It took 150 minutes, a long weather delay and a fair amount of nerve, but Lando Norris emerged on top. The McLaren driver will start Sunday’s race in Brazil from the top spot after a rain-lashed qualifying hour at Interlagos, making it three poles in a row at the Brazilian track and 20 in his career.
His best lap of 1:27.470 left George Russell 0.204 seconds adrift. The Mercedes man was unhappy after being told to back off on his last flying lap, grumbling that the pole should have been his. Russell will drop five places anyway after fitting new power-unit parts, which promotes his team-mate Kimi Antonelli, the newly crowned world champion, from third to the front row.
Norris, who hands over the title he won in 2025, admitted he had never before tried this year’s car on a soaked track. He adapted quickly, he explained, though strong gusts made the final laps even trickier.
The conditions turned the order upside down. Liam Lawson put his Racing Bulls car fifth and Nico Hulkenberg took sixth for Audi, while Fernando Alonso made it into the last segment, something he had not managed all season. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc ended up fourth, yet an engine change will cost him ten grid slots.
Two former champions will have to fight their way up from the rear of the field. Lewis Hamilton, about to contest his 400th grand prix, and Max Verstappen both took new engines, and Verstappen did not even bother to run in the second segment. Home favourite Gabriel Bortoleto ended up last after striking the wall, and Haas rookie Rafael Camara brought out the red flag in Q2 with a crash of his own.
