McLaren issue three-word response after Lewis Hamilton congratulated them on F1 constructors’ title win
Lewis Hamilton congratulated McLaren on winning the Formula 1 constructors’ championship after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix last weekend. The papaya squad beat Hamilton’s new team Ferrari to secure their first crown in 26 years.
McLaren carried a 21-point lead into the event and victory seemed certain when Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc picked up a 10-place grid penalty for an enforced power unit component change. But Oscar Piastri then fell down the order after first-lap contact with Max Verstappen, injecting jeopardy into the race.
What’s more, Leclerc achieved a unique feat by progressing from 19th to third. But even with Carlos Sainz second, Ferrari couldn’t engineer a dramatic turnaround.
Lando Norris delivered an assured drive from pole position to take his fourth win of the season and McLaren’s sixth. The final margin was 14 points, the closest since F1 introduced the current scoring system in 2010.
Hamilton won his first title at McLaren in 2008 but didn’t manage to deliver the constructors’ crown before he left at the end of 2012. The Woking outfit were thrown out of the championship in 2007 amid the ‘Spygate’ scandal, and they lost out to Ferrari the year after.
Hamilton revelled in McLaren’s success on his Instagram story, writing: “Big congratulations to McLaren. So happy for you all, enjoy this moment.”
McLaren thank Lewis Hamilton for F1 constructors’ title message
Norris and Piastri became the title-winning duo at McLaren since Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard in 1998. Now both of them will seek to emulate Hamilton by winning the more prestigious drivers’ championship.
McLaren have already updated their garage with a new laurel wreath to mark their 2024 triumph. It’s the first time a team not named Red Bull or Mercedes has won the trophy since 2009.
Posting on their official X account, McLaren shared a screenshot of Hamilton’s Instagram story, accompanied by a three-word message: “Thank you, legend.”
Norris is now the top points scorer in McLaren history with 1,007. But he still has some way to go to match Hamilton’s win tally with the team (21).
Why one Mercedes confidante thought Lewis Hamilton would return to McLaren, not join Ferrari
Max Verstappen also congratulated McLaren on the title, even though it came at the expense of erstwhile defending champions Red Bull. While their rivalry with Christian Horner’s squad has been intense at times, it’s a largely popular victory in the pit lane.
McLaren command respect given their record in the sport. They’ve now won 21 combined championships, second only to Ferrari (31).
One Mercedes employee suspected Hamilton would return to McLaren if he ever left Brackley. The Stevenage-born driver refused to close that door when he left 12 years ago.
In the end, Hamilton chose to go to Maranello instead. It now looks unlikely that he’ll wear their colours again, unless it’s a non-racing capacity of course.
