Verstappen still in title chase but seeks perfection as season draws close to an end

Max Verstappen is seeking perfection as he chases a fifth successive Formula One title that may be back on after seemingly slipping out of reach.

- 

Even if the odds look stacked against him, with the gap to McLaren's front-runner Oscar Piastri at 63 points with six rounds to go, the Red Bull driver cannot be ruled out until the numbers say so.

McLaren boss Zak Brown is taking nothing for granted even at this late stage.

"Max is very much in the game. I think it would be a big mistake to think Max wasn't part of this drivers' championship right now," he said on Friday, a warning he has made repeatedly of late.

The Dutch driver, who is third overall and has beaten both McLarens in the past three races, is not going to argue - even if he says he is still taking it one race at a time without getting carried away.

"One retirement (for McLaren) and you're fully back into it," Verstappen told Reuters before securing pole position for the Saturday sprint at Austin's Circuit of the Americas.

"There's always a chance, right? But everything needs to go perfect.