In his seventh season of competing in Formula 1, Lando Norris of Great Britain captured his first World Drivers’ Championship at the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. This marks the team’s first WDC since Lewis Hamilton won it over Felipe Massa in 2008.

Following the previous weekend’s Qatar GP, the driver of the McLaren #4 entered the GP 9 points ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, and 16 points over teammate Oscar Piastri. Many different scenarios could have played out; Lando just needed the right one.

After qualifying on Saturday, Verstappen sat on pole, with Norris on the outside, and Piastri in third.

When the five lights went out, Norris was passed by his teammate on the opening lap. Little did they know, however, that the top three would virtually remain in place for the rest of the race.

That’s right – this championship-decider proved to be quite anti-climactic: no safety cars, drama, crashes, or clutch-time action. Just the three spotlight drivers riding around where they were supposed to be.

Despite Verstappen winning the race, it wasn’t enough, as Norris’s 3rd place finish behind Piastri was enough to clinch the title by two points over Max, and thirteen points over Oscar. The Dutchman’s streak of winning four straight titles has come to an end.

“I didn’t think I’d cry, but I did,” Norris quoted in a post-race interview. “It’s a long journey… a long journey. First of all, I want to say a big thanks to everyone at McLaren and to my parents: my mom, my dad. They’re the ones who supported me since the beginning.”

“That you, at the end, lose the championship by two points, it of course looks painful,” said Verstappen. “But on the other hand, if you look from where we were in Zandvoort [Netherlands], more than 100 behind, then I think it’s not too bad.”

With the 2025 F1 season in the books, one question remains – will Lando go back-to-back in 2026? Will Max get back to winning ways? Can Oscar finally get that WDC? It’ll have to wait until next spring.