Andrew Benson
BBC F1 correspondent

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McLaren’s Lando Norris won his first drivers’ title in Formula 1’s first three-way championship showdown for 15 years.

The 26-year-old Briton triumphed by just two points from Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. Norris’ Australian team-mate Oscar Piastri was 13 points behind the Briton.

It was a compelling season that ebbed and flowed between the three drivers and their teams.

Piastri, in only his third year in F1, took charge of the season early on and seemed to be in control when he took a 34-point lead after winning the Dutch Grand Prix at the end of August.

But fightbacks from both Norris and Verstappen made for a dramatic end to the season as McLaren weathered a double disqualification in Las Vegas and a strategy foul-up in Qatar to set up a tense finale in Abu Dhabi, where Norris was always in control of his destiny.

Elsewhere, the other defining narrative was of a difficult first season at Ferrari for seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton. The car was uncompetitive, Hamilton struggled compared to team-mate Charles Leclerc and three races from the end of the year he described the year as “a nightmare”.

Is Lando Norris your BBC Sports Personality of the Year?

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Lando Norris trailed 34 points behind McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri after 15 races.

But a brilliant run of results - including back-to-back wins in Mexico and Brazil - propelled him to the top of the standings.

The season came down to a dramatic finale at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix with Norris, Piastri and four-time champion Max Verstappen all capable of winning the title.

In finishing third in Abu Dhabi, Norris secured McLaren's first drivers' championship since 2008, ending the season just two points clear of Verstappen.

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Lando Norris became the 11th Briton to win a Formula 1 drivers' championship after emerging victorious in the closest finish to a season for 15 years.

It's time now to turn our attention to the first of our six contenders for the 2025 BBC Sports Personality of the Year award.

Speaking on stage after winning the award, Elsie's father, David Stancombe, said: "I'm very grateful to accept the award tonight, but I'm just a dad keeping his promise to his little girl.

"Elsie wanted me to run the London Marathon and I did. It gave me a massive focus during the hardest times I've ever lived through.

"It also gave me an opportunity to demonstrate a fraction of the bravery and determination Elsie showed. I'd just like to thank everyone who made it possible.

"My wife Jenny, too. She runs a marathon every day. I couldn't do it without her."

Sergio Aguiar, father of Alice, on receiving the award: "Thank you everyone for the award it means a lot to me, my wife, and my princess Alice.

"I want to dedicate this award to our three girls: Alice, Elsie and Bebe. Keep dancing.

"I want to spread Alice's magic across the world. I am going to keep running and raising money for her foundation."

Image source, PA Media

We've just heard from Sergio Aguiar and David Stancombe as they walked on stage to receive their award. Wow, that was emotional.

We'll bring you their words shortly.

Elsie Dot Stancombe, Alice da Silva Aguiar and Bebe King were killed at a Taylor Swift-themed dance workshop in Southport in July 2024.

Since that day, the three families have set out to establish lasting legacies in their daughters' names through the projects Elsie's Story, Alice's WonderDance and Bebe's Hive.

This year, Sergio Aguiar, father of Alice, and Elsie's dad David Stancombe ran the London Marathon.

Sergio raised funds to build a new playground at Churchtown Primary School, where Alice and Bebe were pupils, while David ran for Elsie's Story, having been encouraged to take on the marathon by his daughter.

Alice's WonderDance was started by the Aguiars to support young performers with uniforms, classes and transport, while the Stancombes have created Elsie's Story, a charitable trust that makes grants to support people in the Southport area.

Another project they have helped fund is Bebe's Hive, a creative centre set up to offer support to grieving children.

Your Helen Rollason Award winners for 2025 are Sergio Aguiar and David Stancombe!

Sergio and David, the fathers of two of the young girls killed in Southport last year, ran the 2025 London Marathon this year as part of their fundraising efforts to establish lasting legacies in their daughters' names.

It's time now to present our first award of the evening.

The Helen Rollason Award is a special BBC award recognising outstanding achievement in the face of adversity.

Helen Rollason was a trailblazer in sports broadcasting as the first woman to present the BBC's flagship Grandstand programme, and presented coverage from the Olympics, Paralympics, Wimbledon and Commonwealth Games.

Rollason continued to front sport bulletins on BBC News after being diagnosed with colon cancer in 1997. She died two years later at the age of 43.

Mike Henson
BBC Sport men's rugby union reporter

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Ominously for the rest of the world, back-to-back world champions South Africa continue to steamroller their way towards Australia 2027. The Springboks, who have tied talismanic coach Rassie Erasmus down for another six years, won 13 of their 15 Tests and collected a second successive Rugby Championship.

England have been upwardly mobile, with an autumn victory over New Zealand the pick of an ongoing 11-match winning streak. Ireland, outclassed by France in Dublin in the decisive match of the Six Nations, face some tricky decisions having fallen away from the Test game’s pacesetters, while Scotland are still waiting on a golden generation of players to take them to unchartered heights. Their succumbing to New Zealand and Argentina’s fight-backs on successive weekends in November was particularly galling.

France’s Bordeaux-Begles scooped Europe’s premier crown with victory over Northampton in a feisty Champions Cup final under the Principality Stadium’s roof in Cardiff.

It was fight that Wales have struggled to replicate. Two narrow wins over Japan was all they could show in another horrible year, marked by upheaval at club level and culminating in a wretched 73-0 thrashing by South Africa.

Bath brought some throw-back glamour back to the top of the English game, securing their first title in 29 years with victory over Leicester at Twickenham. R360’s attempts to bring some new-school style to the sport floundered however with their big-money, globe-trotting ambitions put on hold until 2028 at the earliest.

France and Arsenal legend Thierry Henry stopped to talk to me on the red carpet ahead of receiving the Lifetime Achievement award.

On how proud he is of winning the award: "I am proud for myself and my family. Especially to win something that represents what you've done. Obviously with with this career it's not that long, but I had the opportunity to play with so many great players and great coaches. You don't achieve all of that alone. Everybody participated."

On whether it is Arsenal's year to win the Premier League: "I've said it and I won't change my tune; it has to be this year. That's it.

"Hopefully for the fans it will be because it's all we're wishing for. For the club and Mikel Arteta, it has to be this year."

A reminder that the voting for the Team of the Year award will close in less than 20 minutes!.

In the running for this one are:

• England's Euro 2025-winning women's football team
• England's Women's Rugby World Cup champions
• The triumphant European Ryder Cup team

You can have your say on that one over here.

Matthew Henry
BBC Sport cricket reporter

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This was supposed to be the winter England’s men won the Ashes in Australia for the first time since 2010-11. You will be aware that one is not going to plan.

So much of this year (and the 18 months before it) have been about building to the trip down under, it is hard to think of much else.

Still, this summer’s Test series against India was epic - one of the best contests on these shores for a generation.

The wins at Headingley and Lord’s will live long in the memory but that series also ultimately ended in disappointment for England with India’s thrilling win at The Oval resulting in a 2-2 draw.

Remember the Champions Trophy back in the spring where England exited without winning a match?

Unless something remarkable happens in Adelaide and beyond, 2025 will not be remembered too fondly.

We begin our look back on sport in 2025 with cricket.

Sadly it's not quite going to plan for England in Australia so far...

Sean Kearns
BBC Sport

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I've just had the pleasure of chatting to England women's manager Sarina Weigman.

On how it feels to be nominated for Coach of the Year award: "It's really special to be here. England is such a sports country - and you can tell that everyone's really excited and happy to be here, especially this evening."

Is 2026 all about securing England's qualification for the World Cup? "Absolutely. I'm looking forward to that. We had friendlies in the autumn and that was very nice, but the draw has been done already and in February, you start again. I'm already looking forward to that period."

No hanging about this year.

The voting for BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2025 is now OPEN!

You can vote online by scanning the QR code on your screen, or by visiting THIS PAGE where you’ll also find the terms and privacy notice.

You’ll need to sign in or register for a BBC account before you can vote.

Once we have heard from all six contenders, the vote will be frozen - before reopening with only the top three remaining.

With so much happening over the past 12 months, let's first refresh our memories with some of the key events.

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England's Lionesses cemented their place in history by retaining their European title at Euro 2025 with a penalty-shootout victory over Spain - the first time an England team has won a major football trophy on foreign soil.

England also triumphed at the Women's Rugby World Cup on home soil, lifting the trophy for a third time after beating Canada at Twickenham.

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Team Europe held off a Team USA fightback to retain the Ryder Cup, while the British and Irish Lions earned a series win in Australia.

Arne Slot led Liverpool to the Premier League title in his first season in charge, while there was Women's Champions League glory for Arsenal.

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