After securing the first Formula 1 world title of his career, Lando Norris – in tears – thanked McLaren for guiding him through the journey that led him to the championship. He also turned to Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri, saying: “It was a great fight, I learned so much from you.”
Lando Norris was crowned world champion this afternoon for the first time, becoming the 35th Formula 1 driver in history to win the title.
It was a careful yet action-filled race, marked by key overtakes that made the difference in the most crucial phases between his two pit stops. After that, it became a long 58-lap wait until the chequered flag, which officially sealed Norris’s title triumph.
Just moments after removing his helmet, visibly emotional, Norris spoke to F1’s microphones, with David Coulthard asking the questions.
“Oh god… It had been a while since I last cried and I didn’t think I would… It has been a long journey, a very long one. I want to thank all my guys, the McLaren team members, my parents… I’m not crying… Mum, dad… They’re the ones who supported me from the beginning. I look like someone who has lost right now!”
“Winning this title is a fantastic feeling. Now I know what Max felt like, at least a little… I want to congratulate Oscar and Max, my two rivals throughout this entire season. It has been a pleasure racing against them and I learned a lot from them. I had a great time. It has been a very long season, but in the end we did it.”
“The title was on my mind when I was running third, you can’t not think about it. But it was a long race and we’ve seen many times how anything can happen in Formula 1. I pushed until three laps from the end, then I lifted a little. But I still wanted to keep pushing until the finish. That’s exactly what we did all season, with Max chasing us until the end and Oscar coming back into the fight in the last races. They made things tough this year. I’m really, really happy.”
Around the halfway point, after completing his first pit stop, Norris had to recover positions by overtaking several cars ahead that had not yet stopped. Among them was Yuki Tsunoda, theoretically an important ally for Verstappen. The Japanese driver tried to make Norris’s life difficult, but Lando executed a sharp move to the left to get past him.
During the overtake, Norris went off track with all four wheels. But the stewards deemed Tsunoda’s behaviour illegal because he had weaved on the straight to defend the position. Since such behaviour is not allowed by the sporting regulations, Tsunoda received a penalty, while Norris, although investigated, was cleared with a “no further action”.
“I had no idea I was under investigation. But I knew I had done everything correctly and I wasn’t worried. I tried to enjoy the moment because not many people in the world – and in F1 – get the chance to experience what I did. I’m happy for everyone at McLaren, maybe even happier for them than for myself. I’m unbelievably happy.”
“I’ve been with McLaren for seven years and we have been through incredibly difficult times as well as very good ones. Now I can finally give something back to them. I think I’ve done my part, because I’m the driver who brought a Drivers’ World Championship back to them. I’m very proud of myself, but I’m even prouder of all the people I’m making cry right now.”
After the podium ceremony, where Lando received the trophy for his third-place finish in the race, the newly crowned world champion spoke again, this time to Jenson Button. He delivered a heartfelt thank you to McLaren and to everyone who supported him over the nearly twenty years of his racing journey – especially his parents.
“I had dreamed about this moment for such a long time, but that’s true for all drivers. You put so much into a season like this, full of ups and downs. In the end what matters is how you finish, and we finished ahead of everyone. I really have to thank the team, who experienced so many moments with me. Not just over these last seven years here at McLaren, but over the last 16–17 years of my life, when I worked to reach this dream. I’m truly very happy.”
“My best performances came when it looked like they might no longer matter, when I was further back in the title fight. That’s when I brought out the best version of myself and proved how much I’m worth. I managed to close the gap and deliver the performances needed to win. I’m proud to have made my family happy. Thanks to mum and dad, because they allowed me to chase this dream,” Norris concluded.
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