Lando Norris clinched his seventh win of the season at the Brazil GP, further extending his 2025 F1 championship lead over McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri. Piastri ended up fifth after being handed a 10sec penalty for causing a collision early on.
Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli fended off Max Verstappen to hold on to second place, securing his best F1 result to date.
- Norris wins Brazil GP, 10.388sec ahead of Antonelli
- Verstappen P3 after starting from pit lane
- Piastri P5 after penalty
Norris wins Brazil GP sprint and feature races
It ended up being a near-perfect weekend for Norris, who clinched the maximum points on offer. The McLaren driver topped every session and followed up his sprint win with victory in the feature race as well, 10.388sec ahead of Antonelli.
With just three more rounds to go, Norris has now extended his championship lead to 24 points over Piastri. However, he admitted that McLaren still has its work cut out. “It was a great win, but to be honest, seeing how quick the competition was today, it’s clear we’ve still got work to do,” he said after the race.
“I’ll go back, see the team, congratulate them and see what we can do better. Looking ahead, I’ll keep focusing on myself, keep my head down, ignore the noise and keep pushing.
Verstappen goes from pit lane to P3
Antonelli P2 for Mercedes.
After a difficult Q1 exit in qualifying, Red Bull and Verstappen opted to start from the pit-lane, allowing the team to make some changes to his car. He made some big gains at the start, only to slip back down after picking up a puncture early on.
The reigning world champion pulled off an impressive recovery and ended up challenging Antonelli for second place in the closing stages. Antonelli ultimately held on to P2, but Verstappen admitted that he didn’t think finishing on the podium was possible.
“From pit lane to podium, this weekend has completely turned around for me, something that I didn’t think was possible,” he said. “The start of the race was very hectic and I picked up a puncture early on from a load of debris on the track, which meant that I pretty much had to start the race again.”
Verstappen added, “The team used the right strategy from the start to finish, which allowed me to get through all of the traffic ahead of me very efficiently. I definitely had to send it a few times to get past the other cars, but I love doing that and ended up having a really fun race, which was totally unexpected.”
Piastri hit with penalty
Bearman bags another strong finish.
Double DNF for Ferrari.
After an early Safety Car, Piastri attempted a move on Antonelli at the re-start. But he suffered a lock-up and hit the Mercedes, sending Antonelli into Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari. Leclerc retired on the spot, while Piastri and Antonelli were able to continue. To make matters worse for Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton retired midway after picking up floor damage on Lap 1.
Piastri was later handed a 10-sec penalty for the incident with Antonelli and Leclerc. He recovered to finish P5, behind George Russell, but his championship bid has taken a big hit.
Oliver Bearman finished as the top midfield runner, crossing the line in sixth place. He was followed by the Racing Bulls duo of Liam Lawson and Isack Hadjar. Nico Hulkenberg finished P9 for Sauber, while Alpine’s Pierre Gasly rounded out the top 10.
F1 will now head to USA for the Las Vegas GP on November 20-22.
