Overview

• Max Verstappen published the onboard of his fastest Nürburgring NLS race lap at 7:51.514, narrowly short of Christian Krognes’ official 7:49.578 record.
• His GT3 debut ended in a dominant NLS win with Chris Lulham, drawing admiration and envy from F1 peers and renewing discussion over his freedom to race outside F1.
• The FIA issued a heat alert for Singapore with teams instructed to protect drivers in hot, humid conditions, while forecasts point to heavy rain and the Safety Car probability is cited at 93 percent.
• Verstappen sits 69 points behind Oscar Piastri with seven races left as drivers pegged his comeback chances anywhere from 10 to 100 percent, with Verstappen quipping 50 percent.
• McLaren can secure the constructors’ title unless Mercedes outscores it by 31 points, as Carlos Sainz arrives buoyed by a Baku podium but expects Williams to struggle on the high-downforce layout.