Lando Norris Moves Closer to F1 Title Ahead of Qatar Weekend

Lando Norris reaches Qatar this weekend with the Formula One title almost within reach. After a strong season filled with consistent finishes and crucial victories, the McLaren driver now stands just a few steps away from becoming a world champion for the first time. With only two rounds left in the 2025 season, every point matters, and the battle between Norris, Oscar Piastri, and Max Verstappen is now at its most intense stage.

Norris arrives in Doha with a 24-point lead over both his teammate Oscar Piastri and Red Bull star Max Verstappen. This gives him a solid advantage, but it is not yet enough to relax. The final two race weekends still offer a total of 58 points — eight points for the sprint race winner on Saturday, and 25 points each for the two remaining Grand Prix races, including Sunday’s Qatar Grand Prix and the final round in Abu Dhabi next week.

This point structure means that the title fight is still open, but Norris controls his own destiny. His strong lead, combined with his consistent performance, places him in a position where he can secure the championship as early as this weekend.

The simple answer is no. Even if Norris wins Saturday’s sprint race and both Piastri and Verstappen finish outside the points, his lead would increase to 32 points. However, there would still be 50 points left to fight for in the final two full-length races. That means Saturday alone cannot decide the championship.

Sunday offers the first real chance for Norris to seal the deal. He will leave Qatar as the new world champion if he manages to outscore Piastri and Verstappen by two points across the entire weekend. Achieving this would give him a 26-point advantage — exactly one point more than the maximum 25 available in the final round in Abu Dhabi. At that point, no one could overtake him.

Even if Norris does not win Sunday’s race, he can still become champion as long as he finishes ahead of his closest rivals by a small margin. Alternatively, if he wins Sunday’s Grand Prix and outscores Piastri and Verstappen by even one point, that alone would be enough to secure the crown.

If the championship somehow remains close enough that the title is decided on countback, Norris still holds a strong advantage. Entering Qatar, he has eight race wins this season, while Piastri has seven and Verstappen has six. Even if one of them wins the season finale and Norris scores no points, he would still win the championship based on race wins.

If Piastri wins the Abu Dhabi race and ties Norris’ win count, Norris would again stay ahead due to having more second-place finishes. Verstappen would have no way to overtake Norris on countback because he has fewer wins overall.

McLaren will be hoping that their frustrating double disqualification in Las Vegas does not affect their momentum. The team believes that their strong performance this year should continue in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, and that Norris has everything he needs to finish the job. With the title so close, they will be hoping that the well-known phrase — “what happens in Las Vegas stays in Las Vegas” — proves true.

If Norris keeps calm and scores steadily, he is on track to finally claim the championship he has worked so hard for.