Norris on pole, Verstappen P17 in five red flag qualifying at Interlagos
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Lando Norris 'rained' supreme in sodden Sao Paulo to secure pole position in an unconventional Sunday qualifying session, which was affected by multiple red flags. Franco Colapinto, Carlos Sainz, Lance Stroll, Fernando Alonso and Alex Albon crashed heavily, causing red flags in all three qualifying segments. Max Verstappen was eliminated in Q2 due to Stroll's incident, and with a five-place grid penalty, it means he will start the race from 17th place. A mixed grid will create an exciting race later on today. George Russell finished second, and Yuki Tsunoda and Esteban Ocon line up in third and fourth.
How a rain-affected qualifying unfolded:
Drivers headed out onto a sodden track early in the morning in Sao Paulo. In Q1, a few immediately were met with trouble. Liam Lawson, Zhou Guanyu and Lance Stroll all had adventures off the track in the first few minutes. The first red flag came out with eight minutes to go in the first practice session after Franco Colapinto crashed in sector one. The Argentine spun off due to wheelspin, giving his mechanics a big job to do before the start of the Grand Prix in just a few hours. After the incident was cleared, rain fell heavier, and the Mercedes drivers were at risk of an early elimination. Lando Norris had one opportunity to escape the elimination zone and scraped through by the skin of his teeth. Lewis Hamilton was not so lucky and was eliminated in Q1. The seven-time world champions' shock elimination disappointed the Brazilian fans.
Shock elimination for both Red Bulls:
The weather improved heading into Q2, and Oscar Piastri was the first to set a competitive time on the intermediate tyres. It wasn't easy by any means, and George Russell spun due to a lack of grip on his first lap on the green-walled tyres. Carlos Sainz brought out the second red flag of the day in Q2. The Mexican Grand Prix winner spun off on the inters in sector one. The rear of his car was left heavily damaged, as he gave his Ferrari mechanics a huge job to do before qualifying. Both Red Bull's Q2 efforts were thwarted after Lance Stroll also crashed in sector one. Verstappen's five-second grid penalty means that the Dutchman will start the Grand Prix from 17th place. Sergio Perez will start from 12th in what is a crucial weekend for the Milton Keynes-based team as they fight for both titles.
More heavy incidents as Norris secures pole:
The red flags didn't stop there. In Q3, Fernando Alonso caused another stoppage after crashing heavily in his Aston Martin. The British team have a huge job to get both crashed cars ready for the race later on today. After the incident, there was a slight delay as barrier repairs took place. It was a hard hit into the wall at a horrible angle for the two-time world champion. A few minutes later, after the restart, Alex Albon smashed into the wall at the first corner. The Thai driver appeared winded after he climbed out of his stricken car. Both Williams drivers crashed in the session, just like Aston Martin. Just three minutes remained in Q3 after the session was restarted, and only seven cars remained on the circuit. In the final few runs, Norris improved his time, which gave him some breathing room out front. His teammate Oscar Piastri's final lap was ruined after a lockup on his final lap, meaning the Brit's pole was secured. Liam Lawson
What's happened previously this weekend?
Before Saturday afternoon's qualifying was postponed, the sprint race took place in dry conditions. Lando Norris won the sprint race in Brazil and reduced his gap to Max Verstappen in the World Championship by three points. Despite some stressed-out messages on the team radio, McLaren perfected the situation of the team orders in Brazil. Piastri gave Norris DRS for most of the race before swapping the order late on before a VSC. Max Verstappen was slapped with a five-second time penalty due to a VSC infringement. He was, therefore, dropped to fourth place.
Piastri qualified on pole position for the sprint race. Lando Norris joined the Australian on the front row of the grid. Norris started ahead of Verstappen on Saturday, as the Dutchman finished in P4 in qualifying. Carlos Sainz qualified in P5 ahead of George Russell. Sergio Perez and Lewis Hamilton failed to reach the top ten in qualifying. Zhou, Stroll and Alonso started from the pitlane due to changes made to their cars. The top six started on used medium tyres.
In an unprecedented weekend, the weekend schedule was adjusted due to the weather conditions. The last time a race was brought forward due to rain was in Dallas in 1984. A jam-packed Sunday at Interlagos will provisionally host both qualifying and the Grand Prix if the conditions allow.
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