Sao Paulo GP: Lando Norris wins thrilling race to extend championship lead as Oscar Piastri languishes in fifth | F1 News

With Oscar Piastri languishing in fifth place, Lando Norris took control of the F1 title race by winning a thrilling Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

Norris controlled the race superbly from pole position to end a perfect weekend, winning Saturday’s Interlagos Sprint and increasing his lead over McLaren teammate Piastri in the title race to 24 points with three races remaining.

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen made a stunning comeback after starting in the pitlane, but was denied second place by Kimi Antonelli in a thrilling finale, giving the Mercedes driver his best result of his rookie season.

Despite Verstappen’s excellent performance, he lost 49 points to Norris and his hopes of winning a fifth consecutive drivers’ title were all but ended.

Norris said: “It’s a great win, but considering how fast Max is, it’s a shame we weren’t faster. My heart is there right now. I’m going to look at the team, congratulate them and understand why we weren’t fast enough.”

“I have a long way to go. Things can change quickly. I’m going to focus on myself, keep my head down, ignore everyone, and keep pushing.”

Piastri, who crashed in Saturday’s sprint, continued to make mistakes and after an early safety car brought out the Mercedes to Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari, he made an ambitious attempt to overtake Antonelli on the restart and ended up with a huge 34-point championship lead.

Piastri was given a 10-second time penalty for causing a collision in Turn 1 and had to fight his way back down the field.

The Australian also failed to gain any extra places in the closing stages as George Russell defended Mercedes’ fourth place, but the Silver Arrows had a strong weekend and are now 32 points clear of Red Bull in the battle for second place in the constructors’ championship behind McLaren, who have already clinched the title.

It was a disastrous day for Ferrari, with Leclerc forced to retire after losing a wheel in a collision with Piastri, leaving them a further four points behind Red Bull. Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton also failed to finish the race as damage sustained from contact with Carlos Sainz at the start ultimately led to his retirement.

British rookie Oliver Bearman backed up his career-best fourth place finish in Mexico last time out with an impressive sixth place for Haas.

Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson and Isaac Hajjar finished seventh and eighth respectively, with Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg and Alpine’s Pierre Gasly rounding out the points.

Norris maintains momentum with perfect display

Norris went into Sunday’s race full of confidence, having won the Mexico City Grand Prix two weeks ago, taking a one-point lead for the title and dominating the weekend’s other competitive sessions.

His challenge to maintain his momentum at Interlagos was compounded by drizzling rain that continued to fall for about an hour before the start of the race, creating slippery conditions that made the start a bit treacherous.

However, the Briton showed great improvement at the start of the race, comfortably fending off Antonelli from the line, giving him time and space to pick his line in the opening corners.

His skill set was put to the test again when the safety car was brought out early on to allow Gabriel Bortleto’s Sauber to recover, necessitating a rolling restart.

Norris once again made the perfect call, pulling away and out of range as a three-car collision occurred behind him with Piastri, Antonelli and Leclerc.

From that moment on, Norris had no doubts about claiming victory as he built an advantage over Antonelli and calmly managed his tires to maintain it.

He conceded the lead twice during pit stops, but both times he quickly regained the lead and took the checkered flag 10 seconds behind the battle between Antonelli and Verstappen.

Norris, who won for the second time this season, has finished ahead of Piastri in six consecutive races since retiring from the Dutch Grand Prix in late August due to reliability issues.

Piastri says he has no regrets over recent mistakes

As for Piastri, many believed he would win the title due to the consistency he showed until winning the Dutch Grand Prix with a 34-point lead over Norris.

Instead, it was a series of mistakes, starting with a crash in both qualifying and the race in Azerbaijan. More mistakes followed in the sprints in Austin and Sao Paulo, and on Sunday a very risky move backfired.

Piastri needed to take advantage of the opportunity that presented itself, but Antonelli and Leclerc’s rush inside was dangerous and could easily have cost him no points.

Opinions were divided over the incident, with Leclerc disagreeing with the stewards’ assessment that Piastri was “fully responsible” for the crash and suggesting Antonelli could have done more to avoid the accident.

In an interview with Sky Sports F1, when asked if he had any regrets about the incident, Piastri said: “No, I don’t think so.

“I had a clear chance and I went for it. The other two cars on the outside braked quite late. There was obviously a bit of a lock-up in the corner, but that was because I knew Kimi wasn’t going to give me any space.

“I can’t disappear, but that’s the decision.”

Piastri fought back with great mental fortitude, but Verstappen’s inability to overtake Russell in the closing stages reflects a continued lack of pace, and it’s difficult to see how he can reignite his challenge in the remaining three races.

Verstappen’s title bid disappears in thrilling fashion

Verstappen’s unexpected comeback for Red Bull saw him return to the title race after the summer break, but it came as a huge surprise on Saturday when the Dutchman suffered his first Q1 exit since 2021.

The team decided to fit a new power unit and make other changes to Verstappen’s car, which would require him to start from the pit lane, and the consensus in the pre-race paddock was that it was unlikely he would be able to threaten the leaders.

Instead, he produced an exciting drive featuring a highlight overtake to weave his way among the front runners, then cornered Russell in a ferocious final stint to reach his seventh straight Grand Prix podium.

In the last few laps he closed on Antonelli’s rear wing and had one good chance, but the Italian rookie withstood the attack just in the nick of time.

Verstappen reiterated, as he did after qualifying, that he believes his title challenge is over.

“We’ve already lost too many points from the beginning of the season to the middle of the season,” he told Sky Sports F1.

“It was quite surprising that we were in that situation so far, but we have to be realistic because we haven’t been good enough all season.

“But we’re going to do everything we can until the end of the season to get highlights and win races. That’s what we’re here for.”

F1’s thrilling title race continues until the Las Vegas Grand Prix from November 21-23, broadcast live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports now – cancel anytime with no contract