Magnussen will start Saturday’s sprint race – which sets the grid for Sunday’s Grand Prix – ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and George Russell of Mercedes after the one-hour qualifying session, which is split into three segments with five cars each being knocked out in Q1 and Q2 before the top-10 shootout of Q3.
A red flag in Q3, after Russell spun off, combined with a rain shower confirmed Magnussen’s top spot on the grid.
Brazilian Grand Prix qualifying results: Magnussen on pole from Verstappen
What happened in Brazilian Grand Prix Q1?
After a rain shower dampened the track after practice, drivers emerged on intermediate tyres at the start of the session as more rain was expected.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc set the early pace at 1m18.723s before Verstappen jumped to the top at his first attempt with 1m18.495s, Fernando Alonso (Alpine) did likewise with 1m18.412s and then Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) took P1 with 1m18.051s.
Pierre Gasly was the first to put soft slick tyres on his AlphaTauri and he leapt to P1 with 1m17.626s, before Alonso managed 1m16.177s as everyone jumped to slicks and the times tumbled.
P1 switched hands between Alex Albon (Williams), Alonso and Hamilton before Lando Norris (McLaren) grabbed the fastest time at 1m13.106s.
Falling at the first hurdle were Nicholas Latifi (Williams, who had been P1 with 1m45s remaining!), the Alfa Romeos of Zhou Guanyu and Valtteri Bottas, Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri) and Mick Schumacher (Haas).
Brazilian Grand Prix Q1 results: Norris fastest from Hamilton
What happened in Brazilian Grand Prix Q2?
Spurred on by his Q1 pace, Norris set the bar at 1m11.571s, a tenth clear of Verstappen. Alonso and Verstappen then took turns at the top, as rain began to fall again.
Despite the increased precipitation, Verstappen unleashed 1m10.881s on new tyres in the closing minutes, 0.009s ahead of Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz.
Knocked out at this point were Albon, Gasly, Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin), Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren) and Lance Stroll (Aston Martin).
Brazilian Grand Prix Q2 results: Verstappen fastest from Sainz
What happened in Brazilian Grand Prix Q3?
At the start of the session in relatively dry conditions, Magnussen set the pace at 1m11.674s, two tenths ahead of Verstappen, Russell, Norris and Sainz.
Russell went off at Turn 4’s Descida do Lago, beaching his Mercedes and bringing out the red flags. By the time the session resumed, more rain had fallen and…
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