Second place in Pit Debrief’s F1 2025 driver rankings is Lando Norris. This year marked the most significant season in his career. He entered the year as the favourite and came out on top to be crowned 2025 Formula 1 World Drivers’ Champion. However, the title didn’t come easily, and despite his success, Norris made some significant mistakes along the way, which allowed Piastri and Verstappen to challenge him until the very end.
A dream start and early momentum
From the very start, Norris set the tone that he was in the championship race. Rain at the Australian GP caused chaos, but the McLaren driver showed his experience and composure. He was able to hold it together, even when his teammate made a costly mistake. He outpaced Verstappen and secured the first win of the season. This was an important benchmark in the season to come, and was the first time that he stood at the top of the standings.
The early success gave him an early edge and a psychological advantage. It also showed that McLaren were here to follow on from their success in 2024. Norris went on to place second at the next two races – the Chinese GP and the Japanese GP
Early to mid-season struggles
However, the road to victory wasn’t quite as easy as Norris would have liked. At the Saudi Arabia GP, he placed in 4th, and Piastri won, which led to Norris’ teammate taking the championship lead. He had a costly crash in Q3 that weekend. This was paired with some performances that were not up to expectations, especially when Piastri was maximising his points each weekend.
But Norris was back to winning ways in Monaco, where the perfect drive saw him stand on the top step of the podium at the iconic track. A second place in Spain quickly followed, but Norris then suffered his first major blow in the championship battle.
The two McLaren drivers had been engaging in a thrilling championship fight, where ‘Papaya Rules’ allowed them to race hard and overtake each other, as long as it was done cleanly. But at the Canadian GP, Norris was desperate to overtake Piastri, with hopes of making gains in his championship fight. A poorly attempted move caused the two McLaren drivers to make contact on the main straight, and Norris was unable to finish the race. The driver of car #4 immediately took responsibility for it.
Despite this, he bounced back and was victorious at the Austrian GP. This came after securing pole by over half a second – a key indicator that he wasn’t giving up on the fight. The two driver battles until the very end of the race, and there were a few close calls. However Norris held on and closed the gap in the championship to just 15 points.
Home race success
The British GP was another key moment in Lando Norris’s 2025 season. At a very wet Silverstone, he was able to take advantage of Piastri’s 10-second penalty to win his home race. Not only did this close the gap to 8 points, but it also meant that he had achieved a childhood dream of winning at home.
After this, Norris started to build momentum, putting in two strong performances to finish 2nd at the Belgian GP and 1st at the Hungarian GP. A one-stop strategy to win in Budapest would prove to be absolutely critical by December.
It all came crashing down when reliability issues hit Norris at the Dutch GP and forced him to retire just a few laps from the finish line.
The road to Abu Dhabi
Reliability issues and key mistakes from the Brit created a big job of work to tackle in the final stages of the season. McLaren had all but secured the constructors’ title, but it was all to play for between the drivers. Piastri was leading the standings by 34 points, but a new threat would emerge in the form of Max Verstappen.
Norris remained in the fight; however, still struggled to capitalise on key moments. At the Azerbaijan GP, he achieved his lowest result of the season – 7th place. This was on a weekend when his teammate DNF’d on the first lap. Despite the opportunity to make up big points in the battle, the Brit struggled to make much of an impact.
But as Piastri continued to struggle, Norris began to thrive. Podiums in Singapore and the US were followed by back-to-back victories in Mexico and Brazil. It was the masterclass in Mexico where he retook the lead of the championship, and looked again to be the favourite. These were crucial moments that kept him in the fight.
The final battle
A DSQ at Las Vegas meant that Lando Norris would have to wait longer to achieve his dream of being a world champion. He had a chance to secure the title in Qatar, but a poor strategy call meant that he wasn’t able to hold off Verstappen, who was victorious.
It was all eyes on Abu Dhabi to decide who would be crowned world champion. Norris needed to score in P3 or higher to be victorious. But he was unable to beat Verstappen in qualifying and started the race in P2. Piastri overtook Norris for P2 on the first lap, who was then left to fend off pressure from Leclerc. But Norris maintained his composure and finished in P3. A result that saw him crowned Formula 1 World Champion.
Stats and legacy
Norris’s 2025 campain wasn’t solely defined by its dramatic arc and intense finale. The numbers underline a season of remarkable consistency and performance:
- He scored 423 championship points: beating out Verstappen by just 2 points
- Ended Verstappen’s 63-race stretch of being at the top of the table
- Achieved 7 race wins and 18 podiums
Lando Norris became the 35th World Champion in F1 history, and the 11th British title-winner. He was also the first McLaren driver to win the title since Lewis Hamilton in 2008, ending the team’s 17-year drought.
When the pressure was at its highest, he stood up and delivered to take the ultimate crown. That means Lando Norris takes P2 in Pit Debrief’s Driver Rankings for the 2025 F1 campaign.
