F1 LIVE | Qualifying: The 2023 Brazilian Grand Prix

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F1 Live qualifying Brazilian Grand Prix weekend
3 November 2023 at 17:00
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  • Matt Gretton
  • Editor-in-Chief

It's a sprint weekend, so Formula 1 teams and drivers will go qualifying on Friday. Max Verstappen will be pushing for his first pole position since the Qatar Grand Prix nearly one month ago. Charles Leclerc and Ferrari have been quick in single laps recently, and Mercedes are on a two-year winning run at the Interlagos Circuit. Don't miss any of the action with the GPblog liveblog. 

F1 LIVE | Qualifying: Brazil Grand Prix 

 

Sprint Format

The Interlagos circuit has produced some of the best sprints since F1 first introduced the format in 2021. This is the sixth and final sprint weekend of the season, so teams are getting used to the situation. However, it caught a lot of teams out last time in Austin, Texas. It's important as much mileage is complete as possible in this hour. 

Perez must score

Sergio Perez made a mistake in his home race and, therefore, did not score any points for the world championship. His lead over current number three Lewis Hamilton shrank by 19 points. There's a gap of only 20 points with only three races and a sprint remaining. Will Red Bull take a one-two lead in the World Championship among the drivers for the first time in their history?

In any case, the 33-year-old will have to change his mind and keep Hamilton behind him. That will not be an easy task because the seven-time world champion seems to be feeling better and better in his car, and his gap would have been much smaller if he had not been disqualified in the United States. Perhaps he would be leading without the DNF in Qatar as well.

Max Verstappen is good at the Interlagos circuit, but he has only won once: in 2019. The last two editions of the Brazilian GP were won by Mercedes, so Red Bull will once again take the German team into account. 

In 2021, Valtteri Bottas won the sprint race and Lewis Hamilton won the race on Sunday. Last season, George Russell won both races and Red Bull - despite high expectations - was not involved. The fact that Mercedes won in 2022 can be called remarkable because the W13 underperformed all year. This year's W14 is a lot more competitive so we can expect Mercedes to be at the front again.

At the same time, we should not discount Ferrari and McLaren because both teams showed last weekend in Mexico that they are still at the front. Charles Leclerc took pole position, while Lando Norris managed to move from P17 to P5 after a disappointing qualifying. For Oscar Piastri, driving at Interlagos will be a new experience. As a rookie, he had never race in Sao Paulo before.