Sao Paulo GP qualifying delivered a drenched and disrupted session at Interlagos, with Lando Norris emerging fastest in the wet to secure pole position for Sunday’s race. The McLaren driver’s third consecutive pole at the Brazilian circuit came after a stoppage of more than an hour and 20 minutes when heavy rain flooded the track early in Q1.
Norris keeps his cool as conditions swing
Norris set a best time of 1:27.470, mastering a session that repeatedly shifted from merely wet to nearly undriveable. The outgoing world champion kept his composure while others faltered, and his margin over George Russell was 0.204 seconds. Russell had been second fastest but will start seventh after a five-place grid penalty for an engine change, a sanction confirmed before qualifying.
Russell was audibly frustrated after the session. He believed he could have challenged for provisional pole had his engineer not advised him to back off when he caught Alex Albon’s slower Williams on what became his final timed lap. The call was intended to create a cleaner run on the next lap, but the rain intensified again, making improvements impossible. “I don’t want to be P2. I want to be P1!” Russell said over team radio.
Newly crowned world champion Kimi Antonelli qualified third and will join Norris on the front row once Russell’s penalty is applied. Charles Leclerc was fourth for Ferrari but carries a 10-place penalty for an engine change, dropping him into the midfield.
Hamilton and Verstappen set for back-row starts
Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen will start from the rear of the grid. Hamilton’s Ferrari required a complete power-unit change after a problem with a fresh engine in final practice, while Verstappen’s Red Bull also took a new power unit. Both drivers were eliminated in Q2, with Hamilton 11th and Verstappen 16th after choosing not to run in the second phase in order to save wet tyres for the race. Neither result mattered given their penalties.
The penalties also promote several midfield runners. Liam Lawson, who qualified fifth for Racing Bulls, will start third – matching his career-best grid position. Nico Hulkenberg moves up to fourth for Audi, with Isack Hadjar fifth in the leading Red Bull. Oliver Bearman will line up sixth for Haas, while Fernando Alonso put his Aston Martin into Q3 for the first time this season and will start eighth. Alex Albon completed the top ten in ninth for Williams.
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri was eliminated in Q2 and will start 11th, one place ahead of Brazilian debutant Rafael Camara, who impressed by reaching Q2 before crashing into the barriers at Turn 12. Gabriel Bortoleto, the other home driver, also hit trouble in Q1 and retired with damage.
Mercedes eye Constructors’ title
Ferrari’s heavier penalties improve Mercedes’ chances of clinching the Constructors’ Championship on Sunday. Mercedes will secure the title double if they outscore Ferrari by three points or more.
The session began in chaotic fashion. A heavy downpour arrived just as cars were released for Q1, forcing an immediate red flag and a suspension of one hour and 23 minutes. When running resumed, conditions gradually improved, allowing a drier line to form and teams to switch to intermediate tyres during Q2. Spins and off-track moments were frequent, but only two drivers found the barriers – both Brazilians, much to the disappointment of the home crowd.
Norris was simply relieved to have executed his plan cleanly. “It was about getting two laps in at the beginning, not making any mistakes, and that’s exactly what we did,” he said. With the grid reshuffled by penalties and the threat of more rain, Sunday’s race promises to be as unpredictable as qualifying.
