YAS MARINA, Abu Dhabi – Max Verstappen‘s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix victory was not enough to stop Lando Norris securing his first world drivers’ championship for McLaren.
The Dutchman won the race 12.5 seconds clear of title rival Oscar Piastri and 16.5 seconds clear of Norris, who entered the contest only needing a podium to win the title.
It was a tense, well-executed race by Norris, who had to fight back through the field and overcome an aggressive defensive move by Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate Yuki Tsunoda at mid-distance, to progress back up to the all-important third position after his first pit stop.
The result meant Piastri secured the title by two points over Verstappen and 13 over Piastri, and ended Verstappen’s run of four straight championships, the first time in 1,457 he had not held the title.
In doing so, Norris has become McLaren’s first drivers’ champion since 2008.
The result ended Verstappen’s run of four straight championships, which stretched back to the contrentious 2021 Abu Dhabi title showdown, and gave McLaren its first drivers’ championship since 2008.
While many expected Verstappen might be forced to drastically back up the field and put the McLaren drivers under pressure from the pack behind, he did not do so, and the race lacked the drama and excitement which had accompanied its billing this week.
While many had expected Verstappen to drastically back up the pack from the lead of the race in order to put the McLaren drivers under pressure, that tactic never materialized, with Verstappen running the race as normal.
“Is this the world champion hotline?” said McLaren CEO Zak Brown to Norris on the radio at the finish.
“Thanks guys, I love you guys, thanks for everything,” a choked up Norris said in reply as fireworks exploded over the circuit. “I’m gonna cry!”
Most in the paddock expected the start to be key — Mercedes driver George Russell predicted Norris would have it “done and dusted” if he got past Verstappen at the start, but the Red Bull driver made an aggressive chop to his left to keep Norris behind when the lights went out.
Norris soon had a mirror full of teammate Piastri behind and the Australian seized the initiative at Turn 9, swooping around the outside in a breathtaking move, one which left Norris under intense pressure for the rest of the evening’s contest.
Norris spent the first 10 laps of the contest fending off Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, although the red car only looked close enough on one occasion to have made a serious move — Leclerc, perhaps mindful of the championship implications, opted against anything wild.
The pair followed each other into the pits on Lap 17, dropping them both into a pack of cars they needed to clear quickly.
Norris passed Fernando Alonso and Andrea Kimi Antonelli both in one corner, using DRS for a double overtake down the backstraight.
Norris then approached the other Red Bull of Tsunoda who, like Piastri, had started the race on the hard tyre and had not yet stopped like the medium-tyred cars had.
The importance of Verstappen’s teammate — set to be replaced by Isack Hadjar in 2026 — soon became apparent as Norris approached the Red Bull car.
“Norris within DRS within one lap,” came the message from Red Bull to Tsunoda. “All you can when he catches.”
On Lap 17 came the key moment, with Norris closing the gap with the DRS overtaking aid.
0:41
Lando Norris almost collides with Yuki Tsunoda
Check out how Lando Norris and Yuki Tsunoda almost collided at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Tsunoda moved left and then right, with Norris squeezing between his Red Bull car and the wall in a thrilling moment.
Replays suggested Norris’ car had overtaken Tsunoda with one wheel over the white line on the outside, which might have been a penalty, and the incident was immediately investigated.
“Classic Red Bull s—housery,” was Norris race engineer Will Joseph’s verdict on the radio, suggesting he felt Tsunoda had forced the British driver off the marked portion of the racetrack.
After a tense couple of laps, the stewards confirmed they would take no further action in the matter.
Speaking to the Sky Sports F1 broadcast from the McLaren pit wall, company CEO Zak Brown said: “I think it was clearly the right decision. That was a dangerous and unnecessary maneuver [from Tsundoa]. I’m not surprised the second car is helping out, but there’s got to be a limit.”
It was the last moment of note of Tsunoda’s underwhelming Red Bull stint and might well be the last of his Formula 1 racing career — next year he will be the team’s test and reserve driver.
Tsunoda was then handed a five-second penalty for making two moves in either direction while defending, something not allowed under F1’s regulations.
The Japanese driver pitted a lap later and dropped down the order.
Eyes then turned back to the front of the pack, where Piastri led, albeit due to not stopping on the hard tyre.
Leclerc stopped for a second time on Lap 40 for mediums which forced McLaren’s hand once again, with Norris coming in a lap later for another set of tyres, albeit a set of hards.
The British driver exited the pits around six seconds clear of Leclerc, who had a tyre advantage. Piastri stopped on Lap 42, slipping back to second position on a fresh set of medium tyres, 25 seconds behind Verstappen who appeared content to cruise home on a one-stop strategy.
Briefly it seemed as though there would be legitimate jeopardy for Norris as Leclerc chipped away at the gap on fresher tyres, but the Ferrari driver’s charge soon died down.
