Max third in Interlagos Sprint Race: 'The pace was really good'

Published on 02 November 2024 by Kees-Jan Koster

Max Verstappen crossed the line in third place in the sprint race in Brazil but dropped to fourth due to a five-second time penalty. According to FIA stewards, Verstappen was 0.63 seconds below the minimum time when the Virtual Safety Car (VSC) ended and the lights turned green again.

Starting from P4 on the grid, Max maintained his position after the start. The Oracle Red Bull Racing driver was stuck for a long time in the DRS train behind the leading McLarens and the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc. However, Max managed to overtake Leclerc on lap eighteen for P3. The race was too short for him to challenge the McLarens ahead, allowing Norris to clinch the sprint race victory. Teammate Piastri led for a long time but was asked to let Norris through in the closing stages due to team orders and finished second. Verstappen ended up close behind in P3.

After the sprint race, an upbeat Verstappen commented: "It was quite a tricky race, but the pace was really good. Because we could always follow within the DRS, I am quite pleased with that. Of course, it took a bit too long with Charles, but when everyone is in a DRS train, it is very hard to attack. So, I had to wait for some mistakes, and luckily they came, and I could use that to my advantage. It was promising. Of course, this was race pace, tomorrow it might rain as well, so there are a lot of unknowns, but today was good."

When asked if he expected this speed to carry over into qualifying and the Grand Prix, Max said: "I hope so. I expect McLaren will still be very quick over one lap, but I hope we can limit the damage a bit with the five-place grid penalty I have."

It was dry and sunny, with an outside temperature of 28 degrees Celsius at the start of the 24-lap sprint race at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace. All drivers started on medium compound tyres, with Piastri on pole and Max starting from P4 on the grid. Both Aston Martins of Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll started from the pit lane, as did Zhou Guanyu in the Sauber.

At the start, Max braked late into the first corner in an attempt to take third from Charles Leclerc, but the Dutchman did not succeed and remained in fourth position. Piastri took the lead, followed by McLaren teammate Norris. In the third lap, Max attempted another move on Leclerc at the first corner, but again, the Ferrari driver held off the charging Verstappen. The McLarens could not pull away, allowing Leclerc and Verstappen to stay within range. Piastri was instructed by his team to give Norris DRS, creating a DRS train. Leclerc gradually lost the connection, losing DRS in the process. Verstappen took advantage of this in lap eighteen, passing the Monegasque in turn four for P3.

Soon after, smoke appeared from Nico Hulkenberg’s Haas, forcing the German to pull his car over at the side of the track. At that moment, McLaren issued team orders for Piastri to let Norris through. The Australian complied, handing his teammate the lead. This timing proved perfect, as a virtual safety car was called immediately after. The green flag only returned on the final lap. Max was quick to react and tried to attack Piastri but could not get past the McLaren driver.

This gave Norris the sprint race victory, with Piastri in P2. Verstappen finished in third place, but dropped to fourth due to the time penalty, ending his run of six consecutive sprint race wins. The Ferraris of Leclerc and Sainz took third and fifth places, respectively. George Russell secured sixth, with Pierre Gasly in an impressive seventh. Sergio Perez claimed the final point in P8 after starting from P13.

The qualifying for the Brazilian Grand Prix is set to start at 19:00 Dutch time.

Contest GP Brazil: win a by Max Verstappen signed Red Bull Racing cap!

Results sprint race Brazil: