The Formula 1 World Championship could be turned upside down after the Brazilian GP. Lando Norris took wet pole early this Sunday, after qualifying was postponed due to rain on Saturday, but what’s really important is that Max Verstappen will start the race 17th (4:30 p.m. Spanish time ). The Dutchman, with a penalty of five places, consummated his misfortune with a red flag that caught him in the middle of his lap with which he wanted to access Q3. [Así vivimos la clasificación del GP de Brasil]
Fernando Alonso, who will start 9th, and Carlos Sainz, 14th due to Verstappen’s sanction, were two of the drivers who tested the walls during this difficult session. First it was the Madrilenian, in Q2, then it was the turn of the Asturian, who dreamed of reaching a high position on the grid, but who also ended up destroying his car after skidding on the track.
The other Aston Martin, Stroll’s, also crashed and caused chaos which harmed the World Championship leader from the second round. The end of the session was chaotic, with Alonso’s accident and another with Albon’s Williams – the strongest of all – which constantly stopped the pace. Luck smiled on Norris, the big winner of the morning, and not only thanks to the pole. Everything went well and the World Cup can be opened.
The rain was the main protagonist of the classification and caused up to five red flags. The first was achieved by Franco Colapinto, in Q1, a session during which it rained the hardest, making driving difficult for all drivers. The first surprise was the elimination of Lewis Hamilton in the first round. Norris almost didn’t fall, and for a few moments he found himself outside of Q2 and was saved at the limit.
The rain seemed to give the drivers a respite from Q2. In the first minutes, the majority of drivers continued to show themselves with extreme tires and Piastri was the first to take risks with intermediate tires. It went well for the Australian, who placed first and set the pace for the others with an increasingly better track.
Nearly six minutes from the end of Q2, Carlos Sainz suffered a spin in the second corner and crashed into the wall. The hit didn’t seem hard, but it was enough to destroy the rear wing and cause the red flag again. This is where the session ended for the Spanish driver, who returned to the pits disappointed.
But the madness was still to come. The cause was Lance Stroll, one minute before finishing Q2. The Canadian had another accident, bringing out the red flag again, to abruptly end the round. Verstappen was caught mid-lap and 12th, so he was excluded from Q3. The Dutchman, penalized five places for changing his engine, will start 17th in the next race.
Q3 was a golden opportunity for Norris, with Verstappen so far behind, but also for drivers like Fernando Alonso. The Asturian, while the rain was still intensifying, had something to dream about. Only nine drivers took part in the final qualifying round, with Stroll’s car disabled.
However, Alonso became another rain victim at Interlagos. The Asturian’s rear moved away and he also hit the wall. There were seven minutes left to complete the classification, with only eight drivers in the running and everything was to be decided given the changing asphalt conditions.
There would still be time for one last accident and the fifth red flag of the morning. Albon skidded on the straight, while dreaming of pole position by moving into second position, and violently collided with the protections. No one had time to improve, so Norris was still ahead with just 3:31 left.
Already in the final straight, no one improved on Norris and the conditions deteriorated a little. Golden opportunity for Lando, with 44 points less than Verstappen and a race at Intelagos, in a few hours, to significantly reduce this gap. There could be a World Cup…
