It’s not Max Verstappen, but Lando Norris who is the Formula 1 World Champion of 2025. Although the Dutchman won the Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi on Sunday, Norris finished third in the final race. This was enough to maintain his lead in the World Championship, securing the Englishman his first-ever world title.
Here’s a bird’s-eye view of the race:
ROUND 1/58: Verstappen gets off to a perfect start as the pole sitter, with Norris and Oscar Piastri maintaining their positions. But then it’s the Australian who outmaneuvers his teammate! Piastri moves up to P2, Norris to P3. Behind the trio of title contenders, there are already exciting duels between Alonso and Charles Leclerc for P4. The Ferrari driver is winning that battle for now. (Virtual champion at this stage: Norris).
ROUND 6/58: Norris needs to keep Leclerc behind him. The Monegasque occasionally pushes in pursuit of P3, entering the DRS zone. Verstappen leads with a comfortable two-second lead over Piastri, who, by the way, started on the hard tire, a different strategy than Verstappen and Norris. (Virtual champion at this stage: Norris)
ROUND 9/58: Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) and Alex Albon (Williams) are the first two drivers to make a pit stop. The standings at the front remain unchanged for now. A stalemate? Or… the calm before the storm? (Virtual champion at this stage: Norris).
ROUND 17/58: Here comes Lando Norris’s pit stop! McLaren brings him in, followed by Leclerc at Ferrari. However, Norris ends up behind a large group of slower drivers. Overtaking is not easy. But Leclerc is the man who can keep him from virtually P3, and he’s behind him. So, for now, it could work out well for Norris. He overtakes some drivers and quickly moves up to seventh after his stop. Verstappen still leads, followed by Piastri, but both still need to stop. (Virtual champion at this stage: Verstappen).
ROUND 23/58: Norris is now at the tail end of Yuki Tsunoda. The Japanese driver, who started on the hard tire, needs to hold him back to do Verstappen a favor. Because then Leclerc can get closer, that’s the plan. However, Norris overtakes Tsunoda in one go and is now back in third. The overtaking maneuver seemingly takes place off the track, but is that due to Tsunoda pushing him out? The incident is noted, will there be a penalty for one of them? (Virtual champion at this stage: Norris).
Lap 24/58
Verstappen makes his pit stop, switching from medium to hard tyres. Piastri, due to his different strategy, can continue for longer and is now leading. The big question hanging in the air is whether Norris (currently in P3) will be penalised for overtaking Tsunoda and if so, by how many seconds. (Virtual champion at this stage: Norris).
Lap 30/58
The race management has made a decision: Tsunoda is penalised, but Norris is not. The Englishman did overtake off the track, but according to the race management, this was due to Tsunoda’s manoeuvring. No penalty for Norris, who can therefore maintain P3, behind Verstappen and leader Piastri. (Virtual champion at this stage: Norris).
Lap 41/58
While waiting for Piastri’s first pit stop, Leclerc from P4 has gone in for a second pit stop. The question now is what McLaren will do: will Norris also switch to a two-stop strategy? Yes, he’s coming in! Verstappen continues and overtakes Piastri for the lead in the race. Norris, with his second stop, has countered Leclerc’s strategy, thus defending P3. (Virtual champion at this stage: Norris).
Lap 50/58
Leclerc was rapidly closing in on Norris, but the Englishman remains calm and firmly holds the third place. The world title is thus getting closer for the championship leader. Verstappen is leading the race, but he needs Norris to finish fourth to become world champion for the fifth time. Will there be a spectacular finale in the closing stages? (Virtual champion at this stage: Norris).
Lap 58/58
The final lap is a fact, Norris easily maintains his third place. After the second series of pit stops, his position was never really in danger; the gap to Leclerc remained a few seconds. Verstappen crosses the finish line as the winner, doing what he needed to do. With pole position and a victory, the Dutchman has maximised his final weekend, but it’s just not enough for the title. After a remarkable comeback this season, he falls short by two points: Norris finishes third in Abu Dhabi after a flawless race, which is enough for the Englishman to become world champion for the first time: 423 to 421 points.
