Norris takes wet São Paulo Grand Prix pole as penalties reshape grid

McLaren's Lando Norris took pole position for the São Paulo Grand Prix at Interlagos in a wet qualifying session delayed by heavy rain. The race is scheduled for Sunday, 8 November.

George Russell of Mercedes was second fastest. He has a five-place grid penalty related to engine components. That moves his teammate Kimi Antonelli, described as the new world champion, to second on the grid. Russell's team told him to abandon his final fast lap before the rain intensified.

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc qualified fourth but has a 10-place grid penalty. Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) moves up to third and Nico Hülkenberg (Audi) to fourth.

Max Verstappen (Red Bull) did not set a time after the first session. He and Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) will start from the back because of engine-related penalties. Brazilian Rafael Câmara, making his F1 debut with Haas, reached the second session and crashed late in it. McLaren brought upgrades to this race.

Details reported by individual outlets

According to BBC Sport, Norris beat Russell by 0.204 seconds with a time of 1:27.470. The BBC reports that the session started at 15:00 local time, was stopped before any driver set a lap, and restarted 1 hour 26 minutes after the scheduled start. The Guardian reports that qualifying took two and a half hours to complete.

According to The Guardian, Russell will start seventh, Leclerc 14th, Hamilton 20th and Verstappen 21st. The Guardian also reports that Sergio Pérez (Cadillac) will start from the back after taking new engine components. According to BBC Sport, Oliver Bearman (Haas) will start sixth, Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) eighth and Alex Albon (Williams) directly behind him. The BBC reports that Oscar Piastri (McLaren) will start 10th and Câmara 11th.

The Guardian reports that Antonelli secured the drivers' title last weekend. It adds that Mercedes will clinch the constructors' championship if it outscores Ferrari by three points. The race starts at 17:00 GMT, according to BBC Sport. The Guardian reports that rain is expected.

Where accounts differ

BBC Sport says Russell exceeded his permitted number of engine parts. The Guardian attributes the penalty to a new engine. The BBC reports Verstappen skipped the second session because he knew he would start at the back. The Guardian says he wanted to save tyres.

What each side says

Russell said he would have taken pole. BBC Sport quoted him as saying: "That was definitely the pole lap." The Guardian quoted him as saying: "Misjudgment on our side, we need to understand what happened." He also called the conditions too dangerous for a race.

Norris said McLaren was more competitive in the wet. BBC Sport quoted him as saying: "It was about getting two laps in at the beginning and not making mistakes and that's what we did."

The reports reviewed by Vocemundi do not include an official starting grid or an explanation from Mercedes for aborting Russell's lap.

Analysis

The starting order may matter as much as the qualifying result. Penalties have placed Antonelli, Lawson and Hülkenberg near the front and pushed several established front-runners further back. If the rain The Guardian reports is expected arrives, Norris's comments suggest McLaren could benefit, though wet races are often unpredictable. Russell's criticism of his own team's call raises questions Mercedes has yet to address publicly in the reports reviewed. Mercedes' constructors' title chances depend on its result relative to Ferrari, whose drivers start further back. The final order will depend on the official grid and race conditions.

Produced by the Vocemundi newsroom with AI assistance.