Lando Norris wins first F1 championship over Piastri, Verstappen in tense 2025 Abu Dhabi GP

Lando Norris has held off a late-season charge from reigning champion Max Verstappen – and a challenge from Australia's own Oscar Piastri – to win his first Formula One World Drivers' Championship.

Verstappen claimed victory in a tense Abu Dhabi Grand Prix this morning, Australian time, but a third-place finish for Norris was enough to deny his Red Bull rival a fifth consecutive world title.

Melbourne-born Piastri – who led the F1 championship after 15 of the 24 Grand Prix weekends this year – crossed the line in second, for third position in the standings.

Nine Grands Prix ago, Piastri led his McLaren teammate Norris by 34 points – and Verstappen by 104 points – and seemingly appeared set to become Australia's first F1 champion since Alan Jones in 1980.

But five victories for Verstappen, a resurgence in form for Norris, and a slump in performance for Piastri has seen the tables turn, and the British driver start the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 16 points ahead of his McLaren team-mate, and 12 ahead of the Red Bull ace.

"I didn't think I would cry, but I did. It is a long journey. I want to say a big thanks to my guys, everyone at McLaren, my parents," said Norris in his post-race interview with the official F1 broadcast.

"I now know what Max feels like a little bit! I want to congratulate Max and Oscar as well, it has been a pleasure to race against both of them, and to learn from both of them."

The 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is the first Formula One season finale to see three drivers still in contention for the Drivers' Championship since 2010.

That year, it was Australia's Mark Webber – now Piastri's manager – in second place in the standings, seven points ahead of Red Bull team-mate Sebastian Vettel, and eight points behind the Ferrari of leader Fernando Alonso.

Webber, like Piastri, lost the title to his team-mate and would never again be so close to a maiden drivers' title.

Starting on pole, Verstappen held into the lead into the first corner – despite a challenge from Norris – as a slow start from the Mercedes-AMG of George Russell further back in the field saw him drop from fourth to sixth.

A daring overtake eight corners later, however, saw Piastri steal second place from Norris, who, over the next 12 laps, came under pressure from a charging Ferrari of Charles Leclerc, to no avail.

Norris pulled into the pits on Lap 17 to swap his fading medium tyres for new, longer-lasting hard rubber, emerging in ninth place – ahead of Leclerc, who pitted on the same lap – but quickly climbing back up the order.

Along the way, he was squeezed close to the barriers while trying to overtake Verstappen's Red Bull teammate Yuki Tsunoda – who will not have an F1 race seat next year – for fourth position.

Tsunoda would go on to receive a five-second penalty for the incident, as Norris returned to third position on Lap 25.

Piastri spent much of the race in the lead, his hard tyres – fitted from the start of the Grand Prix – allowing him to drive further before needing to pit, but after being overtaken by Verstappen with fresh rubber on Lap 41, he pulled in for a set of medium tyres.

By Lap 51 – with another pit stop occurring for Norris – the Red Bull of Verstappen held an 18-second lead over second-placed Piastri, who was a further four seconds ahead of Piastri.

The final tally for the 2025 championship sees Norris win on 423 points, ahead of Verstappen's 421, and Piastri's 410.

1. Max Verstappen, Red Bull – 1:26:07.469
2. Oscar Piastri, McLaren +12.594sec
3. Lando Norris McLaren +16.572sec
4. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari +23.279sec
5. George Russell, Mercedes-AMG +48.563sec
6. Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin +67.562sec
7. Esteban Ocon, Haas +69.876sec
8. Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari +72.670sec
9. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin +74.523sec
10. Oliver Bearman, Haas +76.166sec
11. Nico Hulkenberg, Kick Sauber +79.014sec
12. Gabriel Bortoleto, Kick Sauber +81.043sec
13. Carlos Sainz, Williams +82.158sec
14. Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull +83.794sec
15. Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes-AMG +84.399sec
16. Alexander Albon, Williams +90.327sec
17. Isack Hadjar, Racing Bulls +1 lap
18. Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls +1 lap
19. Pierre Gasly, Alpine +1 lap
20. Franco Colapinto, Alpine +1 lap

1. Lando Norris, McLaren – 423 points
2. Max Verstappen, Red Bull – 421 points
3. Oscar Piastri, McLaren – 410 points
4. George Russell, Mercedes – 319 points
5. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari – 242 points
6. Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari – 156 points
7. Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes – 150 points
8. Alexander Albon, Williams – 73 points
9. Carlos Sainz, Williams – 64 points
10. Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin – 56 points
11. Nico Hulkenberg, Kick Sauber – 51 points
12. Isack Hadjar, Racing Bulls – 51 points
13. Oliver Bearman, Haas – 41 points
14. Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls – 38 points
15. Esteban Ocon, Haas – 38 points
16. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin – 33 points
17. Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull – 33 points
18. Pierre Gasly, Alpine – 22 points
19. Gabriel Bortoleto, Kick Sauber – 19 points
20. Franco Colapinto, Alpine – 0 points
21. Jack Doohan, Alpine – 0 points

Alex Misoyannis has been writing about cars since 2017, when he started his own website, Redline. He contributed for Drive in 2018, before joining CarAdvice in 2019, becoming a regular contributing journalist within the news team in 2020. Cars have played a central role throughout Alex’s life, from flicking through car magazines at a young age, to growing up around performance vehicles in a car-loving family. Highly Commended - Young Writer of the Year 2024 (Under 30) Rising Star Journalist, 2024 Winner Scoop of The Year - 2024 Winner

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