Formula 1. Sao Paulo Grand Prix. Qualifications. Brazilian samba in torrential rain

The real test, which gave Formula 1 drivers the weather yesterday at the Interlagos circuit in Sao Paulo, was not under the force of all drivers. Thanks in part to the Brazilian rain, today’s grid looks unusual. Symbolically from the first row will start the champion of last year Lando Norris at McLaren and ahead of schedule won the title of this season Kimi Antonelli at Mercedes. And the second row, according to the results of qualification, taking into account the penalties applied to their rivals, will be taken by Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) and Nico Hulkeberng (Audi).

The Brazilian circuit is considered one of the most interesting in the calendar of the Formula 1 championship. A relatively short circle, twisted counterclockwise, has both long straights and an inclined high-speed section of the track, and a composition of original slow turns, and elevation differences. At the same time, the roadway is quite wide. And together, all this gives good opportunities for overtaking, which is famous for this circuit. No wonder it was at this Grand Prix that a number of teams decided to put on the cars of their pilots the elements of power plants in excess of the planned norm, which will force the pilots down the starting field scheme. In the history of Interlagos, there are many bright breakthroughs from the tail of the peleton not only to the podium, but also to its top. And the unpredictability of the weather at this time of spring season by Brazilian standards can add additional surprises. Therefore, the spectators who fill the stands of the Brazilian Circuit almost always to the end know that they will not be bored here.

The delayed start of the rains in this part of Brazil in early November is no surprise and the teams were ready to use rain tyres as they qualified. But no sooner had the asphalt dried slightly after the morning downpour than just before the start of the qualifying session, the rain charged so strong that the countdown of the chronometer had to be stopped with red flags. The drainage system barely managed to remove water flows from the track, and the departure of cars could not be safe in such conditions. Moreover, in the vicinity of the circuit there were even thunder and lightning. The session, which seemed to be interrupted for a few minutes, was resumed only after an hour and a half wait. And the only driver who periodically raced on this track while everyone else was waiting for the green light was Bern Maylander, the driver of the safety car. It was on him that the role lay to give reliable information about the condition of the circuit and its readiness for the race.

The difficult rain conditions made it impossible to experiment with tyres in the first qualifying segment. All cars were on rain kits, which have a special blue distinguishing strip on the side surface of the wheels that is clearly visible to spectators and teams. In fact, in São Paulo, we are witnessing the first rain qualifying of this season and the first serious test for the cars of the new regulations and for some young riders. The cars slid not only in corners, but also on straight lines, as if dancing a real Brazilian samba with many characteristic energetic movements. And the pilots, catching their cars on the wet track, were direct participants in this Brazilian dance in the pouring rain.

The list of those flying off the track in the first segment was quite colorful. Lance Stroll managed to showcase virtuoso art by taking his "Aston Martin" uphill up the grass back to the asphalt pavement. But Gabriele Bortoleto could not avoid contact with the wall of the fence. However, both the Canadian and the Brazilian, having lost an intra-team duel to their teammates, did not qualify for the next segment. At the same time, allowing departures from the track Carlos Sainz (Williams), both Haas pilots Oliver Berman and Rafael Camara successfully overcame the first barrier. Moreover, Berman even reached the qualifying final, earning after all the penalties applied to opponents, the right to start from a very high 6th position for himself. The Briton will share the 3rd row of the starting grid with Isaac Hajar (Red Bull).

In the group of outsiders in full strength traditionally remained the team-newcomer of this season “Cadillac”, as well as somewhat unexpectedly – the French “Alpin”. Under the very curtain, we saw the unprecedented for qualifying duel of Franco Colapinto and Pierre Gasli, clarifying the relationship on the track on their fastest lap. The Argentine in the last meters managed to beat the more experienced French teammate right at the finish line under the enthusiastic cries of the public.

The Spanish champion felt at Interlagos like a fish in the water. Both figuratively and almost literally. The Formula 1 veteran set the tone and drove the championship leaders with his high results. Of course, the exact moment of leaving the boxes was also important, since with each new lap the speeds grew. In the final part, many even managed to switch to intermediate tires. This added the risk of not staying on wet asphalt, but at the same time provided an increase in speed. In the end, Fernando Alonso today will prepare his car for the race on the grid number 8. This is the highest qualifying result of the Spaniard this season, as well as for the Aston Martin team since its cooperation with Japanese motorists Honda.

Given that the humidity at the time of the race will be more than 80%, and that the probability of predicted rain forecasters too high, we can assume that Fernando is able to further surprise the audience with his successful performance.

Given the rapidly changing environment and condition of the track, the pilots had to use special tactics. More fuel was poured into the tanks than for the test circle on dry asphalt, when you try to pass as quickly as possible due to even minimal weight loss. Here the weight already played a smaller role, preference was given to the grip of the wheels with the road surface. And the riders “curled circles”, trying to catch the moment when the fast drying asphalt will allow “stealing” from the chronometers additional seconds. Given the short circle, the situation changed so quickly that commentators barely had time to report on the change of leaders, in the role of which almost all participants of the second segment visited for a short time.

Max Verstappen decided to save tires and left the boxes before the start of the second segment. The Dutch champion, like his British counterpart Lewis Hamilton, had to start the race because of penalties in the tail itself. The Ferrari driver drove his fast lap, but limited himself to one attempt. In the absence of champions, even those who did not dream of doing it on a dry track got their chances for passing to the qualifying final. I tried very hard to show myself in front of the countrymen at Interlagos Rafael Camara. For the Brazilian, it was his first qualification in Formula 1. The unexpected dismissal of the main rider Esteban Okon from the Haas team, and then the employment of Rio Hirokawa, who replaced the Frenchman in Mexico, in the endurance championship opened the door to the elite of world motorsport ahead of time for the newcomer.

And I must say, the leader of the Formula 2 championship of this season, despite the lack of proper experience, showed himself very well. In the qualifying protocol, his result was the 13th, when, trying to improve it, Rafael did not quite accurately calculate the speed of the next turn, and his Haas car lost control. She just drove straight without reacting to the driver's steering wheel. The left front wheel was blocked, and the right, even turning to the left, continued to slide first on the asphalt and then on the grass until the car dug into the protective barriers. The impact was not very strong, and, apparently, the mechanics will be able to restore the car to the race without much consequence. Let’s not forget that every accident in the overseas tour of Formula 1 is a serious blow to the set of spare parts that the team brings with them to the Grand Prix.

As a result, the debutant “Haas” for his first career qualification was twice in an accident. Not as significant as it could be, given the difficulties with visibility and control of the car. But there were incidents nonetheless. However, the starting 11th position of Camara in the race, I think, in its importance more than offset the material damage caused to the team by the Brazilian. Interrupted by the accident of Rafael, the 2nd segment did not resume. There was less than a minute left on the stopwatch, and virtually none of the pilots would have been able to even complete the exit lap from the boxes before the chequered flag appeared.

The author of another qualification surprise was Oscar Piastri with his weak result. At his McLaren, the driver of the championship team did not make it to the final series. And only thanks to the fines received for unscheduled replacement of powerplant elements pilots of the Ferrari Scuderia, the Australian will start the race from 10th place.

Scheduled was the start time of the third segment of qualification, the race management had to postpone a few minutes earlier. Heavy rain was approaching, according to meteorological instruments. Although everything looked very optimistic, and all the riders went to their attempts on intermediate tyres. The first in the record was the result of Fernando Alonso. And if it rained in those seconds, the Spanish champion could miraculously be in the role of pole holder. But no miracle happened. Although it could be a very beautiful story for the driver of the team “Aston Martin”. After all, Fernando 9 (!) times climbed here in Interlagos on the podium for his long career, marked by 2 championship titles and repeated vice-championship. But he never won the race during that time.

The opponents who left after Alonso quickly improved the initial result of the Spaniard, leaving him the right to start only from the 8th position. And pole went to Lando Norris, who will share the first row of the starting field with Kimi Antonelli. Two reigning champions this season. Before the last stage in Mexico City, this “crown” was worn by a British man. And after Mexico, an Italian got the right to it ahead of schedule.

From the second row in the race will go Liam Lawson and Nico Hulkenberg. Who else would have thought yesterday that the main candidate to leave the championship at the end of this season and a veteran of racing, both of whom are not in the fastest cars, would be in such high starting positions in Brazil?! They will be followed by Isaac Hajar (Red Bull) and Oliver Berman (Haas). Of course, this success was helped by the penalties imposed on George Russell (Mercedes) and Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), who were respectively in 2nd and 4th places.

It will be appropriate to recall the incident that occurred on the last lap with George Russell. According to the results of two sectors, the Briton walked ahead of pole time, shown by his countryman Lando Norris. But from the Mercedes command bridge, the engineer told his ward pilot that due to the impending downpour, he should not complete the second fast lap to save the car from too much risk of an accident. Conditions on the track have really changed, and even the lap in the boxes for many was not an easy test. The sky seemed to break through, pouring large volumes of water onto the track. But what the German team engineer saw was different for the driver. George did not hide his irritation from the order, believing that he was entitled to pole in today's qualifying. And then the British starting position would not be 7th, but 6th. Despite the fact that for the first time after winning the Azerbaijani Grand Prix in September, Russell felt in Brazil his unity with the car and was very confident in its behavior.

Amid Russell's upset feelings, the mood of another pilot was a clear contrast. Alex Albon, after such a long vegetation at the bottom of the standings and previous starting minutes, was able to earn in yesterday's qualifying the right to prepare for the race his very, very modest in speed characteristics, Williams at the 9th position. This is 4 places higher than his partner Carlos Sainz, whose performance is a measure of Alex's talent, as riders compete in the same cars.

The race will start at 20.00 Minsk time, and with a very high probability it will also be held in rainy conditions or at least partially on wet asphalt.