World champion Max Verstappen has suffered a bitter setback in the Formula 1 title fight with Lando Norris. In the qualifying for the Grand Prix in Sao Paulo, which was postponed due to heavy rain, the Dutchman only finished twelfth due to an unfavorable interruption. Even worse for the Red Bull driver: Because he got a new combustion engine, he also has to accept a penalty of five places, meaning he will start the Grand Prix from 17th place at 4.30 p.m. (4.30 p.m. CET in the F.A.Z. live ticker to Formula 1 and Sky). His title rival Norris, on the other hand, grabbed his seventh pole position of the year in the McLaren. “It was very clear that a red flag had to come. And then they wait 30 or 40 seconds – many others were able to do another lap,” complained Verstappen on Sky. In the earliest qualification (7.30 a.m. local time) in the history of Formula 1, Norris was the fastest in 1:23.405 minutes over the slippery asphalt at the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace. Second place went to George Russell (Great Britain/Mercedes), followed by Racing Bulls driver Yuki Tsunoda (Japan) who surprisingly completed the top three. Norris’ teammate Oscar Piastri (Australia) only finished eighth. Verstappen still leads the standings with 44 points ahead of Norris, who won the sprint race on Saturday. “I’m super, super happy,” said the McLaren driver. Qualifying should actually have taken place on Saturday. However, due to bad weather, it was postponed until the morning of the race day. Despite rain tires, many drivers also had enormous problems on Sunday. Williams youngster Franco Colapinto hit the tire wall in only his sixth Formula 1 qualifying session. Mexico winner Carlos Sainz (Ferrari/Spain) caused another break with the next crash. “Let’s see if we can still take part in the race,” said Colapinto. Lance Stroll (Canada/Aston Martin) then brought disaster for Verstappen with another accident. His teammate Fernando Alonso (Spain) and Alexander Albon (Thailand/Williams) also crashed – red flags were waved. It remains to be seen whether their cars can be repaired before the race.More on the topicSurprisingly, record world champion and Brazil’s honorary citizen Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain) only finished 16th in the Mercedes, and Nico Hülkenberg also experienced a qualifying session to forget. After a miscarriage he only managed 19th place in his Haas. “It was very uncomfortable and didn’t feel good either,” said the Emmericher on Sky. In addition, Hülkenberg was beaten again by his substitute teammate Oliver Bearman (17th/Great Britain), who replaced the ill Kevin Magnussen (Denmark).
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