Three Formula 1 Winners: Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

Photo by Zak Mauger from Getty Images

Another season is in the books, and what a season it was.

As always, I like to spend the last race of the year focusing on the winners of the season.

Not so much negativity. It’s a long winter before the season kicks off again.

So here are the three winners for the 2025 F1 season.

3. Oscar Piastri

Last season, Piastri was comprehensibly beaten by teammate Lando Norris in equal equipment.

And with McLaren being a title winning car, many expected Lando to easily be the team’s top driver.

But Piastri took a big leap this year, not only in qualifying pace, but in race craft.

Because of that, he led the championship for much of the season, and even had some wondering if he should get first driver rights from McLaren.

The rest of the season didn’t go the way he had hoped, but it was still a huge leap forward for the young Australian driver.

I’m excited to see where he goes from here.

2. Max Verstappen

The reigning four time champion was up against it this year.

That car was nowhere near the pace of the McLaren’s, and despite his best efforts, it was going to be incredibly unlikely he’d fight for the championship.

And yet at the end, there he was. Only two points short of winning five straight championships, and ending the year with more wins than any other driver.

Of all the seasons Verstappen has had in F1, this was, in my opinion, by far his best in the season.

1. Lando Norris

But there was one who stood above the rest, and that was Lando Norris.

Norris, who was preseason favorite, had a very tough start.

Mental mistakes in qualifying, poor race starts, and his teammate having an electric start, put Norris behind the 8 ball and led to many wondering if he was truly championship material.

And after an engine failure in Holland, I thought the gap was too big with how Piastri was performing.

But Norris found an extra gear when he needed to, and his last few months of the season were incredible.

He did what he needed to do, and even though he got a scare, he is the world champion for the first time in his career.

Congratulations to Lando Norris, and here’s to 2026 and a brand new era of Formula 1.

I’m excited to see what the future holds.