The last race of the season saw McLaren win the Constructors Championship for the first time since 1998 after a solid performance from Lando Norris. Though the Ferrari’s ramped up the pressure, they finished second overall and earned a two-driver podium victory.
The excitement from Abu Dhabi is perhaps the cherry on the cake from the tumultuous season. So, let’s take a dive into the highlights.
Max Verstappen and Red Bull’s Wings
With a spectacular start to the season, three-time Driver’s Championship winner Max proved he wasn’t going to slow down anytime soon.
He won four out of the first five races of the season, looking comfortably ahead of the grid.
The Australian GP, which saw him retire early on in lap 4, was a mere hitch in domination at the beginning of the season as he flew right to the top at the Japanese GP.
The flying Dutchman had secured pole position during qualifying, then celebrated a one-two podium with teammate Sergio (Checo) Perez surrounded by the blooming cherry blossoms.
His chance to secure a consecutive fourth Championship wasn’t far from reach.
Fresh face
Young 18-year-old Ollie Bearman shocked the world of F1 when he scored in the points on his debut race in Jeddah.
The reserve Ferrari driver filled in for Sainz and drove fantastically to become P7—and for one of the biggest teams in the sport.
“I think he showed in Saudi how good of a job he can do, even under the pressure he was [under] to perform and get so much out of the car in his first weekend, so I’m excited to see him on the grid next year and look forward to racing him,”
Lando Norris, F1 News
Though under tons of pressure, his performance paid off. Officially, he’s set to take a seat for Haas next season alongside Esteban Ocon.
Smooth Operator
Spaniard driver Carlos Sainz has had quite an emotional year.
For four years, he drove in Ferrari’s iconic red and had some major achievements with them.
In his debut season with the team, he scored points in all but two races, snagging a few podium positions along the way. In 2022, he won his first race at Silverstone and also secured the pole position in Qualifying beforehand.
In 2023, he was the only non-Red Bull driver to secure a win during the season in Singapore.
But the road turned bumpy for him this season; he missed the second race from an appendicitis injury. Then, after winning in Mexico, he had a disastrous weekend in Brazil.
“Just two very strange, unfortunate crashes today.” “A bit of a nightmare day, honestly.”
Carlos Sainz, post-race media
During the rest of the season, he performed well, earning fifth place in the Driver’s Championship. Yet, he leaves the Ferrari for Williams Racing in 2025.
The Reds make room for Lewis Hamilton.
Bye, bye Honey Badger
DR3. The Honey Badger. The man with a smile.
Daniel Riccardo is no stranger to the spotlight. Having debuted onto the grid back in 2011, the Australian has spent more than a decade racing for a range of teams.
His ambition to win a Championship led him to surprise move from Red Bull to Renault (now Alpine).
After a brief stint there, where he secured a podium at the German GP, he moved to McLaren. He struggled to adjust to the change, and though he won in Monza, he gave the team their first victory since 2012.
His humbling moment was when he found himself without a seat last year. But his former boss, Christian Horner, supported him, giving him a reserved driver’s seat at Red Bull.
He ended up joining Alpha Tauri after Pierre Gasly sought a new opportunity at Alpine. Unfortunately for Ricciardo, he left effective immediately after his last race in Singapore, where he finished 18th.
“It’s wild and wonderful and been a journey. To the teams and individuals that have played their part, thank you. To the fans who love the sport sometimes more than me haha thank you.”
Daniel Ricciardo, F1 News
“It’ll always have its highs and lows but it’s been fun and truth be told I wouldn’t change it. Until the next adventure.”
Grid Switch Up
One thing to look forward to for the 2025 season is the new faces on the grid.
The official lineup was confirmed recently and sees drivers who are already familiar with the scene.
Ollie Bearman will come in to drive for Haas after racing twice for Ferrari this season — scoring points both times!
New Zealander Liam Lawson, who replaced Riccardo in the last six races of the season, will drive for Red Bull alongside Verstappen. The pressure will truly be on, as Horner and the team will be gunning for the Constructors as well as a possible fifth championship for Max.
Lawson had a successful run in F2, where, in 2022, he finished third overall under Carlin. This was a major jump from finishing ninth the previous year with Hitech.
However, his move to Red Bull from RB is controversial because he was generally outperformed by his teammate Yuki Tsunoda in the six races he drove.
Tsunoda, who joined in 2021, showed massive improvements in his racing and attitude and finished 12th.
Horner said it was a ‘tight call‘ between the two drivers; Lawson just edged the Japanese driver.
“A couple of things have stood out with me with Liam – how versatile he is.” “You put him into a situation, he gets on with it. If you remember his debut in Zandvoort after Daniel broke his fingers, he was racing against Max on his out lap.”
Christian Horner, ESPN
Awkward Dinner
What’s an F1 season without any drama?
Following a contentious incident in Qatar, George Russell and Verstappen exchanged some heated words and made the drivers’ dinner a little…awkward.
Max “lost all respect” for the British driver after he was seen speaking to the Stewards at a hearing to demote the Dutchman from pole position at the penultimate race.
Russell clapped back and accused him of being a “bully” and felt he was intentionally trying to hurt him with that crash.
Whilst they may have stayed apart at the annual dinner, they did end up posing together at the centre of the Grand Prix Drivers Association end-of-season assembly.
Whether it ended up being a genuine truce is to be seen.
At least Netflix will have something to look forward to.
Horner’s Misconduct
The season began in March, yet there was already a scandal making headlines.
Red Bull boss Christian Horner was accused of alleged sexual misconduct to a female employee.
She alleged he had engaged in “inappropriate, controlling behaviour”.
Horner, who is married and has children with former Spice Girl Geri Halliwell, denied the claim and maintained innocence.
Though he was cleared, several leaked messages between the anonymous employee and Horner were leaked to F1 officials.
He said in a statement: “I won’t comment on anonymous speculation, but to reiterate, I have always denied the allegations.”
“I respected the integrity of the independent investigation and fully cooperated with it every step of the way.”
“It was a thorough and fair investigation conducted by an independent specialist barrister and it has concluded dismissing the complaint made. I remain fully focused on the start of the season.”
In the end, the accusations fell through, and the employee had allegedly been suspended but with full pay.
This incident highlights a big issue in sports: how is assault, harassment, and misconduct dealt with?
And should that be changed?
Top Contenders
McLaren has had many ups and downs over the years competing in the sport.
When Lando Norris arrived in 2019, they partnered with Carlos Sainz and was the talk of the paddock.
The young British driver finished second in the F2 Championship before entering his F1 seat.
Along with Norris came a new wave of McLaren. CEO Zak Brown said in 2018: “He’s an immense talent.”
“In all the junior formula, he has been dominant, and we are convinced he is a star of the future,” he added, speaking to Sky Sports.
Norris’ talent shone this season; he came second in the Driver’s Championship despite Verstappen’s dominance in the beginning and even won McLaren’s Constructors with a complete victory in Abu Dhabi, the season’s finale.
It only points towards his bright future ahead with the Papaya team and with his teammate Oscar Piastri.
