Interlagos delivered drama on every lap, from a one-shot practice to a red-flagged Sprint and a main race that reshaped the title picture. Here’s the whole São Paulo story in one place.
The Chronicle Headlines
- Norris sweeps São Paulo: two poles, Sprint win and Grand Prix win seal a statement weekend.
- Title gap grows to 24 points as Norris keeps the pressure high into the final triple-header.
- Piastri’s rollercoaster: Sprint crash, recovery drive, and P5 at the flag on Sunday. Can he return in last three races?
- Antonelli arrives, career-best P2 with mature pace and cool defence under fire.
- Verstappen’s fightback, after a Q1 exit he storms from the pit lane to P3.
- Ferrari leave empty-handed, zero points on Sunday and drop to fourth in the Constructors’ standings.
- Heartbreak for home hero Bortoleto suffers a heavy Sprint crash that ends his hopes early.
Your complete 2025 F1 Brazilian Grand Prix weekend recap.
Practice: One hour, one shot, who learned fastest?
Lando Norris grabbed the early momentum at the 2025 F1 Brazilian Grand Prix, edging teammate Oscar Piastri by a mere 0.023 seconds in the sole practice session at Interlagos. The Briton’s lap of 1 m 09.975 s set the benchmark for a McLaren one-two that underlined their strength heading into the sprint-weekend. With just one hour to dial in setups ahead of sprint qualifying, that narrow margin already hints at the championship heat building up.
The hour-long run started after a brief clean-up and became every team’s sprint rehearsal. Early on the field ran on the hardest compound, gathering long-run data while the tricky Interlagos layout demanded precision.
Drama arrived for Yuki Tsunoda, who slid into the barriers at Turn 4, putting his weekend on the back foot. Meanwhile, reigning champion Max Verstappen limped to P17 after abandoning his final push – not the usual script. Behind McLaren, a surprise for Nico Hülkenberg in P3 underlines the volatility of this grid.
With only a single practice to fine-tune, every data point matters. Setup choices, tyre management and timing of the flying lap will all feed directly into sprint qualifying strategy. The message is clear: McLaren are sending a warning shot, and the rest of the pack must respond.
Sprint Qualifying: Last-sector winners and sinners
Norris claims Sprint pole at Interlagos with a 1m09.243s lap. He edged Andrea Kimi Antonelli by 0.097s, with Oscar Piastri third after a close SQ3 fight. George Russell took fourth and Fernando Alonso fifth, while Max Verstappen ended only sixth after grip concerns.
The session built through SQ1 and SQ2 as the field searched for balance on a cool and gusty track. Then Norris delivered under pressure in the final segment and found time in the last sector to lock the top spot. His McLaren looked planted through Descida do Lago and stable over the bumps.
Lewis Hamilton missed SQ3 in P11 and was noted by stewards for a yellow flags incident triggered by Charles Leclerc’s spin. Ferrari’s day never quite clicked, with Leclerc only eighth after the scare. The stewards later explained why Hamilton avoided a grid penalty, keeping his starting spot intact.
Williams, Racing Bulls and Sauber all featured inside the mix, with Isack Hadjar and Nico Hülkenberg securing top-ten starts that could swing Sprint points. The midfield is tight and the opening laps will be about tyre warm up and track position.
Sprint Race: Red flag, resets and tyre games
Lando Norris turned pole into control, into victory. He mastered the damp Interlagos asphalt to take his first Sprint win of the year, while Oscar Piastri crashed out on lap 6 to hand his teammate a crucial points swing in the championship fight.
The race launched on a still-slick track. Norris held the inside line on medium tyres, while Andrea Kimi Antonelli made a bold soft-tyre play and attacked immediately. Behind them, Piastri looked quick but misjudged the wet inside kerb at Turn 3, snapping into the wall. Seconds later, Nico Hülkenberg and Franco Colapinto repeated the same slide. Colapinto’s Alpine hit the barriers hard and forced a red flag for repairs.
When the running resumed, Norris owned the restart. Antonelli lost second to George Russell but won it back with a fierce move into Turn 4, confirming his rising-star status. Meanwhile, Max Verstappen wrestled his Red Bull home in P4 after struggling for grip again. A frustrated radio call summed up his mood, and the car’s pace.
Late on, Antonelli closed to within DRS range. His charge fell just short as Norris managed tyres, pace and nerves to seal eight points and widen his title lead. Russell completed the podium. Charles Leclerc jumped Fernando Alonso for P5. Lewis Hamilton rose from P11 to P7.
The crowd’s hopes fell apart in the closing meters when Gabriel Bortoleto spun on the final lap. It was that kind of Sprint. One for the nerves. One for Norris.
Qualifying: Margins at the edge, Q1 shock to Q3 mastery
Verstappen stuns with Q1 exit as grid tightens
Interlagos bit hard in Q1. Max Verstappen suffered a Q1 exit in P16, missing safety by a narrow margin. He battled grip from the first push lap, then over-pushed into Turn 1 on his final flyer. The cut-off moved, and he was on the wrong side.
Further back, Yuki Tsunoda also dropped out in P19 after traffic and a messy final sector. Esteban Ocon and Franco Colapinto slotted P17 and P18. Local hope Gabriel Bortoleto did not set a time after his Sprint crash, leaving him P20. The home crowd groaned.
Q1 told the story of margins. The field compressed as the track improved, and clean prep mattered most. A small slide through Mergulho cost rows. A slow out-lap ruined tyre warm-up. Interlagos punished tiny errors and rewarded discipline.
Transitioning to Q2, the tone stayed brutal. Fernando Alonso missed Q3 by 0.016 seconds in P11. Alex Albon followed in P12 with tidy pace but no final step. Lewis Hamilton lost time under braking and wound up P13. Lance Stroll and Carlos Sainz filled P14 and P15 as the midfield squeezed. The stage for Q3 was set, and the pole fight would need perfection.
Lewis Hamilton after another disappointing qualifications , Photo Credit: Scuderia Ferrari
Norris on pole, Antonelli P2, Leclerc P3
When pressure peaked in Q3, Lando Norris found another gear. He delivered 1:09.511 for pole position and stamped authority on the São Paulo grid. The lap was clean through Descida do Lago and crisp into Juncão. His McLaren looked balanced and fast.
Kimi Antonelli kept the strain on. He secured P2, just 0.174 seconds adrift after a precise middle sector. Charles Leclerc pieced together a measured lap for P3 as Ferrari stabilised the rear in high-speed load. The front three were clinical.
Oscar Piastri had led the first Q3 runs with 1:09.897 yet improved only slightly. He settled P4 while Isack Hadjar stunned with P5 for Racing Bulls. George Russell took P6 as he chased entry stability. Liam Lawson impressed with P7.
Ollie Bearman claimed P8 after strong early phases. Pierre Gasly and Nico Hülkenberg rounded out the top ten for Alpine and Sauber. The pattern was clear. Those who nailed tyre prep into Turn 1 and carried traction from Turn 12 won time.
Race: Norris converts; Antonelli rises; Verstappen charges
Norris launched clean and never ceded control. Antonelli shadowed him to a career-best second, while Verstappen turned a pit-lane start into a podium with a ferocious late charge. Ferrari left empty-handed on a bruising day.
Norris launches clean, chaos erupts behind
Lando Norris nailed the start and controlled the first stint at Interlagos. Kimi Antonelli held second, while Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri fought for track position through the Senna S. The leaders kept it tidy. The midfield did not.
On lap two the local crowd fell silent. Gabriel Bortoleto was tipped wide through Turn 7 after contact and spun into the barriers. The Sauber rookie retired on the spot. Race control deployed the Safety Car and the pack reset behind Norris. The Brazilian was unhurt, but the early hope was gone.
Lewis Hamilton then began a difficult afternoon. Contact with Franco Colapinto on the main straight damaged his front wing. Soon after he clipped Carlos Sainz into Turn 1 and needed repairs. Stewards added a five second penalty. Ferrari’s day was already spiralling.
When the race went green again Norris protected the inside into Turn 1. Antonelli shadowed him and managed tyres. Max Verstappen started from the pit lane on a revised set up and began carving forward. The Red Bull looked sharper than it had all weekend. Track evolution helped him. So did clean air.
The tone was set. The front controlled the rhythm. The pack behind traded elbows and data. Strategy teams watched the cloud cover and the tyre wear. The next flashpoint arrived fast. And it changed the race for three title protagonists.
Piastri collision reshapes the fight, Verstappen reloads
At the lap six restart Piastri dived for a narrow gap into Turn 1. Antonelli was mid track. Leclerc was outside. Contact followed. The Mercedes bounced into the Ferrari and the Monegasque retired on the spot. Stewards issued Piastri a ten second penalty. The field ran under a Virtual Safety Car as debris cleared.
Antonelli survived with minor damage and kept second. Piastri pressed on but his afternoon now required recovery. The call was brave. The cost was heavy. Norris extended the gap while McLaren recalculated windows for their two cars.
From the pit lane Verstappen kept coming. He reached the fringes of the top ten with measured passes. Then a slow puncture forced another stop under caution. The setback did not break the charge. The revised balance on the Red Bull worked. Clean exits through Descida do Lago turned into simple moves into Turn 1. For a handful of laps Verstappen even cycled to the lead.
Norris converts, Antonelli resists, Verstappen completes the podium
The finale became a test of nerve. Norris kept the mediums alive and controlled the pace. Antonelli managed his tyres and braced for a charge. Verstappen switched to fresh softs and attacked George Russell for third with a clean move into Turn 1. The hunt for second was on.
The rookie did not blink. Antonelli absorbed the pressure and held the line through Turn 4. Verstappen closed to within DRS range yet ran out of laps. The flag fell with Norris first, Antonelli second, Verstappen third. The podium told a story of composure, resilience and raw speed from the pit lane. Fans agreed, voting Verstappen Driver of the Day.
Behind them Russell finished fourth and Piastri took fifth after serving his penalty. Ollie Bearman impressed again in sixth for Haas. The Racing Bulls duo of Liam Lawson and Isack Hadjar claimed seventh and eighth. Nico Hülkenberg and Pierre Gasly rounded out the points. Ferrari left empty handed. Hamilton later retired with floor damage.
What next?
After the 2025 F1 Brazilian Grand Prix, we have a week of and then F1 heads into the final triple-header: Las Vegas (20–22 Nov), then Qatar (28–30 Nov) and Abu Dhabi (5–7 Dec) to close the season. Street-course cold temps in Vegas will stress tyre warm-up and braking windows. Qatar’s high-energy corners flip the script back to thermal management. Abu Dhabi’s split-sector layout often rewards cars with strong traction and late-race efficiency. Title pressure only rises from here.
Feature Image Credit: McLaren