The Autódromo José Carlos Pace racetrack, better known as Interlagos is known to create some sensational action. This weekend was a sprint weekend, which meant fans got to see racing action on both Saturday and Sunday!
The Saturday sprint was choc-full of overtakes, and fewer laps meant there was no need for pit stop strategies. Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen sneaked past the McLaren of Lando Norris before the first turn and was able to keep his lead for the entire sprint race. The Mercedes drivers started strong, but their tyres fell off a cliff midway and ended up behind the Red Bulls and Lando Norris, instead of challenging the podium.
On Sunday, Verstappen sprinted off the start line and while Norris initially challenged him, he was able to keep his lead over the British driver for the entirety of the race to secure his record 17th win of the season. Fernando Alonso had a superb battle with Sergio Perez, which went down to the line for the final place of the podium.
Charles Leclerc had terrible luck as his Ferrari SF-23 lost hydraulics and crashed in formation lap, resulting in his retirement. The race started with a literal bang, as Williams driver Alex Albon and Haas drivers Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen crashed, with debris flying all over. Some of it even struck Daniel Ricciardo and Oscar Piastri.
Norris was able to capitalise on the crash, and was able to drive from sixth to second. It was impressive enough to warrant the Driver of the Day award for the second consecutive race!
Perez and Alonso’s fight was absolutely scintillating, with the two using all their might to pass each other, but it was Alonso who secured the final podium position, ahead of Perez at the finish line by just 0.053 seconds!
The Brazilian Grand Prix has given weekend long action, but the next race at Las Vegas is an unknown variable. This is where teams lower down the order might be able to surprise others and perform better than others. The next race in two weeks holds the answers to our questions.
