The Woking-based team have won their ninth F1 World Constructor’s Championship, defeating rivals Ferrari
McLaren driver Lando Norris won the last race of the season at Abu Dhabi to finish off championship rivals, Ferrari.
Norris, lead the Grand Prix in P1 from start to finish.
His teammate Oscar Piastri, who started in P2, finished 10th after he collided with World Driver’s Champion Max Verstappen at turn one on the first lap, and was served a 10 second penalty for causing a collision with Williams driver Franco Colapinto.
Verstappen was given a 10 second penalty for causing a collision and finished sixth in the race.
Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz started third and with a good start, and ended second on the podium.
His teammate Charles Leclerc started in P19 and with a herculean race start got to eighth place after lap one, and slowly climbed up to end in P3.
Speaking to Sky Sports F1 about the race, Zak Brown, McLaren Racing CEO, said: “Lando drove brilliantly. Unfortunate what happened to Oscar at the start, but the team was flawless. They executed the pit stop great.”
Brown added: “And I think I was the only one who was ready to have a heart attack for two hours.”
The history of McLaren v Ferrari
The racing team from Woking, Surrey, was founded by Bruce McLaren in 1963, and is one of the oldest in Formula 1.
McLaren won their last Constructor’s in 1998 with Finnish driver Mika Häkkinen and British driver David Coulthard, facing off against the legendary German driver Michael Schumacher and British Eddie Irvine with Ferrari.
Ferrari was founded by Enzo Ferrari in 1929, and has participated in the sport since 1950.
Ferrari is based in Maranello, in the Emilia-Romagna province which is also hosts the Autodomo Internazionale Enzo e Dino in Imola – the home of Ferrari and Ferrari fans, the Tifosi.
Andrea Stella, McLaren Team Principal said in McLaren’s race report: “It’s been a hard-fought Championship. Well done to Ferrari who drove a really good race today as well, and were great competitors.
“It won’t be long until we are head down into next year, but until then, we’ll make sure to take in every moment and celebrate our win.”
The infamous rivalry between McLaren and Ferrari has lasted years, with Niki Lauda (Ferrari) and James Hunt (McLaren) inspiring the Hollywood movie Rush.
Whilst this exciting season of old F1 rivals battling it out may be over, it’s only three months until the new race season starts on March 14-16 2025.
