SAO PAULO — The atmosphere at the Interlagos paddock early Sunday was filled with the aromas of scrambled eggs and fresh coffee, just moments before the much-anticipated qualifying session for the Brazilian Grand Prix later that day.
The rainfall in Sao Paulo subsided enough for the qualifying to proceed, but weather forecasts indicate that the track conditions will remain wet as Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and McLaren’s Lando Norris continue their battle for the drivers’ championship. Qualifying was set to commence under low grip conditions at 7:30 a.m. local time (10:30 GMT), while the Grand Prix start time was moved up from the original schedule of 2 p.m. to 12:30 p.m. (15:30 GMT). All teams chose to equip their cars with wet weather tires.
A number of drivers, including Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz Jr., arrived at the venue around 6 a.m. to prepare for the day’s events. Demonstrating camaraderie, Sainz took the time to serve coffee to his team members as they geared up for the qualifying round.
In an interesting historical note, organizers pointed out that qualifying had occurred only five times on a Sunday in the history of Formula One, with a German driver clinching pole position in each instance. The last occurrence was at the 2019 Japanese Grand Prix, where four-time champion Sebastian Vettel secured the top spot.
On Saturday, qualifying had been delayed by two hours due to adverse weather conditions, rendering the track unsafe due to poor visibility and significant standing water. As a result, no cars were able to take to the track for timed laps, prompting an official postponement by the FIA.
While over 60,000 fans attended the event on Saturday, many did not return for the Sunday qualifying session.
As the championship race heats up, Norris trails Verstappen by 44 points, with only four grand prix events and a concluding sprint race left in the season. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc is also in contention, though his chances remain more uncertain.
Organizers were still deliberating on whether a tribute to the iconic three-time champion Ayrton Senna would take place on Sunday. The tribute would see one of Senna’s renowned McLaren cars driven by Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton, who is among Senna’s greatest admirers.