The advice that Lewis Hamilton gave new F1 champion Lando Norris

Lewis Hamilton, the seven-time Formula 1 champion, paid tribute to Lando Norris after he won his first title at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, sharing a piece of guidance he had offered the young driver.

Norris only needed a third-place finish in Abu Dhabi to secure the title, regardless of whether Max Verstappen won the race.

Under pressure from Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in the closing stages, Norris managed to hold onto third, sealing the championship and becoming the 35th driver ever to win the F1 world title.

Now, Hamilton has revealed some advice that he gave to his fellow Brit before the race which may just have helped him with any nerves he was feeling.

Hamilton is the most successful F1 driver of all-time, and has a plethora of experience when it comes to dealing with tense title fights.

"[The] UK continues to pump out great drivers, and I know what the feeling is also when you're coming into this race and fighting for your first championship, it's nerve-wracking. I'm just really proud of him.

"Before the weekend, I told him what he does works, so don't change anything, and I guess that's what he did."

Can Hamilton bounce back next year?

While Hamilton's congratulations of Norris was a classy gesture, Hamilton would, of course, rather be challenging for the title himself.

He left Mercedes and joined Ferrari at the beginning of 2025 in the hope that he could get back into the mix for a record-breaking eighth world championship title, but he has arguably never been further away from the title.

Hamilton has finished the 2025 season in sixth in the drivers' championship, and has not even claimed a single grand prix victory in the season.

It's the first season of his entire career that he has not claimed a podium, and he has mentioned that he is excited to get rid of this current generation of car.

Since the start of the ground effect era, Hamilton has won just two grands prix in four full seasons.

2026 sees wholesale regulation changes sweeping into the sport, and Hamilton will hope that the next generation of cars are more suited to his talents, and that he can challenge Norris next year for race wins.

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