Despite winning the F1 Abu Dhabi GP, Max Verstappen lost out on his championship battle to Lando Norris.
Verstappen has won four consecutive Drivers’ Championships in his career. He was in with a chance to take his fifth, and the fight went all the way to the season finale. However, despite giving it everything on the day, it wasn’t enough. Norris finished the race in P3, which was enough to give him the crown.
A positive end to the year
2025 has not been a straightforward F1 season for Max Verstappen. At the start of the year, the RB21 was not performing very well. This, paired with McLaren’s success, meant that Verstappen didn’t see himself in the championship fight this year. He was 104 points away after round 15.
However, the second half of the season was a different story. Verstappen went on a charge, winning four of the last 6 races. It was a comeback like no other, and put him in the fight after he had ruled himself out. His consistent success saw him finish P2 in the championship, only 2 points behind Norris.
His amazing form was something to be proud of. When asked how this season compares to his others, Verstappen said that he believes it is the best he’s ever driven in F1.
“I have no regrets about my season. I think the performance has been strong. I’ve hated this car at times, but I’ve also loved it at times. And I always tried to extract the most from it, even in the difficult weekends that we’ve had.
“But yeah, it’s been, like I said before, a proper rollercoaster with the car. Luckily, the last, I would say, eight, nine rounds in general have been a lot more enjoyable. And also, in the team, we have a great atmosphere at the moment. We’re really on a roll — positive energy, belief, confidence — and that’s exactly what you want heading into next year.”
A proud performance
Max Verstappen might not be used to losing out in the championship battle; however, he isn’t too disappointed. He is happy with himself for being able to fight back from a difficult start, and is looking to head into 2026 with a positive attitude for the new year.
Unlike in 2024, he could attack and consistently fight for wins and podiums in the second half of the year.
“I mean, at the end of the day, of course, it’s always nicer to win it. But, honestly, I’m sitting here now with probably a better feeling than what I had last year at this time because the second half of last year was pretty tricky at times as well. So, we have been struggling for, I would say, a year — the second half of last year and the first half of this year.
“But I actually feel a lot better now. Of course, shame to miss out on the title, but at the same time, for a long period of time, I was not even thinking about the title. I never felt like I was in it until a few rounds ago. That’s pretty crazy.
“But yeah, you take your pride in different ways. I’m happy with myself, and going into next year, I’m not in a state of having to worry about my skills or whatever. So, yeah, I feel good.”
Emotional moments with GP at the F1 Abu Dhabi GP
At the end of the race, Verstappen had an emotional moment over the radio with his race engineer, GianPiero Lambiase. When speaking in the post-race conference, the Dutchman reflected on how it has been a difficult year on and off the track for GP, which led to the high emotions from the engineer as the season finished.
“It’s been an emotional year. Forget about the results this year. I also don’t want to go too much into detail, but it’s been tough. But I’m very happy to be able to work with someone that passionate. Of course, he is my race engineer, but I see him as my friend.
“We have lived through so many emotional things together and fantastic achievements. I’m sure he was a bit emotional after the flag. So, I’m really looking forward to leaving here and catching up with him because it’s not been easy at times for him. I’m just very proud to be able to work with someone that good. A proper example of someone that never gave up this season, even through the difficult times.”
