With two laps to go, Lando Norris’ mind started racing: The new world champion looks back on the mental state of emergency.
Formula 1 world champion Lando Norris has published his first vlog since winning the 2025 drivers’ world championship. In the video, he offers a personal review and describes his emotions at the season finale in Abu Dhabi, where he brought his McLaren home in third place.
“It’s pretty much every boy’s dream to win something. And when you’re that young, you always hope or dream that one day you’ll win, but you never really think it can actually happen. But we did it,“ he said ahead of the FIA awards ceremony in Uzbekistan (see the photo gallery!).
”The week before the biggest race of my life… and I didn’t know how to be. I didn’t know how to behave. I didn’t know how to feel.“
”I didn’t know whether to be totally excited or scared. I thought I would be extremely nervous, because I always am – before every race, before every qualifying session. That’s normal. I thought it would all be too chaotic for me.”
“But when I sat in the car, I actually felt ready. I was very calm. It felt like a normal working day. I knew in the back of my mind, ‘This is it, the moment has come’ – but I was ready,” explained Norris.
Lando Norris’ thoughts are racing
The McLaren driver secured his first Formula 1 title at the Yas Marina Circuit, two points ahead of Max Verstappen in the Red Bull. Norris’ McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri finished third in the world championship.
In the race, Norris saw the finish line behind his title rivals, but third place was enough for him to win the overall title due to the championship constellation. That’s why it was “like a normal race” for Norris, he said in retrospect. “But with two laps to go, time starts to slow down a little. You think about every single screw, every nut, every cable. I imagined in my head what was happening in the car at that moment.“
”You’re in that moment where you think, ‘Damn, what could still go wrong when everything is going well? Your mind starts to think about little things. I then thought about my first day in karting. I was on a kind of mini tennis court, we had slick tires on, and I just did donuts and had fun.“
‘Unforgettable’ moments at the Formula 1 finale
His thoughts then wandered even further, Norris explained: ”Suddenly, I had a picture of my mother in the pit in front of my eyes. That was the first moment in the whole year when I really began to understand what was happening—and what was about to happen.“
”I just imagined the pit, my parents there, my brother, my sisters, everyone in the pit for the last four corners.“ These moments are ”unforgettable” for him.
