Abu Dhabi might have seen the Formula 1 world drivers’ championship finally decided in Lando Norris’ favor, but previous rounds included some dramatic moments that led to this point. So many of the 24 rounds could have been picked out as key points of the season, but I’ve taken on the challenge of picking five that either set the tone or appeared to change the direction of the championship.
Australia
Pre-season had shown McLaren to have an advantage over the field but there was still significant anticipation heading into the opening race over whether any other team could challenge, or which driver would come out on top. Given his late championship charge in 2024, Lando Norris was expected to lead the way and duly did so with pole position, but Oscar Piastri put him under significant pressure throughout to outline his own title credentials.
A late downpour threw a wrench in the works and led to both McLarens skating off – Norris retaining his lead, Piastri getting stuck on the grass – and opened the door for Max Verstappen to put the pressure on in the closing laps.
Norris withstood the challenge for a statement victory that backed up his early status as title favorite, but Verstappen showed he’d remain a threat if given half a chance, and Piastri’s stunning pass on Lewis Hamilton on the final lap recovered two points.
Barcelona
McLaren was starting to show the extent of its advantage as Red Bull struggled with car performance, but an aggressive and inventive three-stop strategy allowed Verstappen to stay in the frame and not let the leading two rest. It seemed like it was brave but ultimately unsuccessful attempt as Verstappen looked set for third before a late safety car, and with no usable soft or medium tires left he was put on a set of hards that left him a sitting duck to those behind.
Charles Leclerc and George Russell came through as Verstappen’s frustration grew – both due to the misfortune of the strategy but also some Turn 1 moves – and the Dutchman lost control to hit Russell at Turn 5 and pick up a 10-second penalty. The incident cost Verstappen five places and nine points, as Piastri picked up his fifth win in the first nine races.
With the beauty of hindsight – and the acknowledgment that future races could have played out differently too – it’s the one big result that Verstappen had control over that cost him the championship, as he ended up missing out by just two points.
For Piastri, the victory was another extremely strong display that gave him his first win in three races, but was already his fifth triumph of the season as he started marking himself out as the one to beat at that stage.
Verstappen’s forceful moves kept the Red Bull driver in play, but in Barcelona he would end up taking it a little too far. Steven Tee/LAT Images
Canada
Just one race after Verstappen dropped out of reach of the title lead with his Barcelona moment of madness, Norris then hurt his own championship position by running into the back of Piastri.
Mercedes and Verstappen had a slight pace advantage over McLaren in Montreal, and Russell converted pole position into victory while Kimi Antonelli picked up a first podium in third. Verstappen had to make do with second place as the top five were all in the frame in the closing stages, but Norris had closed up on Piastri in fourth when he attempted to move to a gap that didn’t exist on the run to Turn 1.
The contact took Norris out of the race and ended the grand prix under safety car – leaving Piastri to extend his lead over his teammate by 12 points – but what could have been a controversial or challenging moment for McLaren to handle was made extremely simple by Norris immediately owning the error both via team radio and as soon as he spoke publicly afterwards.
Monza
One week earlier, Piastri had pulled out what looked to be a commanding lead over Norris by winning comfortably at Zandvoort, while Norris retired with an engine oil line failure. 34 points was the difference, and with Piastri’s form having been so impressive up until that point, Norris said he’d have to go for it for the remained of the season.
He started off on the right foot with a strong performance at Monza to outqualify Piastri and run ahead of him for the majority of the race, before a slow pit stop cost him the position. McLaren somewhat controversially asked Piastri to hand the place back as it was a team rather than a driver error that hurt Norris, and the Australian protested but complied with the request.
Monza marked a turning of the tide in the battle of the McLaren drivers. albeit amid some controversy. Joe Portlock/Getty Images
While it kicked off a run of seven straight races – plus two Sprints – where Norris would finish ahead of Piastri and turn the title picture on its head between the two McLaren drivers, the fact that the pair were well adrift of Verstappen was both a major surprise and a sign of things to come as the Dutchman roared back into contention.
Las Vegas
Norris’ dominance in both Mexico and Brazil had provided the platform for the Briton to control the championship picture, and he appeared to be doing so with his performance in Las Vegas. It was far from a flawless weekend as Norris impressively took pole position but defended too aggressively against Verstappen at Turn 1, running wide and losing two positions. Verstappen had to win, and duly did so having been offered the chance, but Norris looked set for a comfortable second place that would leave him on the verge of the title heading to Qatar and all but eliminate Verstappen.
Then came the slow final laps that signaled a potential issue at McLaren, as both drivers were disqualified post-race for failing technical checks relating to plank wear. As slight and unintentional the infringement was, it cost Norris 18 points compared to Verstappen and six versus Piastri, as the potential for a three-way fight to the wire became far more realistic.
Ultimately, Norris did not let the lost points derail him, as he was somewhat conservative in the next two rounds but got the results he needed to secure the title.
