Brazilian Grand Prix – Sprint: Russell the big winner
An action-packed race saw George Russell win ahead of Carlos Sainz and Lewis Hamilton. Max Verstappen and Kevin Magnussen were unable to turn their fine Friday performance into a race.

For the third time this season, Formula 1 drivers met for a sprint race. This was an opportunity for some to improve their positions on the Sunday starting grid, while others may have seen all their efforts from Friday go up in smoke. It was therefore necessary to properly evaluate the risk-reward balance with each overtaking attempt.
This was the case for Kevin Magnussen, who, for the first time in his career, had secured pole position. The Danish driver would therefore have to take enough risks to convert his Friday’s feat into a great performance, but not too many to end up at the back of the grid like his garage neighbor, Mick Schumacher.
The departure
Taking advantage of his soft tires, the Haas driver managed to hold onto the lead of the race at the start of the first corner against Max Verstappen’s Red Bull on his medium tires. Despite a very aggressive defense against George Russell, the Dutch driver was able to stay within close distance of the race leader. By the third lap of the race, the reigning world champion used his superior top speed to dive inside Magnussen at the first corner. Magnussen was subsequently overtaken by George Russell and Carlos Sainz consecutively on the fourth lap of the race.
The first moments of this sprint were also marked by an intense confrontation between the Alpine cars of Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon. The two men made contact for the first time on the fourth corner of the first lap, and then again on the straight of the pit lane. Just like in Texas, the two-time world champion misjudged the draft of his opponent and collided his front wing with the right rear wheel of the Normand driver. Forced to go to the pit, the Spaniard was relegated to last position. Esteban Ocon also paid the price for this contact, as he suffered damage to his floor due to the incident on the fourth corner. The Frenchman ultimately finished in 18th position.
Movement in the hierarchy
After just 5 laps, Lewis Hamilton, who started 8th, was making a series of overtakes to find himself in 4th position after overtaking Kevin Magnussen’s Haas. Recently awarded honorary citizenship of Brazil, the Mercedes driver was putting on a great show for all his Brazilian fans.
The British driver wasn’t the only one moving up in the hierarchy. Indeed, Sergio Perez, trapped by the red flag during qualifying, had started this sprint from a meager 9th position. The Mexican driver showed his outstanding traffic management skills by climbing up to the 5th position already in the middle of the race.
The Aston Martins decided to imitate the Alpines on the 9th lap of the race by engaging in a fratricidal battle themselves. As Sebastian Vettel attempted an overtaking maneuver on Lance Stroll at the exit of turn number 3, the German driver was forced onto the grass by his garage mate. The Canadian driver was subsequently given a 10-second penalty for this deemed dangerous action.
The race’s leader position overturned.
It was between the 12th lap of the race and the 15th that Max Verstappen and George Russell engaged in a thrilling duel for the victory. The pattern of the battles was often the same: Verstappen defended the inside of the first corner, allowing George Russell to focus on his exit and attempt an attack approaching the fourth corner. After several attempts, the British driver finally found a solution on the 15th lap of the race against the Red Bull. The Dutchman had asked his team shortly before being overtaken if he had run over debris because he found his car particularly slow.
Not only was the driver of car number 1 losing time on Russell, but he was also being caught up by Carlos Sainz and Lewis Hamilton behind him. The Ferrari dived inside the Red Bull at the first corner. This overtaking was followed by a slight contact between the two men, damaging Verstappen’s front wing. The latter, in great distress, was then overtaken by his rival from last year, Lewis Hamilton.
George Russell and Lewis Hamilton gave Mercedes a very impressive sprint race. The two drivers finished in first and third place respectively. The two Silver Arrows are separated by Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari. However, the Spanish driver will start only in seventh position due to a five-place penalty.
Finally, Kevin Magnussen did the best he could with his modest Haas to earn the eighth position point. The Danish driver was unable to hold back the drivers from the top teams and Lando Norris in his faster McLaren.
N° | Driver | Team | Times | Gap | Laps |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Russell | Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport |
24
|
||
2 | Sainz | Scuderia Ferrari | +3.995 |
24
|
|
3 | Hamilton | Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport | +4.492 |
24
|
|
4 | Verstappen | Oracle Red Bull Racing | +10.494 |
24
|
|
5 | Perez | Oracle Red Bull Racing | +11.855 |
24
|
|
6 | Leclerc | Scuderia Ferrari | +13.133 |
24
|
|
7 | Norris | McLaren F1 Team | +25.624 |
24
|
|
8 | Magnussen | Haas F1 Team | +28.768 |
24
|
|
9 | Vettel | Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team | +30.218 |
24
|
|
10 | Gasly | Scuderia AlphaTauri | +34.170 |
24
|
|
11 | Ricciardo | McLaren F1 Team | +39.395 |
24
|
|
12 | Schumacher | Haas F1 Team | +41.159 |
24
|
|
13 | Guanyu | Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN | +41.763 |
24
|
|
14 | Bottas | Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN | +42.338 |
24
|
|
15 | Alonso | BWT Alpine F1 Team | +48..985 |
24
|
|
16 | Tsunoda | Scuderia AlphaTauri | +50.306 |
24
|
|
17 | Stroll | Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team | +50.700 |
24
|
|
18 | Ocon | BWT Alpine F1 Team | +51.756 |
24
|
|
19 | Latifi | Williams Racing | +1:16.850 |
24
|
|
20 | Albon | Williams Racing | +DNF |
DNF
|