If the 2021 F1 championship race embodied the song “Skyfall” by Adele, the lead up to the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was the epitome of “The Final Countdown” by Europe. I have been covering the 2025 F1 season since its kickoff in March, and the stories that have emerged were constant page turners. This was it, the race that would determine the Driver’s World Champion, the driver who would be allowed to change their number to 1 next season, the driver who would receive unparalleled prestige on the international stage.
To give a quick recap about what the scene looked like before the cars graced the Yas Marina Circuit, I must first mention the chaotic Las Vegas Grand Prix and Qatar Grand Prix. These three races all happen within a week from each other, giving the drivers little to no rest.
Two races before, in Vegas, Oscar Piastri crossed the chequered flag first, followed by his teammate Lando Norris. To the complete shock of viewers and absolute dismay of McLaren, who were chasing the championship the whole season, the FIA released a statement in the early morning hours declaring the two Papaya cars had been disqualified. This was a major blow to McLaren, as the lack of points failed to advance either of their drivers and the first place finish now going to Max Verstappen put him on par with Piastri for points. Until then, almost no one had believed Verstappen was in the running for a championship since at one point he was over 100 points behind. Post summer break had been nothing but an outstanding comeback run for the Red Bull Racing driver.
They then traveled halfway across the world to Qatar, where Piastri qualified in pole position during both the sprint and the race. He managed to take home points in the sprint and pull in front of Verstappen in the standings – a promising start to the weekend. However, I would never have predicted the absolute mess of a strategy McLaren gave their drivers in the race. Their choices possibly set up the next race to allow them to fumble the championship. An early safety car saw all drivers but the two Papayas pit, a smart move because they lost no time and got one of the two necessary pit stops out of the way. McLaren was then forced to pit twice not under a safety car, and acquired an inescapable loss of time, even with their stunning pace.
The final standings after Qatar saw Norris keep P1, but Verstappen moved up to P2 knocking the early championship contender Piastri to P3. I also want to highlight Williams driver Sainz, who finished on the podium and put up a fierce defense. This secured P5 for the Williams team, their highest finish in the team rankings since 2017. Additionally, Red Bull was now catching up to Mercedes in the battle for P2 of the Constructor’s Championship. Each rank provides many more millions to the team for the next year's car development.
On to Abu Dhabi, the race where fans would hold their breath and cross their fingers, because any of the top three could win. How? No matter what place the others get, if Norris finished on the podium he won. But, Verstappen took pole in qualifying over Norris which made this just one step more difficult to achieve. On the opening lap of the race, the top three stayed in their qualifying positions through turn one, but shortly after Piastri pulled his Papaya around the outside of Norris’ car, an impressive move as the Aussie had the hard tires on his car instead of the mediums. The overtake placed Norris in another precarious situation, as Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was attacking with fervor from behind and threatening to steal P3.
A series of pitstops led to a series of overtakes by Norris, Russel and Leclerc. They came out of the pit lane with a series of cars in front of them that would slow their pace, which required skilled overtakes as to not crash but also not get held up. The Stewards later noted Norris for overtaking off the track and Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda for forcing Norris’ car off the track. Although Tsunoda made Norris’ job of overtaking a challenge, he let Leclerc pass easily. The Red Bull team evidently wanted to allow the Ferrari to continue pressuring the McLaren, to hopefully strip away his podium – which would allow Verstappen the win. Luckily for Papaya, the stewards noted that no further action was needed and Norris had been forced off the track by a dangerous maneuver. However illegal it was, this strategy implemented by Red Bull is part of what makes this team sport so entertaining.
Later in the race, Ferrari told Leclerc to box for medium tires, their last effort to try and fight Norris. The Papaya pit crew reacted fast, and told their driver to box. A brilliant pitstop in possibly the most crucial moment of the race allowed the McLaren to come out in front of the Ferrari, preventing the undercut. The top three continued to drive with immense skill, as even a track limits penalty and a forced five-second stop could change the rankings. The final order was Verstappen P1, Piastri P2 and Norris P3. Verstappen had been champion for 1457 days, and this was his first season since then as the underdog.
At the beginning of the year, Norris would have never predicted this life changing moment. But consistent racing and an effort for points at every opportunity finally landed him the World Champion honor after seven seasons. In a heartwarming radio call at the end, he proclaimed to his team, “you made a kid's dream come true, thank you so much.” No matter who you were rooting for, it’s undeniable this was a fascinating way to end the season.
