Max Verstappen is on another level
Image found on F1.com
The Brazilian Grand Prix is always a good race. Combine this with Mad Max, insane amounts of rain, crashes and Safety Cars, and the race is absolutely iconic.
Looking back at this weekend, so much had happened. I almost forgot that there was also a sprint. For the sprint, Piastri had a really good qualifying, but it was obvious from that start that he was going to have to listen to team orders during the race. However, McLaren was being so weird about it. Why wait with team orders? It was obvious the team wanted to swap the drivers, why would they wait until the final round? I did love the absolute panic in McLaren once they realised it was Max Verstappen behind them. They were fine with Charles Leclerc, but Verstappen is a different story. On top of that there was the, well, interesting timing of the Virtual Safety Car, which gave McLaren just enough time to swap their drivers. I’m not saying it was done on purpose, but safety should always come first and therefore it should have been called way sooner. The VSC also ended just after the final overtaking opportunity, which was again strange. It also shows how far Verstappen is willing to go, because he still tried. However, that did mean he was going slightly too fast, which ended up costing him 3rd place, with Leclerc taking that spot. Again, the timing was weird, but the rules are the rules and Verstappen has always taken risks like these. This one was just a bit too much, so it cost him a place.
I was quite happy that it was raining too much on Saturday in São Paulo, because I was actually going out for dinner with my family. So, the qualifying being moved to Sunday was perfect for me. Although, i must say it is a shame for all the fans who were there. I do think the FIA made a smart decision to move the qualifying to Sunday morning, and start the race earlier. But I cannot imagine how difficult that must have been for not only the drivers, but also the mechanics. It must have been such a difficult weekend for them, especially because it was the final race of a triple header. However, as a fan, it was an amazing weekend.
Qualifying in the rain is always great. People crashing, red flags, it is impossible to predict who is getting pole position. And this qualifying was exactly that. However, with Verstappen (again) being unlucky with the timing of the FIA, this time with the yellow and red flags, he was already eliminated in Q2. With his grid penalty, that meant he had to start from the 17th. Lando Norris was able to put it on pole, with George Russell close behind him. But the real surprise were the two drivers behind them: Yuki Tsunoda and Esteban Ocon. Both of them have cars that are definitely not great, but were able to show their talent in the rain. Unfortunately, some of the crashes that happened during qualifying (and the limited time between qualifying and the race) meant that not all drivers were able to start. Alexander Albon was unable to start the race due to his crash and Lance Stroll immediately had a break issue (and then was an idiot), so there were two empty slots at the grid. And then, the crazy race started.
Russell was able to overtake Norris in the first corner and took the lead. Behind them, there were multiple cars fighting for the third place, including Tsunoda and Ocon. Verstappen had a great start from 17th and was immediately able to get up to the 10th position. And he kept overtaking. When the Safety Car was called on lap 30, Verstappen was second behind Ocon. Russell, Norris and most other drivers had already pitted for new inters, but Verstappen and Ocon hadn’t. With the amount of rain falling down and Franco Colapinto then crashing his Williams, the red flag was called, which meant a free pitstop for both Ocon and Verstappen.
On the restart, Verstappen took the lead from Ocon and was able to build a huge gap to win the race. In the end, I am sure Ocon did not mind. Him being on the podium with his teammate meant their team scored enough points to get their team from 9th to 6th in the constructor’s championship. The McLaren did not score many points once they had fallen back, with Norris ending in 6th in front of Piastri after being led through by his teammate. They were behind Leclerc in 4th and Russell in 5th, and therefore the gap between Verstappen and Norris in the championship has now gotten bigger.
Unfortunately, I am not able to talk about everything that has happened during this race. I do still want to mention that I think the rookies were able to perform pretty well, considering the extremely difficult conditions. Oliver Bearman especially did not give up, even though he went off the road on multiple occasions. However, what I mainly take away from this race is how insanely good Verstappen is. He was one of the few drivers actually able to overtake, and seemed to find grip where no one else could. His speed was insane and it just shows what an incredible racer he is. He has again proven why he has won three championships, and why he is on his way to win his fourth.
