Lando Norris backs up sprint success with pole position in Sao Paulo
By Philip Duncan, PA F1 Correspondent, Interlagos
Lando Norris completed a dream day in his pursuit of a maiden world championship by securing pole position for the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Norris extended his lead in the title race from one point to nine after he won the earlier sprint race and rival Oscar Piastri crashed out.
Piastri qualified only fourth for Sunday’s main event, and in another boost to Norris, Max Verstappen – 39 points behind the British driver – was knocked out in Q1 and will start the 71-lap contest in Interlagos way back in 16th.
Kimi Antonelli joins Norris on the front row with Charles Leclerc third for Ferrari. Leclerc’s team-mate Lewis Hamilton finished only 13th.
Just hours after Norris navigated a chaotic sprint race – with Piastri failing to score after he crashed out on the sixth lap – the Englishman was back on track bidding to keep his championship momentum going.
Norris was on the backfoot after his first attempt in Q3 when he locked up on the entry to the opening corner and was 0.651 seconds slower than Piastri and in 10th.
But the British driver produced an impressive lap under pressure to soar to the top of the timesheets. He finished 0.174 sec clear of Antonelli. Piastri was no match for Norris, ending the day more than three tenths off the pace.
“I put myself under unnecessary pressure after I locked up on my first run so more stressful than I would have like but I stayed calm and put it all together when it mattered,” said Norris.
“We are in good form, the team have given me a great car, and when I am in a good rhythm and I can put it all together, I can be on top.”
It means Piastri faces losing further ground to Norris, and Verstappen’s championship challenge could be all but over by the close of play on Sunday following a dismal qualifying performance here.
Verstappen said in the build-up to this week’s event that only his once-in-a-generation talent was keeping him in the hunt.
But even he could not pull a rabbit out of the hat in qualifying as Red Bull’s pace deserted him.
Verstappen entered the closing stages of Q1 in the elimination zone and he could not find the speed to haul his under-performing machine into Q2. It marked Verstappen’s first Q1 departure in more than four years.
“Yeah, I have no grip, zero,” he said over the radio. “Brilliant,” a sarcastic Verstappen added. Verstappen’s father, Jos, departed the Red Bull garage abruptly following his son’s early exit.
Verstappen started 17th at this event last year before delivering a drive for the ages to secure a win which put him on the brink of a fourth world crown.
Then, Verstappen revelled in the wet, but with clear conditions forecast for Sunday’s race, he could be cast more than 50 points off the title pace – the equivalent of two wins – with just four to play and 108 points available.
There was misery for Verstappen’s one-time rival Hamilton, too. The seven-time world champion’s wait for a first Ferrari podium is set to carry over to Las Vegas in a fortnight after he crashed out of Q2.
Hamilton shook his head and took both hands off the steering wheel, clenching them in anger, as he laboured back to the pits.
Britain’s Ollie Bearman might yet be the man who ends up taking over from Hamilton at Ferrari. The 20-year-old, fresh from a career-best fourth last time out in Mexico, impressed yet again to qualify eighth.
