🔗 Share this article Lando Norris Secures First F1 World Championship in Yas Marina In Spite Of Verstappen's Grand Prix Triumph. Through an exhibition of brave driving, Lando Norris has clinched his maiden Formula One world championship by achieving P3 at the Yas Marina race. Third place was all that was required for the 26-year-old driver, even though his rival Max Verstappen won the race and his teammate at McLaren Oscar Piastri finished in second. Norris executed precisely what was necessary in an extremely intense battle at the Yas Marina Circuit, including a number of bold overtakes, with flawless work from both the driver and his team. An Important Accomplishment for British Motorsport and The Team In taking his first world championship, Norris becomes the eleventh British driver to do so. It concludes the team's drivers’ championship drought, which went back to 2008 when Lewis Hamilton last won it. Additionally, it had been 27 years since McLaren last secured the drivers’ and constructors’ double back in 1998. It represents a stunning resurgence for the Woking-based outfit, since a low point in the mid-2010s when they ended up ninth in the standings. This resurgence has been spearheaded by team principal Zak Brown and, more recently, by Andrea Stella, who has built an operationally sharp outfit with a race-winning car. The new champion executes a victory spin after winning the world championship. A Tale of Two Teammates Regarding his teammate Oscar Piastri, who had looked so strong for a large part of the campaign, there was obvious frustration at stumbling in the closing stages. Several of difficult weekends and some errors, such as a crash in Baku, were expensive. Nevertheless, he finishes the season having shown he is also of champion caliber. Being so fast in only his third year in F1, with multiple victories, remains very impressive. Max Verstappen was also exceptional to force the title battle down to the last race. The Dutchman did all he could in Abu Dhabi with the win, but after fighting back from a significant deficit in August, he fell just short of having the points to overhaul Norris, ending up just two points short. Closing it Out with Clinical Precision He secured his success with clinical precision to take the championship that had been so close but eluded him as McLaren found themselves floundering at the previous two rounds. First a DSQ in Las Vegas and then an egregious tactical decision in Qatar. It was no little achievement for the driver in his seventh season in F1, all of them with McLaren. He remained loyal to the squad even during some difficult periods, convinced they would come good. That belief was rewarded in Abu Dhabi. He has done a hugely impressive job to persist with his goal, keeping his composure and confidence even when under pressure. After losing the lead to Piastri after Saudi Arabia, he nonetheless worked at maximising the car's potential. Lando Norris closes on the Red Bull of Yuki Tsunoda during the race. The Decisive Grand Prix At the start, Verstappen kept his first place through the first corner, but the main contenders avoided contact. Piastri, using the more durable compound, was feisty and made a spectacular move to pass the outside of Norris to take second place. It showed the McLarens were free to race, but put Norris under pressure from Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. The first round pit stops saw Norris emerge in midfield traffic, but he overtook rivals within a lap and displayed no signs of nerves in his driving. On lap 19, he made an absolutely bravura move to overtake two cars at once, climbing to fourth and catching Verstappen's teammate. The rival team instructed their driver to hold up Norris, leading to a dramatic overtaking attempt where Norris burst up the inside line, nearly completely off the track. The incident was investigated by the stewards, with several nerve-wracking laps elapsing before a time penalty for his rival and no further action for Norris settled the matter. This decisive charge unimpeded was crucial to his championship bid. Contrasting Fates While Norris was crowned the first British driver to win the title since Lewis Hamilton in 2020, the contrast in form between the two was pronounced. While the new generation fought for the title, Hamilton, the veteran, could only finish eighth place in Abu Dhabi, a dismal conclusion to a dismal season with Ferrari. His first season with the Scuderia had been met by excitement but has yielded what was easily his worst season ever, finishing sixth in the championship without a top-three finish. He has looked weary in the closing races and will aim to reset over the off-season. Lando Norris celebrates on his car after being crowned the title winner.
Through an exhibition of brave driving, Lando Norris has clinched his maiden Formula One world championship by achieving P3 at the Yas Marina race. Third place was all that was required for the 26-year-old driver, even though his rival Max Verstappen won the race and his teammate at McLaren Oscar Piastri finished in second. Norris executed precisely what was necessary in an extremely intense battle at the Yas Marina Circuit, including a number of bold overtakes, with flawless work from both the driver and his team. An Important Accomplishment for British Motorsport and The Team In taking his first world championship, Norris becomes the eleventh British driver to do so. It concludes the team's drivers’ championship drought, which went back to 2008 when Lewis Hamilton last won it. Additionally, it had been 27 years since McLaren last secured the drivers’ and constructors’ double back in 1998. It represents a stunning resurgence for the Woking-based outfit, since a low point in the mid-2010s when they ended up ninth in the standings. This resurgence has been spearheaded by team principal Zak Brown and, more recently, by Andrea Stella, who has built an operationally sharp outfit with a race-winning car. The new champion executes a victory spin after winning the world championship. A Tale of Two Teammates Regarding his teammate Oscar Piastri, who had looked so strong for a large part of the campaign, there was obvious frustration at stumbling in the closing stages. Several of difficult weekends and some errors, such as a crash in Baku, were expensive. Nevertheless, he finishes the season having shown he is also of champion caliber. Being so fast in only his third year in F1, with multiple victories, remains very impressive. Max Verstappen was also exceptional to force the title battle down to the last race. The Dutchman did all he could in Abu Dhabi with the win, but after fighting back from a significant deficit in August, he fell just short of having the points to overhaul Norris, ending up just two points short. Closing it Out with Clinical Precision He secured his success with clinical precision to take the championship that had been so close but eluded him as McLaren found themselves floundering at the previous two rounds. First a DSQ in Las Vegas and then an egregious tactical decision in Qatar. It was no little achievement for the driver in his seventh season in F1, all of them with McLaren. He remained loyal to the squad even during some difficult periods, convinced they would come good. That belief was rewarded in Abu Dhabi. He has done a hugely impressive job to persist with his goal, keeping his composure and confidence even when under pressure. After losing the lead to Piastri after Saudi Arabia, he nonetheless worked at maximising the car's potential. Lando Norris closes on the Red Bull of Yuki Tsunoda during the race. The Decisive Grand Prix At the start, Verstappen kept his first place through the first corner, but the main contenders avoided contact. Piastri, using the more durable compound, was feisty and made a spectacular move to pass the outside of Norris to take second place. It showed the McLarens were free to race, but put Norris under pressure from Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. The first round pit stops saw Norris emerge in midfield traffic, but he overtook rivals within a lap and displayed no signs of nerves in his driving. On lap 19, he made an absolutely bravura move to overtake two cars at once, climbing to fourth and catching Verstappen's teammate. The rival team instructed their driver to hold up Norris, leading to a dramatic overtaking attempt where Norris burst up the inside line, nearly completely off the track. The incident was investigated by the stewards, with several nerve-wracking laps elapsing before a time penalty for his rival and no further action for Norris settled the matter. This decisive charge unimpeded was crucial to his championship bid. Contrasting Fates While Norris was crowned the first British driver to win the title since Lewis Hamilton in 2020, the contrast in form between the two was pronounced. While the new generation fought for the title, Hamilton, the veteran, could only finish eighth place in Abu Dhabi, a dismal conclusion to a dismal season with Ferrari. His first season with the Scuderia had been met by excitement but has yielded what was easily his worst season ever, finishing sixth in the championship without a top-three finish. He has looked weary in the closing races and will aim to reset over the off-season. Lando Norris celebrates on his car after being crowned the title winner.