There is a particular kind of atmosphere that only Formula 1 can create – an energy that builds gradually through the season and then erupts into something almost cinematic when a championship is on the line. Here at Yas Marina, that electricity is unmistakable. Abu Dhabi is once again hosting the title decider, but this year, the tension feels sharper, the stakes higher. We are on the brink of a finale for the ages.
Thursday: Calm Before the Storm
Media day traditionally offers a brief moment of stillness, yet the weight of the occasion was impossible to ignore. This year’s trio of title contenders – Lando Norris, Max Verstappen, and Oscar Piastri – sat shoulder-to-shoulder in a press conference where every word and every expression carried meaning.
Norris, entering the weekend as championship leader, spoke about routines and staying centred, though a quiet acknowledgement of past mistakes highlighted just how tight this title fight has been. Verstappen, by contrast, arrived with a controlled ease: relaxed, smiling, discussing his daughter and winter plans. A four-time champion with “nothing to lose” is perhaps the most dangerous rival of all.
Piastri, measured and understated, projected a quiet confidence – the kind that comes from momentum, precision, and a rapidly maturing racecraft.
Alonso Delivers the Moment of the Day
Yet the moment that sent a ripple through the Aston Martin Hospitality Suite came from a question directed at Fernando Alonso by Paddock Magazine’s own Dániel Horváth. He referenced Verstappen’s bold claim that he would already be champion had he driven this year’s McLaren machinery. Would Alonso also have won the title in a McLaren?
Alonso laughed softly, paused, and delivered one of his trademark responses—layered, sharp, and effortlessly charismatic.
“You never know… you never know. It’s always speculation,” he began.
“We all know Max is an incredible driver—he always extracts everything from the car. Maybe some of his victories this year were not because of the car but because of him. That was the case last year as well.”
“But in my case… we all like to think we’d be champions in the best car. We all have that confidence. Still, it’s a question you can never truly answer.”
The follow-up came naturally: if the fastest car doesn’t guarantee the champion, then is the 2025 title winner automatically the best driver on the grid?
Alonso didn’t hesitate.
“That’s been happening for nineteen years now, so…”
The room erupted. It was a perfect Alonso moment – dry humour, impeccable timing, and the authority of a two-time world champion who has lived every angle of this sport.
On-the-Ground Intensity
These are the scenes that resonate most when you’re inside the paddock: the subtle shifts in body language, the tension beneath a casual smile, and the moments when a driver disarms a room with a single line. It’s a level of nuance that doesn’t transmit through a screen.
Meanwhile, the Yas Marina backdrop put on its own performance. As the late-afternoon sun sank behind the superyachts, the paddock glowed in warm gold, a fitting stage for a world championship showdown.
Friday’s First Clues
If free practice offered any early truth, it’s this: the title fight is genuinely level. All three contenders are in striking range. The finale could be – and likely will be – epic.
