ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates -- Lando Norris praised McLaren's "special day" as it clinched its first constructors' championship since 1998.
Norris' win was all McLaren needed to beat Ferrari to the championship.
It was a nervy contest, with Norris' teammate Oscar Piastri being spun around at Turn 1 by Max Verstappen, which allowed Ferrari to apply pressure in the closing laps.
Norris held firm to deliver the fourth win of his season and F1 career.
"I'm very, very happy, just as I'm sure everyone in the team is," Norris said. "Today was a very special day for all of us. It was ours to lose today -- and I'm sure at certain moments, people thought that it was not far away from being lost. Two Ferraris up there, and Charles [Leclerc] did a great job to get back to the podium.
"Oscar was super unlucky -- he got taken out in Turn 1 -- so for a minute, my heart was like, 'Oh God, it's not looking as likely.' But if I just keep my head down and keep focused, I knew I could deliver and do what I've got to do."
He added: "This is the biggest reward you can give back to everyone who designs the car, builds the car, gets the partners. Everyone has played such a big part, so just proud. Proud is my biggest thing. Of course, I'm happy I finished the season this way, but I'm way more happy for the team than I am for myself."
Norris admitted to worrying about the outcome when he saw Piastri's incident and the fact Leclerc had such a good start from the back of the grid.
He said: "I was watching the TV screens and I mean, I saw Charles was P8 after Lap 1. So I was a little bit nervous, but I knew I just had to focus on myself, put my head down and Carlos [Sainz] was never far away. I think the biggest the gap was 4.2 seconds in the first 10 and that's not a very nice gap in my opinion. It's a bit too close for my comfort.
"So it was a tricky race and I'm sure there was probably a lot more nervous people on the pit wall and in the garage knowing what was at stake and things. I've got the adrenaline of the car and focused on that."