Max wins a spectacular Brazil Grand Prix: 'Simply lovely'

Published on 03 November 2024 by Florence Cobben

Max Verstappen drove a career defining drive to take home the win of the Brazilian Grand Prix. The reigning world champion barreled through the grid from his starting position in seventeenth. He overtook his competitors one-by-one and profited from a free pit stop during a red flag. The Alpines also had cause to celebrate: Esteban Ocon claimed second, with teammate Pierre Gasly behind in third. George Russell in his Mercedes took fourth, and Charles Leclerc completed the top five of this headspinning Grand Prix. 

"What an unbelievable race." Max says after the race. "My emotions today have been a rollercoaster. Unbelievable. It was a difficult race from seventeenth, but we had an amazing start. We stayed out of trouble and made the right decisions. We stayed calm and flew through the grid. Then I got stuck for a bit. But we made the right decision to wait for a red flag to come in — the rain was so bad that it wasn't manageable. It did take a while for the red flag to come, but when it finally happened, we were ready."

Max started from seventeenth, partly because a red flag during qualifying had cut his lap short. He reflects: "After qualifying, I knew that we were quick, and I could've turned over the whole garage. I barely kept my restraint", he jokes with a smile. "I was enormously motivated at the race start." At the suggestion that he is at his best when he's angry, Max confesses: "I think so. It doesn't happen often, but when I'm very angry, I think I sometimes work better."

Put mildly, the rainy Brazilian circumstances were challenging. Max agrees, but acknowledges: "When I was young, I often practiced with my best friends in Belgium and in the Netherlands. You get good at racing in the wet. The car also had great pace — it was fast. It all came together perfectly."

A critical moment for Max was when he still had not made a pitstop (when a great portion of the grid had) before the red flag had been waved. Pitting under a red flag means a free pit stop, and choosing to wait for it proved to be the best strategy: "It was the right decision. The tyres were still okay, and at a certain moment the rain was so bad that even on proper wet tyres it was difficult. There were streams everywhere, the car was like a boot! I'd brake and keep sliding – it wasn't normal."

Just before the restart, the reigning worldchampion still had to pass Ocon to claim victory. The Dutchman managed it pretty quickly and cleanly. Max: "Ocon didn't have a very good restart — he had a lot of wheel spin. I was relatively close. That's when I thought I had to pass on the inside... It is seven extra points after all." With the end of the Brazilian Grand Prix, Max now has a 62 point lead over Norris, his closest competitor in the race to the world championship. This means Max could be world champion in Vegas. Max: "We shall see. We need to not take any risks and just ride it out." 

The race in Brazil starts on a wet track, meaning most of the grid opts for intermediate tyres. Rain clouds, which have already proved disruptive during qualifying, loom in the sky above the Autódromo José Carlos Pace. For better or for worse, rain is expected twenty minutes after the start of the race. In a chaotic qualifying, beset by red flags and crashes, it was Max who ended up unable to finish his flying lap and down in twelfth. Add a grid penalty, and the world champion found himself in seventeenth. Carlos Sainz, one of the victims of the qualifying conditions, starts from the pitlane after switching out his engine and gear box. Alexander Albon will not join the race, having crashed his car beyond repair. 

The spirit of qualifying hangs over the Grand Prix before it even starts. Lance Stroll spins and damages his front wing during the formation lap. He can continue driving, but ends up stuck in the gravel pit, causing the start to be delayed. When the grid has reassembled at the starting line, polesitter Lando Norris starts another formation lap while the lights are still blinking. Russell, Tsunoda, and Lawson follow his lead. These drivers fall under investigation, the results of which will be announced at the close of the race. After ten minutes the second formation lap gets properly underway. 

When the lights – finally – go green, it is Russell who gets away quick and clean. He claims first from Norris. Max also has a flying start and after a couple of turns has already climbed up into eleventh. He quickly passes Hamilton next and heads into the points. Teammate Pérez has less pace: he spins and rejoins the race at the back of the grid. In lap five Max passes Gasly and immediately sets his sights on Fernando Alonso. Oliver Bearman drives into the back of Franco Colapinto, and earns himself a 10 second penalty. 

Max is on a roll. He does an overtake on Piastri next and passes Lawson, driving into the rearview mirror of Leclerc in sixth. Hamilton shoots out onto the grass and loses a position. He recuperates and starts – accompanied by the loud cheers of the Brazilian audience – his attack on Colapinto. Max starts his attack on Leclerc, but his oldest competitor anticipates his moves well and defends his position. 

In lap 25 the rain starts to pour harder. Leclerc is the first into the pits and drives out on another set of intermediates. Max is spared having to overtake Leclerc and is promoted to fifth place, behind Ocon. In lap 28 Nico Hülkenberg gets stranded and a virtual safety car is summoned. A number of drivers take the opportunity to pit and change to a new set of intermediates. Tsunoda, Lawson and Pérez switch to full wets. Meanwhile the Haas-driver is back underway, and the track is cleared for action. The rain is pouring now, as Norris makes his move and passes Russell. Max is one of the few drivers who did not pit, joined in his decision by Ocon and Gasly. 

The rain is so heavy that a safety car is called. The top five are as follows: Ocon, Verstappen, Gasly, Norris and Russell. Suddenly, the tide of the race changes as Colapinto drives out of the pit lane, tries to slot in behind the safety car, and crashes into the wall. Parts of his Williams spray out over the track, but the driver is unharmed. With debris everywhere, a red flag is finally called. Ocon, Verstappen and Gasly now have the luxury of a free pitstop. During the red flag Hülkenberg gets the unwelcome news that he has been disqualified – when he was stranded, the marshals helped push his car out onto the track, which is against the rules. 

The race is resumed with a rolling start. As the start gets underway Bearman spins. A yellow flag is waved in the third sector, but the Haas driver resumes the race. The difficult conditions are every driver's worst enemy, and the cars slip and slide all over the track. Bearman spins and hits the wall, but is uninjured. Carlos Sainz is less lucky: the Spaniard spins and drives his Ferrari into the wall. This marks the end of the Ferrari-driver's race, and the cause of another safety car. 

The spirit of chaos hauning the race is back in full force as soon as the safety car retires. Max makes an expert overtake and takes the lead of the race. His closest contender for the championship, Norris, goes wide and drops to P7. Alonso, too, leaves the track and rejoins at the back of the grid. With clean air and no spray in front of him, Max shoots off into the sunset. Piastri is given team orders by McLaren to let his teammate Norris by, who drives into sixth place. 

Lawson and Pérez get into a scrape and have a short but exciting battle. Lawson is the winner of the exchange, and Hamilton takes advantage of the scuffle to pass Pérez. Max sets fastest lap after fastest lap, and his gap to Ocon extends and extends. It is with a nineteen-second gap that he crosses the finish line. 

His victory is followed by Ocon and Gasly, in second and third respectively. Russell must content himself with fourth, while Leclerc takes fifth in a shocking Grand Prix. Max's win from seventeenth also means he grabs yet another record: most wins from different starting positions: 10 in all. 

Results Grand Prix Brazil: