Lando Norris triumphed in treacherous circumstances at Interlagos as Mercedes have been topped the 2026 Constructors’ champions. Right here’s how the drivers fared on the System 1 Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Lando Norris made it back-to-back wins at Interlagos after a totally dominant efficiency on Sunday. Max Verstappen pulled his RB22 from twenty first on the grid to second, as Isack Hadjar rounded off the rostrum for a chaotic Sao Paulo GP.
Lando Norris: 10
Grid Place: P1, Race End result: P1
Barring a sluggish begin to the 71-lap race, Norris drove a commanding race at Interlagos. Nearer to the crossover level for the slicks, and when the monitor had primarily dried out, Norris’ MCL40 was unbeatable.
A very good technique on the pit wall, because the McLaren driver jumped Antonelli for the change onto the slicks embedded his benefit and the outgoing F1 World Champion confirmed everybody why he had the No. 1 on his automotive this season with a dominant efficiency.
Oscar Piastri: 8
Grid Place: P10, Race End result: P6
Piastri was impeded by a red-flag throughout Q2, which means he might solely publish the Twelfth-fastest lap of the session and didn’t get himself into the top-10 shootout on Saturday.
That mentioned, he was elevated into the top-10 for the race, and the Australian made probably the most of that chance.
Piastri had discovered himself within the top-five, however a name to pit for a brand new pair of Gentle tyres, and the resultant downpour within the dying embers of the race meant he took the chequered flag in sixth.
A strong drive by the McLaren driver however with promising dry-running tempo, one might have questioned if he would have challenged his team-mate for the race win if not for a curtailed qualifying.
Max Verstappen: 9.5
Grid Place: P21, Race End result: P2
It was yet one more masterclass by Verstappen in treacherous circumstances at Interlagos. He had received the Sao Paulo GP from seventeenth on the grid in 2024, and this time he put in a equally stellar effort.
An enormous 30-place engine-related grid drop had set the scene for a Verstappen-esque restoration drive, and the Dutchman sliced by way of the sector from P21 to take the chequered flag in second.
The RB22 did, nevertheless, show to be a handful on the slicks, and on Sunday, Norris and McLaren have been actually the sooner driver-car package deal than Crimson Bull. Nonetheless, it was a hair-raising shift by the 29-year-old.
Isack Hadjar: 8.5
Grid Place: P5, Race End result: P3
The French-Algerian racing driver bagged his third podium of the season behind his team-mate Verstappen. Actually, for a considerable chunk of the 71-lap race, Hadjar was the lead Crimson Bull.
The 22-year-old was finally requested to maneuver over for Verstappen, however Hadjar was just about in competition for going toe-to-toe with the Dutchman if he had been allowed.
One other strong outcome for the Crimson Bull driver as he seems to be ahead to his sophomore 12 months with the Milton-Keynes-based workforce in 2027.
George Russell: 8
Grid Place: P7, Race End result: P4
Interlagos was yet one more chapter within the collection of self-inflicted hardships for Russell this season. At Mexico, final weekend, the Briton lastly had to surrender on his championship ambitions. At Sao Paulo, he understood why.
Russell had a powerful qualifying, posting the second-fastest lap of Q3. However a five-place grid drop for the race on Sunday had him on the again foot already.
Russell’s race unraveled when he selected to pit for slicks and spun simply as he exited the pit lane. Drivers earlier than him had tip-toed round that moist little bit of asphalt, someway Russell didn’t.
What actually is a disgrace that when correct dry, the Mercedes driver was arguably his strongest, and one wonders what the outcome might have been if he had not wasted essential race time making an attempt to pirouette himself out of that embarrassing pit lane gaffe.
Kimi Antonelli: 7
Grid Place: P2, Race End result: P5
Interlagos turned out to be a impolite awakening for the 2026 F1 World Champion.
A powerful begin (in all probability helped by being on the grippier left-hand facet of the grid) noticed him slip previous into the lead at Flip 1. And with Liam Lawson appearing as a worthy stop-gap between himself and Norris, the Mercedes driver had clear air and a considerable probability to place appreciable distance between himself and the MCL40.
However, steadiness troubles, and Norris’ blistering tempo within the dry undid all the nice work from the beginning.
Antonelli and Mercedes have been left scratching their heads as to the reason for his issues, however no matter they have been, his spin into Flip 1 after locking his rears sealed the deal towards him as Norris swooped previous and into the space with the race lead.
Liam Lawson: 8.5
Grid Place: P3, Race End result: P7
It was a valiant efficiency by Lawson at Interlagos. After an outstanding qualifying effort, the Kiwi racing driver was elevated to his career-best third-place grid slot.
He had a unbelievable getaway off the road, swallowing the MCL40 of Norris within the Senna esses. From there on, he did actually handle to maintain his distance to the McLaren behind, in P2, and was making minor inroads into Antonelli’s lead.
However because the climate eased up and the monitor began to dry, the true aggressive panorama grew to become clear and Lawson bowed out of the rostrum locations.
The final lap noticed the Racing Bulls driver put up a staunch defence towards the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc, however the Monegasque’s aggressive wheel-banging noticed Lawson relinquish P7.
That mentioned, the stewards took a dim view of Leclerc’s transfer, and a post-race penalty meant Lawson was reinstated into seventh – a heroic outcome given the circumstances.
Arvid Lindblad: 7
Grid Place: P18, Race End result: P11
It was an incident-ridden Sao Paulo GP for Lindblad. PU points in qualifying and a subsequent engine change meant he needed to begin the race from 18th on the grid.
And whereas he did make a spirited drive again into the factors, a late-race overtake by Nico Hulkenberg in difficult circumstances meant the British-Swedish driver completed simply exterior the factors in eleventh.
Charles Leclerc: 6.5
Grid Place: P14, Race End result: P8
It was a race weekend to overlook for Ferrari at Interlagos. A ten-place grid drop noticed Leclerc begin the 71-lap race from 14th on the grid, and although he did handle to make it into the factors, it wasn’t cleanest of executions for the Monegasque.
His final gasp transfer on Lawson that resulted involved with the Racing Bulls noticed Leclerc catch the ire of the stewards and a post-race penalty which meant regardless of him taking the chequered flag in seventh, he was demoted again right down to eighth.
Lewis Hamilton: 6
Grid Place: P20, Race End result: P9
Hamilton appeared to have a extra eventful outing at Interlagos than his team-mate however for all of the flawed causes. Granted, he made a blistering begin and climbed up 11 locations and into ninth on the opening lap, nevertheless it all disintegrated for him from there on.
Hamilton was actually the primary to counsel a change onto the slicks, however Ferrari left him out just a little too lengthy for that crossover to have any actual benefit.
The Ferrari driver was proper to demand “solutions” for such shabby race execution that left him in a lowly ninth regardless of obvious tempo and potential in his package deal.
Nico Hulkenberg: 7
Grid Place: P4, Race End result: P10
After a sensational qualifying session for Audi, it was a convincing slap again to actuality for Hulkenberg on Sunday.
Beginning the race from the second-row of the grid, the German driver by no means actually had any tempo to problem the top-five. However he did, nevertheless, handle to maintain himself in competition within the midfield.
A late-race penalty for an incident with Alpine’s Franco Colapinto did demote him down the order on the chequered flag however regardless of this hindrance he was capable of rating a solitary level for the German marque with P10.
Gabriel Bortoleto: 6
Grid Place: P19, Race End result: P16
Bortoleto had come into his dwelling race weekend with excessive expectations, however a mistake in Q1, in understandably difficult circumstances, meant he crashed out and took a Nineteenth-place grid slot for the beginning.
Within the race, he didn’t have the tempo to problem the midfield and completed a disappointing sixteenth on the chequered flag.
Fernando Alonso: 7
Grid Place: P8, Race End result: P12
It was one of many strongest performances by Alonso within the AMR26 but, at Sao Paulo. A top-10 beginning grid slot for Sunday, nevertheless, shortly become a tough affair for the Spaniard as he made contact with the Haas of Oliver Bearman on the opening lap.
The resultant harm compromised him, and regardless of some stellar strikes and battles within the midfield, Alonso was solely capable of take the chequered flag in Twelfth. Full marks for his uncompromising race craft however a disappointing outcome within the context of the promise he had proven in any other case by way of the weekend.
Lance Stroll: N/A
Grid Place: P16, Race End result: DNF
It was a sordid thirteenth DNF of the season for the Canadian racing driver at Interlagos on Sunday.
The opening lap melee noticed him fall right down to the again of the sector and a problem together with his battery pack meant he was pressured to retire from the 71-lap race on Lap 32.
Franco Colapinto: 6.5
Grid Place: P13, Race End result: P13
It was a commendable shift by the Argentinian racing driver. Whereas Alpine lacked outright tempo to problem for factors, Colapinto confirmed sturdy tempo within the opening phases of the race.
His definitive second of the race got here on the second crossover level for switching from the slicks to the Intermediate tyres. He put in a stellar transfer on his team-mate Pierre Gasly to leap him into the pit lane, and completed in thirteenth, simply forward of Gasly on the chequered flag.
Pierre Gasly: 6
Grid Place: P15, Race End result: P14
Gasly was caught behind the soiled air of the automobiles forward of him for a lot of the 71-lap race. And even on dry tyres, his A526 by no means actually had the tempo for him to make any inroads up the sector.
To make issues worse, as soon as the rain bathe hit Interlagos once more, Gasly seemingly struggled for tempo much more with the Intermediate tyres. On the chequered flag, he might solely transfer up a single place from his grid slot to 14th.
Alex Albon: 4.5
Grid Place: P9, Race End result: P15
Albon had impressed throughout qualifying on Saturday, however the dry operating on Sunday uncovered Williams’ tempo deficit to its rivals.
The British-Thai driver was additionally reprimanded by the stewards for his incident with Gasly, handing him a five-second time penalty and two factors on his superlicense.
Carlos Sainz: 4
Grid Place: P12, Race End result: P19
It was yet one more race to overlook for the Spaniard with Williams. He struggled with the steadiness on his FW48 all through the race and completed the Sao Paulo GP two laps down on the leaders and in Nineteenth.
Oliver Bearman: 4
Grid Place: P6, Race End result: P17
Bearman’s stellar job throughout qualifying was undone within the race. First, a gradual pit cease throughout the Intermediate to slick transition price him essential race time and it was compounded by a five-second time penalty for an unsafe launch.
Rafael Camara: 3
Grid Place: P11, Race End result: P20
It was a depressing F1 debut for Camara; and that too at his dwelling circuit. The 21-year-old struggled to maintain his VF-26 between the white strains because the monitor circumstances examined him.
On the chequered flag, he completed final of the categorized runners and two laps down on the leaders.
Sergio Perez: 4.5
Grid Place: P22, Race End result: P18
Perez was outpaced by his team-mate in qualifying, and an engine-related grid drop noticed him begin the 71-lap race from lifeless final. A pit cease problem (comparable gremlins to what Valtteri Bottas suffered earlier than the race had even began) noticed him end a distant 18th regardless of some sturdy tempo on his opening stint with the Intermediate tyres.
Valtteri Bottas: N/A
Grid Place: P17, Race End result: DNS
It was a throwback to the 2021 Monaco GP for Bottas at Sao Paulo. This time, nevertheless, the wheel gun belonged to Cadillac as a substitute of Mercedes.
An errant wheel gun destroyed the wheel nut on his automotive even earlier than the Finnish racing driver might begin the race which means he was wheeled again into the pits and out of the Sao Paulo GP.
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