him that his Championship lead is being ebbed away, Verstappen replied: “Yeah, it is. But this also can change very quickly again.

“So we just need to keep on trying to, of course, at one point, try to overturn it a bit, not always finishing behind. But we’ll see how that goes.”

And despite finding himself somewhat in no man’s land, Verstappen reflected on P2 as a “good achievement”.

“Just by myself, trying to do the best I could, try to manage my own pace to the end,” Verstappen reflected on his race.

“I think the first stint was a bit difficult for us, quite a bit of tyre degradation. Second stint was a bit better. I was a bit more comfortable as well.

“So I think on a weekend where we knew that we were going to struggle, to be P2 is a good achievement.

“Of course, we’re not happy with second. Now we just have to try and improve more and more, and that’s what we’ll try to do.”

Ricciardo, despite finishing last, received a show of love from the fans by being voted Driver of the Day in perhaps his last race.