Perez makes cheeky Verstappen feelings clear as Norris wins F1 title | F1 | Sport

Sergio Perez has posted a tongue-in-cheek message on social media after Red Bull’s Max Verstappen missed out on the 2025 F1 world title.Despite finishing third at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, McLaren’s Lando Norris was crowned as the 2025 F1 world champion for the first time in his career.

Norris, 26, had a 12-point advantage over Verstappen heading into the season finale and required a third-place finish, at a minimum, to claim the title. After Verstappen qualified on pole and made a dominant start to the race, it seemed as though the Dutchman would back up Norris and Oscar Piastri, who sat 16 points behind his McLaren teammate, into the pack.

However, Verstappen decided not to do this, giving Norris and Piastri a straightforward race, running ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. There was one close moment involving Norris, though, as he closed in on Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda after making his first pit stop.

But Norris dispatched Tsunoda with ease and overtook him with the use of DRS. The Japanese driver could have lifted off in the final sector to cost Norris crucial time with Leclerc chasing him, but he decided against that.

Red Bull may have missed Sergio Perez in that instant, with the 35-year-old Mexican dropped from the Austrian team at the end of last season. Liam Lawson replaced him, ending a four-year relationship between Perez and Red Bull. Watching the race, Perez, who is set to return to F1 in 2026 with new team Cadillac, dropped a funny response to a post by ‘F1 Troll’ on X.

The account posted a meme of Marvel villain Thanos with Perez’s face edited onto it, reading his iconic line: “Perhaps I treated you too harshly.” Perez opted to quote tweet the post, writing: “Perhaps”, alongside a laughing face emoji.

The ex-McLaren speedster played an integral role in Verstappen’s title win in 2021. With Verstappen battling Lewis Hamilton to become world champion, Perez, who had yet to make his final pit stop, backed Hamilton up and fended off the seven-time world champion.

Perez’s defensive tactics cost Hamilton significant time and that proved crucial in Verstappen gaining an advantage and staying ahead after the controversial late Safety Car period. Verstappen ended up coming out on top in Abu Dhabi but it wasn’t enough for him to eclipse Norris, who became world champion with a two-point lead at the top.

Speaking post-race, Verstappen reflected on an emotional season. “Massive rollercoaster for us,” he said. Of course, the first half had some nice moments, but mainly tough moments — some really tough races and feelings.

“But I’m also very proud of how we never gave up. And, again, that’s also a lesson for the future, for everyone, that even when it looks like you’re out of it, you never give up. You keep working hard to try and understand your issues, and then you never know what can happen.”

Praising Norris, Verstappen sent a classy message to the new world champion. “Winning your first title is something that I think we all dreamt of when you get into the sport,” he added. “You work for that since you’re a little kid. It’s what you dream of.

“So, when you win your first title, this is very emotional. And, yeah, I hope for Lando as well. You know, I saw a lot of his family is here, so it’s important to enjoy this a lot as well tonight.

“Also, with his team. I think, again, that’s another story where it showed that even when you have tough years, when you keep working hard, you keep adding good people to the team, you can overcome all of those things, and you can become very successful again. And, yeah, they had an incredible season together, so it’s important that they enjoy it.”