Lando Norris dominated the Sao Paulo Grand Prix to open a commanding 24-point championship lead after an in-race penalty restricted title rival Oscar Piastri to fifth place.
Norris aced the beginning and completely managed an ensuing security automotive restart on lap six – known as for Gabriel Bortoleto’s crashed-out Sauber – to maintain himself past the attain of the remainder of the sector and dictate the tempo from the entrance. Headed solely momentarily round his two pit stops, his victory margin was a snug 10s to finish an ideal weekend of outcomes following victory in Saturday’s dash.
The newly inflated championship margin permits him to complete second to Piastri in three remaining grands prix and the final dash with out ceding the title lead.
“McLaren are doing a tremendous job giving me an excellent automotive,” he mentioned. “We’re pushing arduous each single weekend, and I’m pushing arduous away from the observe.
“Good weekend.”
Kimi Antonelli completed a career-best second in a final-lap drag race to defend the place forward of an incredible Max Verstappen, who executed an exceptional race after ranging from pit lane owing to setup adjustments following a dire qualifying end result. The defending world champion and Sao Paulo winner was as much as thirteenth on the primary lap, however a puncture picked up following the security automotive restart dumped him again right down to 18th on lap eight.
A ferocious first stint noticed him rise as excessive as third, making mincemeat of the midfield, earlier than making a late first scheduled pit cease on lap 34, and he’d inherited the lead by the tip of his blistering second stint and briefly seemed set to drive Norris to move him for victory. Purple Bull Racing dedicated him to a remaining set of softs that dropped him to fourth, organising a grandstand end for the rostrum locations.
He locked onto George Russell’s gearbox on lap 63, the Briton’s brakes ailing from warmth, and handed the Mercedes with ease across the exterior of the primary flip. Antonelli was subsequent up the highway, however the Italian, having fun with the very best weekend of his profession, was equal to the problem as Verstappen’s delicate tires misplaced their chunk. The Italian’s solely mistake was a large second by the infield, however an ideal exit from Flip 12 was sufficient to safe a career-best second place by simply 0.362s
“I don’t know the place this man got here from, to be sincere,” Antonelli mentioned. “Very hectic with Max coming with the recent tire. … When he was closing in I raised the tempo, I began to push a bit extra, and I discovered my rhythm.
“Fortunately with free air we have been capable of preserve a unique tempo and end P2.”
Verstappen’s third place was a exceptional restoration from the again of the sector however dropped him to 49 factors off Norris’s title lead, all however extinguishing his championship hopes.
“To complete solely 10s from the lead I feel for us is unimaginable,” he mentioned. “To be on the rostrum from the pit lane – I didn’t count on that in any respect. … Unbelievable end result for us. I’m very pleased with that and simply very happy with everybody within the group as properly.”
George Russell beat Piastri in a drag race out of Flip 12 to take fourth place by 0.482s, compounding the previous title chief’s distress by condemning him to a 3rd consecutive fifth-place end and sixth straight grand prix with out a podium.
Piastri’s race pivoted on a 10s penalty for inflicting a collision on the security automotive restart in a daring transfer into the primary flip.
The Australian was operating fourth, the place he began, however was rather more alive to Norris placing down the facility on lap six, permitting him to haul himself down the within of Antonelli, who in flip was aspect by aspect with Charles Leclerc to his exterior. Piastri was virtually totally aspect by aspect with Antonelli as they hit the brakes, however his house on the apex disappeared to nothing because the trio turned in. He locked up in a bid to keep away from a crash, however by then a collision was inevitable, the McLaren tagging the Mercedes, which in flip whacked Leclerc’s Ferrari.
Piastri was capable of proceed on observe, whereas Antonelli rejoined by way of the run-off, each with out harm. Leclerc, although, misplaced his front-left tire immediately within the incident and retired from the race.
Stewards penalized Piastri 10s for the incident, immediately ruling him out of podium competition. His group put him on an offset two-stop technique that noticed him pitting later than his chief rivals, but it surely wasn’t sufficient to maintain him within the combine, condemning him to a devastating title blow, his deficit blown out to 24 factors – virtually a full race victory – with three rounds remaining.
Oliver Bearman completed a wonderful sixth in what ended a lonely race a great distance behind the leaders – 23s – and forward of a good scrap for the ultimate factors.
Liam Lawson prevailed in that battle, ending seventh forward of teammate Isack Hadjar, Nico Hulkenberg, Pierre Gasly, Alex Albon, Esteban Ocon, Carlos Sainz and Fernando Alonso in a pack separated by simply 3.1s.
Franco Colapinto, Lance Stroll and Yuki Tsunoda adopted because the final of the finishers.
Lewis Hamilton joined Leclerc in retirement after choosing up harm in a sequence of opening-lap melees, with residence favourite Bortoleto the one different retirement after being squeezed onto the curbs by Stroll on the primary lap and discovering the boundaries.
