2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix result: Verstappen won the race, Norris won the title
Last year's Yas Marina finale ended with Lando Norris crowned champion by two points from Max Verstappen.
The 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on 7 December decided the championship. Max Verstappen won the race from pole for Red Bull, but Lando Norris finished third, which was enough to win his first world title by two points.
Oscar Piastri was second, 12.594 seconds behind Verstappen, after starting on hard tyres and passing Norris on the opening lap. Norris crossed the line 16.572 seconds behind the winner, with Charles Leclerc fourth for Ferrari and George Russell fifth for Mercedes.
Norris did not have an easy afternoon. He dropped to ninth after an early stop for hard tyres and had to work back through the field, including a pass on Yuki Tsunoda with all four wheels off the track. The stewards took no further action against Norris and gave Tsunoda a five-second penalty for weaving.
The rest of the top ten were Fernando Alonso, Esteban Ocon, Lewis Hamilton, Nico Hülkenberg and Lance Stroll. Hamilton climbed from 16th on the grid to eighth at the end of his first season with Ferrari.
Norris became McLaren's first drivers' champion since Hamilton in 2008. Piastri finished third in the standings, 13 points short, and Verstappen missed out on a fifth straight title by two points.
The weekend drew a record 339,000 fans over four days, including 136,000 at the after-race concerts and parties, according to organiser Ethara. The 2026 race returns to Yas Marina from 4 to 6 December, again as the season finale.
Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix4 to 6 Dec · Yas Marina Circuit See ticketsSource: Motor Sport Magazine, Silverstone, The National
