Verstappen rules at Interlagos, but feels the hot breath of Mercedes drivers on his neck

The race on the Interlagos circuit is one of the most popular races of the entire Formula 1 calendar. In the past, the Grand Prix was often the very last race of the season on the calendar, but after the race in Sao Paulo, the teams have to travel to another circuit twice. The past three editions of the Brazilian Grand Prix, like the Mexican Grand Prix, took place in 2019, 2021 and 2022. That is why most drivers are covered in this form check. The rookies (Oscar Piastri and Logan Sargeant), Zhou Guanyu and Nico Hülkenberg will not be included.

Verstappen dominates, but Mercedes is advancing

* Drivers with an asterisk after their name have participated in two of the three most recent editions.

Max Verstappen is at the top of the rankings, but the Red Bull Racing driver certainly did not have all easy races. Verstappen won in 2019, after everything came at the driver during the Grand Prix. In the editions that followed, Mercedes stood on the highest podium at the Interlagos circuit. For example, George Russell achieved his first victory in Formula 1 and Lewis Hamilton also stood on the podium twice in a row in Brazil. Since the last two editions of the Brazilian Grand Prix were also sprint race weekends and Mercedes dominated, a victory for Verstappen is by no means a certainty.

In 2019 there was victory at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace for Verstappen. The Red Bull driver was allowed to start from pole position and managed to maintain his position at the start, while Sebastian Vettel, who started behind him, had to give up second place to Hamilton. Until lap 21, nothing was wrong for Verstappen. Hamilton entered the pits after the twentieth lap and the Limburger dived in a lap later. However, that did not end well for Verstappen as he found Robert Kubica in his path in the pit lane and lost some time.

However, within one lap Verstappen had made up for it all. The driver ended up behind Hamilton, but after a smart move against Charles Leclerc, the now two-time world champion was able to chase the Mercedes driver. In turn 1 the job was done again. From that moment on, the Red Bull driver was able to build his lead again, but this lead was canceled out by a safety car situation on lap 52. Verstappen decided to dive in, while Hamilton stayed outside. However, at the restart, Verstappen again passed the man from Stevenage.

However, the chaos was not over yet. Six laps after the restart it was the Ferrari drivers who took each other out of the race. The race management deployed the safety car again, causing Hamilton to dive in. That was good news for Alexander Albon, because a podium now seemed within reach. However, that was ruined by Hamilton, as the Mercedes driver tapped him during an overtaking action. Pierre Gasly therefore took over second place. Hamilton tried to pass him in a kind of drag race, but that didn’t work. In addition, the Briton ultimately received a penalty, meaning he finished seventh and Carlos Sainz took over third place.

Russell can’t believe his luck

The previous edition of the Brazilian Grand Prix had a big surprise. Red Bull was seen as the clear favorite, but the sprint race weekend had a surprise in store. The Austrian racing team did not get the setup right and was therefore not as dominant as the races preceding the Brazilian Grand Prix. It was Mercedes who could benefit most from this. The sprint race also had a nice surprise: Kevin Magnussen started from pole position. It rained in Q3 of qualifying and the Dane had the fastest time before Russell’s crash. Because the rain only became more intense, no one could improve their time.

In the sprint race, Magnussen quickly lost his position to Verstappen, but the Dutchman was unable to retain first position. Russell turned out to be a lot faster. In the battle that followed with Carlos Sainz, the RB18 lost part of the front wing and thus Verstappen lost more speed and more positions, causing him to start the main race in fourth position. On Sunday, Russell’s victory was not really in danger, despite Hamilton coming quite close with an alternative strategy. The seven-time world champion still has some catching up to do after an incident with Verstappen, but provided a great day for Mercedes by crossing the line in second.

Hamilton takes revenge after disqualification

The 2021 Brazilian Grand Prix was overshadowed by all kinds of controversies. It started on Friday when Red Bull launched a protest against Hamilton’s rear wing. The DRS wing of his car would open too far. Verstappen also became part of the discussion. The Red Bull driver had touched the rear wing of his title competitor while the car was already in parc fermé. Hamilton was ultimately disqualified from qualifying, forcing him to start the sprint race from the back. Verstappen was fined fifty thousand euros.

Hamilton managed to make up a lot of positions during the sprint race and finished fifth. On Sunday, the seven-time world champion started in P10, as he had received a grid penalty for changing his engine. In the race, Hamilton was ultimately a lot faster than the competition. On lap 54, the Briton had his first chance to overtake Verstappen, but both drivers shot off the track in Turn 4 after a defensive action by the Red Bull driver. Five laps later the Mercedes driver was successful in the same corner. Hamilton won the race and dealt a blow to Verstappen in the title battle.