For the first time since 2009, the champion will not drive the No. 1 car

Although Andrea Kimi Antonelli has already secured the 2026 Formula 1 World Championship, Lando Norris will continue to race with the No. 1 for the final four rounds of the season.

Under the sporting regulations, every driver selects a permanent race number between 2 and 99, with only No. 17 permanently retired in memory of Jules Bianchi. Meanwhile, No. 1 is reserved exclusively for the reigning World Champion, who has the option to use it or retain their regular career number.

However, any change to driver numbers can only be made ahead of the season, not mid-campaign. This means that for the remainder of the championship, Norris will continue to carry No. 1, while Antonelli remains with No. 12.

As a result, for the first time since late 2009, a car carrying the No. 1 will be driven by someone other than the newly crowned champion. Back then, Jenson Button clinched the title at the penultimate round in Brazil, leaving outgoing champion Lewis Hamilton to race with No. 1 at the season finale in Abu Dhabi.

A similar scenario had not unfolded in the years since, even when a reigning champion failed to defend their crown. In all of those cases, the championship fight went down to the final round rather than being wrapped up early, as occurred this season.

Between 2015 and 2021, the No. 1 was absent from the grid, as Hamilton consistently chose to stick with his trademark No. 44, while Nico Rosberg retired days after winning the 2016 title and did not defend it in 2017. The tradition of running the No. 1 was revived by Max Verstappen in 2022, with the Dutchman using it through the end of 2025 before it passed to Norris for the 2026 campaign.