Oscar Piastri and Max Verstappen make feelings clear after Lando Norris wins F1 title

Oscar Piastri took his third-place championship finish in stride, showing remarkable composure after narrowly missing out on the title to teammate Norris.

The 24-year-old Australian matched Norris with seven race victories throughout the campaign, but a difficult spell in the latter part of the season saw him slip from his earlier commanding position in the standings.

When asked about his runner-up race finish, he said: "Honestly, pretty good."

"I knew that going into today I needed the stars to align to win the championship."

He added: "On a personal level, it's obviously not quite the ending that I wished for but I think when you look at the season as a whole, I'm very proud of the work that I've been able to put in and my team have been able to put in to make so much progress from last year."

Max Verstappen did everything he could in Abu Dhabi, claiming pole position and storming to victory in commanding fashion, but it still wasn't quite enough.

The Dutchman ended up just two points shy of snatching the title from Norris, though he refused to dwell on what might have been.

Verstappen said: "I feel good. I was already prepared for these kind of outcomes, because we needed a bit of luck to win."

What makes his near-miss even more impressive is where Red Bull found themselves at Zandvoort, trailing by more than 100 points.

He said: "I'm very proud of the whole team. We could have also very easily given up at that point, when you're that far behind. I don't think that's how this team works."

McLaren made the tactical decision to put their drivers on different strategies for the finale, with Norris starting on medium tyres while Piastri was handed the harder compound.

The approach let Piastri extend his opening stint considerably, but by the time he made his pit stop, Verstappen had built an insurmountable 24-second advantage at the front.

All three championship contenders crossed the line on the podium, with Piastri ultimately finishing 13 points behind his teammate in the final standings.

Verstappen's incredible late-season surge saw him win five of eight races between Italy and Qatar, while McLaren encountered various difficulties along the way.

Hinting at the uncertainty ahead for all teams, Verstappen said: "Next year is going to be a big question mark for everyone anyway."

Norris secured his maiden title at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, finishing the season with 423 points to edge out Verstappen by the slimmest of margins.

Just two points separated champion from challenger when the chequered flag fell, making this one of the tightest title battles in recent memory.

Norris needed only a podium finish to get the job done, and that's exactly what he delivered despite losing second place to Piastri on the opening lap.

It's a brilliant achievement for the 25-year-old, who can now call himself a world champion after years of knocking on the door.

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