Lando Norris has proven he can win this year's Formula 1 Drivers' Championship by finding "an overdrive gear" during his dominant Mexico City Grand Prix victory, according to Sky Sports F1's Martin Brundle.

Norris regained the championship lead from his McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri for the first time since April and the Brit heads into the final four rounds of the season, starting with this weekend's Sao Paulo Grand Prix, having finished ahead of the Australian in five successive races.

The gap between the McLarens at the top of the standings is just a point, with Red Bull's Max Verstappen still a threat from 36 points off the lead in third despite having finished outside the top two in Mexico for the first time in six races.

While Norris had been on the podium at three of four races preceding Mexico, the 25-year-old hadn't won since the last race before the summer break in Hungary, and Brundle was impressed by the dominant fashion in which he controlled the race after claiming pole position.

"I thought it was an outstanding weekend for Lando," Brundle said on Sky Sports' The F1 Show. "If we'd have seen that kind of performance from Max or Lewis, we'd have talked about it in hushed tones because it was outstanding.

"You often hear me talk about, when I've commentated on championship showdowns, that one or more of the combatants, the main participants, seem to find an overdrive gear somehow. And that was Lando's overdrive.

"Max seems to have the overdrive engaged at all times. But I just thought that qualifying lap, the perfect start, defending into the most difficult first corner of the year, heading off into the distance was just perfect, and just the sort of statement and confidence booster he needs right now."

Sky Sports F1 pundit and 1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve agreed with Brundle, praising Norris' reaction to failing to capitalise on Piastri's retirement from the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in September.

Piastri endured a disastrous weekend as he crashed in both qualifying and the race in Baku, but Norris only finished seventh after making a couple of crucial errors of his own.

"It was a statement weekend," Villeneuve said. "You know, the weekends we're used to seeing from Max and that we saw a little bit from Lando last year when he was fighting Max.

"I guess the wake up call for him was Baku - not reacting, not capitalising on a bad weekend from Oscar. And I think that put some cold water on his face and he came back stronger as if he was fighting Max last year.

"And he's on a roll. He made a step in Singapore, another step in Austin. And it was marvellous in Mexico. When a driver gets in that zone, they become unbeatable."

'Lando completing the full set of cards'

Since emerging as one of the sport's top drivers, Norris has faced questions about whether he has the mental application to match his speed.

Poor starts hampered his attempts to chase down Verstappen in last year's title battle, while Norris causing an unnecessary collision with Piastri earlier this season was another costly lapse.

Brundle believes the hard work Norris has done with McLaren on maximising his performance is now showing.

"It's a pressure game," Brundle said. "That's the same in any high-level sport. It's mostly in your head in the end.

"But a year ago, I'd have said no with Lando. But he and the team have done so much work on this aspect. And just the way he's batted away disappointment because, whatever they say, Baku was a wasted opportunity. Obviously, the contact in Canada hurt him. He couldn't do anything about the engine failure in Zandvoort. And he obviously couldn't do anything about getting clouted in Austin.

"But he's managing that. Even the booing at the end of the race, which I found somewhat bizarre. He's just finding a way to compartmentalise that, package it up, not let it get to him.

"Lando of a year or two ago wouldn't have handled the start as well as that. I think he's really sort of completing the full set of cards there."

Villeneuve: Norris' self-criticism is a super strength

Norris has often been criticised for being overly negative about his own performances, but Villeneuve believes it was the Brit's toughness on himself that has brought about improvement.

"We are too quick to judge on the psychic of a driver just because of what we see on the outside," Villeneuve said. "But that doesn't mean that's what's going on internally.

"Lando was always very vocal about his mistakes, even when they weren't (his fault), he was actually taking the blame. And everybody judged that as him being so weak and beaten and down.

"I always thought, no, actually, being able to admit, to go out like that, to always take the blame, that's how you make progress.

"Only owning your own mistakes, and even the ones that aren't yours, that's how you actually step up, understand. What can I do different so I don't get into that situation again?

"It's not a weakness. It's a super strength to be able to blurt it out like that. But in modern society and social media, you just get blasted, 'oh, look how weak he is, he's talking down on himself.'

"Well, no, that wasn't weakness."

Formula 1's thrilling title race continues in Brazil with a Sprint weekend at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix from this Friday, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW - no contract, cancel anytime

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