Verstappen soars from P17 to victory at Sao Paulo GP, expands title lead

SAO PAULO — Max Verstappen showcased one of the finest wet-weather drives in Formula 1 history at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, thrilling fans with a remarkable climb from P17 on the grid to secure his first victory since June. This stunning win further solidified his lead in the championship race over Lando Norris.

Verstappen’s weekend began with frustration following a chaotic qualifying session delayed by rain and disrupted by Lance Stroll’s crash, which resulted in a red flag. This incident ended his session in Q2, and combined with a five-place grid penalty for a new internal combustion engine, left him starting from P17.

Defying the odds, Verstappen surged through the rain-soaked grid, advancing to P11 on the first lap. By lap 32, he had ascended to P2, trailing only Alpine’s Esteban Ocon before the race was red-flagged due to Franco Colapinto’s crash. The stoppage conveniently provided Verstappen with a free pit stop.

Upon the race's restart, Ocon initially held the lead, but Verstappen overtook him following a Safety Car intervention caused by Carlos Sainz’s retirement on lap 43. The Dutch driver then delivered a masterclass in wet-weather driving, amassing a 19.477-second lead over Ocon within the final 26 laps.

This triumph marked Verstappen’s first victory since the Spanish Grand Prix in June. With Norris finishing in P6, Verstappen extended his championship lead to 62 points, putting him in a position to potentially clinch the title at the upcoming Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Reflecting on the race, a jubilant Verstappen said, “My emotions today have been a rollercoaster. With qualifying, being really unlucky with that red flag and starting P17, I knew that it was going to be a very tough race. But we stayed out of trouble, made the right calls, stayed calm, and we were fine. All of these things together of course made that result possible. I mean, unbelievable to win here from so far back.”

He continued, “Of course I was very frustrated with qualifying, but we tried to just use it as a good motivation in the race. Luckily we had a great start and from there onwards, we were just having a really good feeling in the car. We made all the right calls again, stayed calm, and executed when we needed to, so incredibly happy with today. Honestly, it's crazy. I never expected to go from P17 to P1. I was hoping for good points, but this is absolutely crazy.”

When asked about his title prospects, Verstappen responded, “Now it’s of course a great result, which if you look a few hours ago, was definitely the other way around, looking like we were going to lose a lot of points! So I’m very happy, but still three tough races to go, so we just need to stay calm and make no mistakes.”

In the Constructors' Championship, Red Bull scored 32 points from the Sprint weekend, 31 of which came from Verstappen. With Sergio Perez failing to score, Red Bull still managed to edge closer to rivals McLaren and Ferrari, who scored 27 and 20 points respectively, narrowing the gap in the standings.

Verstappen’s performance in Sao Paulo will undoubtedly be remembered as one of the most extraordinary comebacks in Formula 1 history, as he continues his charge towards another world title.

Formula 1 Race results /standings Formula 1 Race schedule F1 TV: Watch every race of the 2024 Formula 1 Grand Prix season live Watch Formula 1 in ESPN networks all season long