Winners and losers from F1 2025's title-deciding Abu Dhabi GP

A new world champion was crowned in a tense and dramatic finale as the sun set on the 2025 F1 season in the desert.

For the final time this year, we rank our biggest winners and losers from the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix…

Winner - Lando Norris

The biggest winner of the day was undoubtedly Lando Norris. Despite losing a position from where he started, and finishing ‘only’ third, Norris did everything he needed to clinch his maiden F1 world title.

Norris drove calmly under immense early pressure from Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, and made some courageous overtakes on Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes and Yuki Tsunoda’s Red Bull during a critical phase of the race as he made his way through traffic.

The 26-year-old Briton kept his cool when it mattered most and ultimately did not need help from his McLaren teammate to get the job done.

Loser - Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen is only classed in the ‘losers’ category because he saw his four-year reign at the top of F1 come to an end despite a herculean effort that saw him end the season with victory in Abu Dhabi.

The four-time world champion dominated proceedings to convert a superb pole position into his eighth victory of a truly remarkable 2025 season in which he was arguably the best driver.

Verstappen showed class and dignity on and off track on Sunday but ends up an agonising three points shy of being a five-time world champion as he suffered his first F1 title defeat.

Winner - Ferrari

It shows just how dire Ferrari’s season has been that a fourth and eighth place finish can be classed as a ‘win’. But considering the full context of the Italian outfit’s terrible, winless campaign, their pace in Sunday’s race was strong.

Leclerc was a constant thorn in Norris’s side but ultimately could not drag his Ferrari into podium contention, while Lewis Hamilton ended a wretched first season in red on a high note with a storming recovery from 16th to eighth.

Loser - Oscar Piastri

Like Verstappen, Oscar Piastri falls into the ‘loser’ category with a major caveat. He actually turned in a very strong drive on a day he lost out on a world title that was picked up by his teammate.

The Australian pulled off a sensational and daring around-the-outside pass to snatch second from Norris on the first lap, despite being on the slower, hard tyre, and comfortably ran ahead of his teammate.

Piastri’s offset strategy meant Verstappen couldn’t use any last-gasp tactics to try and turn the tide in his favour. He can end the season with his head held high after a strong run to second.

Winner - Fernando Alonso

There is no stopping Fernando Alonso even at the age of 44. The two-time world champion produced one of his best performances of the year in Abu Dhabi.

Alonso qualified and finished sixth with a strong drive that saw him claim best of the rest behind the front-running cars. The Spaniard got ahead of George Russell at the start but ultimately didn’t have the pace to finish ahead of the Mercedes driver.

Eight points for P6 went a long way in consolidating seventh place in the constructors’ championship for Aston Martin, though the team will be disappointed to have failed to pip Racing Bulls to sixth.

Loser - Mercedes

As has been the case all too often throughout the ground-effect era, Mercedes were in no man’s land in Abu Dhabi.

Russell’s hopes of challenging at the front were ended with a poor start, but the Briton simply lacked the pace in his W16 as he laboured home a distant P5, a whopping 46 seconds behind Verstappen. Teammate Kimi Antonelli had an equally forgettable race, finishing a lowly 15th and not that far away from being lapped.

Mercedes may well have achieved their goal of securing second place in the constructors’ championship, but the Silver Arrows will be going into 2026 desperately hoping F1’s new era can restore their former glory days.

Winner - Esteban Ocon

Esteban Ocon has lived in Haas teammate Ollie Bearman’s shadow for most of 2025 but he ended the season strongly with a fine performance in Abu Dhabi.

The Frenchman qualified eighth and finished seventh, impressively keeping Hamilton’s Ferrari behind in the closing stages despite not having DRS to aid his defence as he capped off the campaign in style.

Loser - Yuki Tsunoda

A dreadful sign-off to end a torrid time at Red Bull for Tsunoda, who was unable to help his teammate’s title bid.

Tsunoda was rightfully penalised for going too far with his defence against Norris. The Japanese driver’s weekend was effectively sacrificed to try and aid Verstappen but as was the story of his 2025, Tsunoda made little impact.

Should this be Tsunoda’s final race in F1, it won’t be remembered.

Winner - Nico Hulkenberg

Nico Hulkenberg celebrated his 250th grand prix with points thanks to a late charge through the field, and benefitting from his rivals’ mistakes.

The F1 veteran caught and passed Sauber teammate Gabriel Bortoleto on the last lap as the Brazilian faded on a one-stop strategy, and then gained two additional places as a result of penalties for Haas’s Bearman and Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll.

Loser - Alpine

A dismal end to a truly horrendous season for Alpine as Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto both finished a lap down in 19th and 20th in Abu Dhabi.

It was a result that underlined just how bad things were for Alpine in 2025. The French squad had the slowest car for much of the year and ended up cast adrift at the very bottom of the constructors’ championship, nearly 50 points behind their nearest rivals.