Through an exhibition of brave racing, Lando Norris has won his first Formula One world championship by taking a podium finish at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. That finish was sufficient for the 26-year-old driver, even though his rival Max Verstappen won the race and his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri came home in second.
The driver performed exactly what was required in an enormously high-pressure race at the Abu Dhabi track, including a series of audacious overtakes, with flawless execution from both himself and his McLaren squad.
By winning his maiden world championship, Norris becomes the 11th driver from Britain to achieve this. It also brings to an end McLaren's title drought, which stretched back to 2008 when Lewis Hamilton last won it. Furthermore, it had been 27 years since McLaren achieved the championship double back in 1998.
It represents a incredible turnaround for the team, since a low point in the middle of the last decade when they twice finished ninth in the standings. The revival has been spearheaded by boss Zak Brown and, most recently, by Andrea Stella, who has built an operationally sharp team with a very fast car.
The new champion performs a celebratory donut after securing the world championship.
For his teammate Oscar Piastri, who had led the championship for much of the season, there was clear frustration at stumbling in the final third. Several of difficult weekends and some errors, including a crash in Baku, proved costly. However, he emerges having demonstrated he is too world champion material. Being so fast in only his third year in F1, with multiple victories, remains very impressive.
Max Verstappen was also brilliant to take the fight to the wire. The Dutchman did all he could in Abu Dhabi with the win, but after fighting back from a significant deficit mid-season, he fell just short of having enough to catch Norris, finishing just two points behind.
Norris closed out his success with ruthless precision to take the championship that had been so close but remained just out of grasp as McLaren found themselves floundering at the last two races. First a DSQ in Las Vegas and then an egregious tactical decision in Qatar.
It was no little accomplishment for the 26-year-old in his seventh season in F1, each one with McLaren. He stuck with the team even during tough periods, convinced they would come good. That faith was rewarded in Abu Dhabi.
Norris performed a remarkable job to persist with his goal, keeping his composure and belief during periods under pressure. Having lost the championship lead to Piastri earlier, he nonetheless worked at maximising the car's potential.
Norris closes on the car of another competitor during the race.
In the race, Verstappen kept his lead through the first corner, but the three title leaders avoided contact. Piastri, using the more durable compound, was feisty and made a brilliant move to pass the outside of Norris to claim second place.
It showed the McLarens were free to race, but put Norris under threat from the Charles Leclerc. Early pit visits saw Norris come out into midfield traffic, but he overtook rivals quickly and showed great composure in his race craft.
On lap 19, he made an absolutely bravura move to overtake two cars at once, moving up to fourth and catching Verstappen's teammate. Red Bull instructed their driver to delay Norris, which resulted in a dramatic overtaking attempt where Norris burst up the inside line, almost leaving the track.
This moment was looked at by the stewards, with several nerve-wracking laps passing before a penalty for his rival and exoneration for Norris was decided. This bold move unimpeded was vital to his championship bid.
As Norris was crowned the first Briton to take the title since Lewis Hamilton in 2020, the difference in form between the two was stark. As the young guns fought for the title, Hamilton, the veteran, could manage only eighth place in Abu Dhabi, a dismal ending to a dismal season with Ferrari.
His first season with the Italian team had been met by enthusiasm but has yielded what was comfortably his worst season ever, finishing sixth in the championship without a podium. He has looked weary in the closing races and will look to rebuild over the off-season.
Lando Norris celebrates on his car after becoming the title winner.
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