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F1 São Paulo Grand Prix starting grid
· Confirmed
In Short: Lando Norris took pole position for the Sao Paulo Grand Prix in a wet qualifying session delayed by heavy rain.
F1 2026 Sao Paulo GP Starting Grid. For The Love of F1
Lando Norris secured pole position for the São Paulo Grand Prix in a wet qualifying session at Interlagos, which was delayed by nearly an hour and a half due to heavy rain.
Norris, driving for McLaren, will start from the front alongside new world champion Kimi Antonelli, who took second place after George Russell received a five-place grid penalty for exceeding his permitted number of engine parts.
The session was marked by dramatic changes in the grid order due to various penalties and weather conditions. Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton will start from the back of the grid due to engine penalties.
The São Paulo Grand Prix will remain on the F1 calendar until 2035, providing fans with another thrilling race weekend.
What this adds
The grid penalties and weather conditions added to the complexity of the qualifying session, with multiple drivers facing unexpected challenges.
The São Paulo Grand Prix remains a historically significant event on the F1 calendar, known for its challenging conditions and dramatic races.
Background
Lando Norris secured pole position for the São Paulo Grand Prix, while new world champion Kimi Antonelli aims for victory.
In a gripping race marked by errors from Kimi Antonelli and George Russell, Lando Norris clinched the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
What's confirmed
- Lando Norris takes pole in wet Sao Paulo Grand Prix qualifying Antonelli to start second, Lawson third and Hulkenberg fourth Alonso to start eighth after reaching Q3 for first time this season Heavy rain started just before session began, leading to delay of more than 80 minutes Hamilton and Verstappen to start from back of grid Interlagos to stay on F1 calendar until 2035 Select 'listen live' for BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra commentary (UK only) McLaren's Lando Norris took pole position for the Sao Paulo Grand Prix in a wet qualifying session at Interlagos delayed by nearly an hour and a half for heavy rain.
What's still developing
- "And thank you to all the fans for staying up with us tonight."
- Qualifying has been historically important at the 15-turn, 2.677-mile (4.308-kilometer) road course in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
- Hamilton started from the back in the sprint race in 2021, back when sprint results determined the Grand Prix starting lineup, and even received a grid drop before going on to win the Grand Prix, meaning he effectively went from last all the to first and then some.
- 2026 F1 World Championship | Sao Paulo Grand Prix | Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace | Qualifying | Result Stay up to speed with the latest F1 news and analysis, delivered straight to your inbox.
- Max Verstappen didn't drive in Q2 because of his back-of-the-grid penalty; Lewis Hamilton did, but finished Q2 11th.
- Two Seats: Daily Grand Prix Draft Game | Motorsport.com Two Seats — Daily Grand Prix Draft Game Two Seats is motorsport.com's daily Grand Prix draft game.
- It should be noted that his path to pole was eased somewhat when Max Verstappen, another driver who had been at the top in Q1, called time on his session early, preserving mileage and tyres given he had a back-of-the-grid penalty for an engine change.
- Two further changes have been announced to the grid for the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, with Arvid Lindblad and Gabriel Bortoleto being demoted to 18th and 19th following 10-place penalties each.
- Though he and Verstappen 'only' had 30-place grid penalties for engine component changes compared to Hamilton having 75, Hamilton starts ahead because he set the fastest time of all those who must automatically start at the back of the grid.
- “I did not expect this, very happy to be first,” Verstappen said.
- The NTT IndyCar Series held qualifying on Saturday to set the field for the Mission Foods Grand Prix of Monterey at Weather Tech Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California.
- The 24-year-old ultimately sat out Q3 without setting a time, with teammate Arvid Lindblad's five-place grid penalty promoting him from 10th to ninth on the starting grid.
Sources
- 1Newslink
- BBClink
- Beyond the Flaglink
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- Crash.netlink
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- Motorsport.comlink
- PlanetF1link
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- Racingclotheslinelink
- Sbnationlink
- The Guardianlink
- The Racelink
- Timeslivelink
- https://www.autohebdof1.com/link
- Formula1link
- For The Love of F1 — video link
- Sports maniac 144 — video link