With a performance full of nerveless driving, Lando Norris has clinched his maiden Formula One world championship by securing P3 at the season finale in Abu Dhabi. That finish was all that was required for the British driver, even though Red Bull's Max Verstappen finished first and his teammate at McLaren Oscar Piastri finished in second.
The driver performed precisely what was required in an enormously high-pressure battle at the Abu Dhabi track, featuring a series of audacious overtakes, with flawless execution from both the driver and his McLaren squad.
A Historic Achievement for British Motorsport and McLaren
By winning his first world championship, Norris is now the eleventh British driver to achieve this. This ends McLaren's title drought, which dated back to 2008 when Lewis Hamilton last won it. Additionally, it had been 27 years since McLaren last secured the championship double back in 1998.
It represents a remarkable resurgence for the Woking-based outfit, from a low point in the mid-2010s when they ended up ninth in the standings. The revival has been led by team principal Zak Brown and, more recently, by Andrea Stella, who has delivered an operationally sharp outfit with a race-winning car.
Lando Norris performs a victory donut after securing the world championship.
A Tale of Two Teammates
For the Australian Oscar Piastri, who had looked so strong for much of the campaign, there was clear frustration at stumbling in the final third. A series of poor performances and mistakes, including a crash in Baku, were expensive. However, he emerges having shown he is too of champion caliber. To have been so fast in only his third year in F1, with multiple victories, remains very impressive.
Max Verstappen too had been exceptional to force the title battle to the wire. He did everything possible in Abu Dhabi with the win, but after fighting back from a 104-point deficit mid-season, he did not quite have enough to overhaul Norris, ending up just a handful of points behind.
Sealing the Deal with Ruthless Precision
He secured his success with clinical focus to take the championship that had been so close but eluded him as McLaren found themselves floundering at the last two rounds. These included a double disqualification in Las Vegas and then an questionable tactical decision in Qatar.
This represents no little achievement for the driver in his seventh season in F1, all of them with McLaren. He stuck with the team even during some difficult periods, convinced they would come good. That faith was vindicated in Abu Dhabi.
Norris performed a hugely impressive job to persist with his goal, keeping his composure and belief during periods under pressure. Having lost the championship lead to Piastri after Saudi Arabia, he still worked at getting the most from the car's potential.
Norris chases down the car of Yuki Tsunoda during the race.
The Decisive Grand Prix
At the start, Verstappen held his lead through the first corner, but the three title leaders avoided contact. Piastri, using the hard tyre, was feisty and made a brilliant move to pass the outside of Norris to take second place.
This demonstrated the McLarens were free to race, but put Norris under pressure from the Charles Leclerc. The first round pit visits saw Norris emerge in traffic, but he passed rivals within a lap and displayed great composure in his driving.
On lap 19, he made an incredibly bold move to overtake two cars in one swoop, moving up to fourth and catching Verstappen's teammate. Red Bull instructed their driver to hold up Norris, leading to a breathtaking assault where Norris went up the inside line, almost leaving the track.
This moment was investigated by the stewards, with several impossibly tense laps elapsing before a penalty for his rival and exoneration for Norris was decided. This bold move unimpeded was vital to his title fight.
Diverging Fortunes
As Norris was crowned the first Briton to take the title since Lewis Hamilton in 2020, the contrast in form between the two was pronounced. As the young guns fought for the title, Hamilton, the grand champion, could manage only eighth place in Abu Dhabi, a disappointing ending to a difficult season with Ferrari.
Making his debut with the Italian team had been greeted with enthusiasm but produced what was easily his worst season ever, ending up sixth in the championship without a top-three finish. He has appeared jaded in the final rounds and will look to rebuild over the off-season.
The champion revels on his car after being crowned world champion.
