Max Verstappen started 17th and was on the attack early in Formula 1, blitzing his way through the field to easily win a thoroughly wet and eventful Lenovo Sao Paulo Grand Prix on Sunday (Nov. 3) over the Alpine duo of Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly. It was Verstappen’s first victory since the Spanish Grand Prix on June 23 and essentially squashed Lando Norris’ hopes of challenging for the Drivers’ Championship.
“My emotions today have been a rollercoaster, with qualifying being really unlucky with that red flag,” Verstappen said of the events that left him down the grid order. “I knew it was going to be a very tough race … We stayed out of trouble. We made the right calls. We stayed calm and we were flying. All of those things together made that result possible.
“Unbelievable to win here from so far back on the grid.”
Behind the Alpines, George Russell finished fourth after starting second and beating Norris on the start. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was fifth, and Norris, after a number of mistakes and strategy missteps, took sixth. Visa Cash App RB’s Yuki Tsunoda was seventh, joining teammate Liam Lawson, who finished ninth, in the points. McLaren’s Oscar Piastri was eighth and Lewis Hamilton finished 10th.
In the drivers’ standings, Verstappen’s lead over Norris ballooned from 47 to 62 points, 393 to 331. Leclerc is in third, only 24 behind Norris, with Piastri 45 behind Leclerc.
In the constructors’ standings, McLaren leads Ferrari by 36 points, 593 to 557. Red Bull is in third, just 13 behind Ferrari.
The Race
The start was aborted during the formation lap when Lance Stroll lost it under braking and ended up in the sand at turn 4. After some confusion between the drivers (some immediately began the second formation lap, others did not), officials declared the race would restart in 10 minutes and mechanics would be allowed back on the grid. As the first car to begin the second lap, Norris was being investigated for a start infringement.
Russell out-launched Norris at lights out and easily took the lead into turn 1. Despite the wet track, it was a clean start, and the biggest mover was Verstappen, who was up from 17th to 10th by the end of lap 1. Sergio Perez survived a spin late in the lap and continued, albeit well down in the order.
Russell’s lead was two seconds after three laps as Norris awaited the stewards’ call on his start, which would certainly impact his race…
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