YAS MARINA, Abu Dhabi — Mission accomplished.
Lando Norris finished third in Sunday’s season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to secure his first Formula 1 world driving championship.
The 26-year-old British driver finished just two points ahead of race winner Max Verstappen, who came on strong at the end of the season to nearly steal the title.
Norris was emotional after climbing from his championship-winning McLaren.
“I’ve not cried in a while. I didn’t think I’d cry but I did,” he said. “It’s a long journey. First of all I want to say a big thanks to my guys, everyone at McLaren. My parents… I’m not crying. My mum, my dad, they were the ones who supported me since the beginning.
“It feels amazing. Now I know what Max feels like a little bit, and I want to congratulate Max and Oscar (Piastri), my two biggest competitors all season. It’s been a pleasure to race against both of them, and I’ve learnt a lot from both of them as well.
“I’ve enjoyed it, it’s been a long year but we did it and I’m so proud of everyone.”
Norris, who ran his first F-1 race with McLaren in 2019, said winning the title was a dream.
“I’ve dreamed of this for a long time, everyone does,” he said. “A lot goes into a season like this, lot of ups, lot of downs, but none of that matters as long as you try and come out on top, and that’s what we managed to do with an incredible team.
“All the boys and girls that I’ve enjoyed so many moments with. It’s not just this year, it’s been over the last seven, eight years I’ve been with McLaren. The last 16, 17 years of my life I’ve been trying to chase this dream and today we all did it, so I’m pretty happy.”
