After being officially postponed, Qualifying for the main race started early on Sunday on a wet Interlagos track with a temperature of 22°C. Drivers lined up at the pit lane exit, ready to get out on track amid reports of worsening rain expected within 15 minutes, which could be heard over the team radios.
Q1
All drivers started on full wet tires, with Albon and Norris marking the first times of the session. However, Lawson, Bottas, and Stroll triggered yellow flags in sectors two and three. Ocon soon outpaced Norris with a flying lap of 1:29.916, closely followed by Alonso. As the track continued to improve, Tsunoda set a 1:29.172 lap, with Leclerc close behind. “There doesn’t seem to be that much standing water, so think about inters,” Russell radioed to Mercedes just before a red flag stopped the session. Colapinto had slid off at the exit of the Senna “S,” causing an interruption lasting slightly more than five minutes. When the drivers returned, Norris noted, “There’s a lot more rain,” though McLaren indicated it was expected to last only two minutes.
After the restart, Bearman briefly attempted to run on intermediates but quickly returned for full wets. Verstappen and Albon set the fastest times by the end of Q1, with a yellow flag from Hülkenberg. Norris narrowly made it into Q2, eliminating Bearman, Colapinto, Hülkenberg, Zhou, and Hamilton.
Q2
Oscar Piastri initially went out on intermediates, sitting P4, just 1.154s behind Verstappen. Shortly after, he clocked a sector purple time, signaling other drivers to switch to intermediates. Five minutes in, the session was halted again after Sainz’s Ferrari hit the barriers at the Senna “S” in a slide similar to Colapinto’s, with Norris, Gasly, Albon, Tsunoda, and Ocon sitting in the elimination zone.
Following the restart, Norris led, followed closely by Alonso and Piastri in P3. A yellow flag in sector one was triggered by Stroll’s incident at the Senna “S.” Although the red flag was delayed, the session stopped with 46 seconds remaining, leaving Verstappen’s final attempt unfinished and knocking Bottas, the Red Bulls, Sainz, and Gasly out of Q3 contention.
Q3
All drivers began Q3 on intermediates, with worsening rain forecasted on the team radios. Piastri initially took P1 with a 1:26.099 lap before Norris lowered it to 1:25.631. Albon split the McLarens while Ocon, Russell, and Leclerc filled out the top positions. A fourth red flag paused the session when Alonso crashed, requiring repairs for both Aston Martins before the race.
With six minutes left, Q3 resumed, with the remaining drivers setting out again. Tsunoda went off-track briefly, triggering a yellow flag. A fifth red flag stopped the session for Albon’s severe incident, raising doubts about his ability to start the race. Seven drivers resumed with a final flying attempt, and Norris took Pole Position with a 1:23.405. Russell took P2, just 0.173s behind Norris, while Ocon split the VCARBs in P4. Piastri ended up P8 after a mistake prevented him from improving his time.
The top 8 qualified as: Norris, Russell, Tsunoda, Ocon, Lawson, Leclerc, Albon, and Piastri. Yuki Tsunoda was noted for “Failing to follow race director instructions – Crossing the line at pit entry” as he positioned his car in P3 in Parc Fermé.
With the main race scheduled to start in around three hours, teams are working quickly to repair damaged cars and strategize based on the weather and grid positions. The drivers and the challenge of navigating the slippery track conditions promise an exciting event at the Brazilian Grand Prix.
