Brazil - Race

The Brazilian Grand Prix might just have been the most thrilling race of the season. With the conditions ever-changing, strategy making all the difference, and one of the most unexpected podiums of the season, it was a race that you wouldn't want to miss. And, if by a cruel twist of fate, you did, let me try and introduce you to the chaos of the last Grand Prix of the triple header. 

The excitement began long before the race did. Albon, who crashed his Williams during qualifying, did not start the race, and Sainz, whose Ferrari shared a similar fate, started from the pitlane after exchanging parts of his engine. The other eighteen cars lined up on the grid and began their formation lap as soon as the clock showed 12:30. To the surprise of all viewers, Stroll crashed during the formation lap, forcing the start to be aborted as his car was moved out of the way. When Norris drove up to his place at the front of the grid he saw that the start was pushed back and, even though race control had given him no indication to do so, began a second formation lap. Most of the grid followed him straight away, with a few cars lagging behind as they reported no green light being given. In the end, they all followed Norris' lead. The incident was noted by race control, with the first few drivers facing a possible penalty. At the time of writing, no official decision on the subject has been made.

After two aborted race starts and a slight delay that messed with the strategies so heavily based on the rain that intensified and decreased unexpectedly, the lights went out, and the cars began the 21st Grand Prix of the season. Russell had a great launch off the line and managed to overtake Norris before the first corner. A few cars behind them, Leclerc moved up a place. Both Red Bull drivers were determined to turn the race around but with varying results. Perez spun before the first lap was over, while his teammate moved up to 11th. 

On lap 4 we saw our first yellow flag when Bearman and Colapinto made contact that ended up with the young Haas driver going off track and losing a few positions. To add insult to injury, he was later given a 10-second penalty for causing the collision. 

Verstappen made steady progress, overtaking Hamilton, Alonso, Piastri, and Lawson in the span of a few laps, and finding himself in the top 6 by lap 11. The next person on his 'kill list' was Leclerc. Meanwhile, his main championship rival was trying to make moves of his own as he chased Russel for the lead. The McLaren that looked unstoppable throughout the weekend struggled with speed on the straights, as his driver quickly reported to his team. 

It was around that time that a decision was made regarding the length of the race. The Grand Prix was originally supposed to run for 71 laps, but after the two formation laps, the number was revised to 69. 

Verstappen was growing increasingly frustrated behind the Ferrari of Leclerc. He tried to overtake him multiple times, but the Monegasque's incredibly defensive skills combined with the wet track and the lack of DRS made the move almost impossible. The Red Bull only moved to P5 when Leclerc drove into the pit lane and changed into a new set of intermediates. He came out 13th, with only one car separating him from his teammate. Seeing that Leclerc decided on a change of tires, Norris appealed for his team to allow him to pit too. He was told to hold onto all the grip his 25-lap-old intermediates could master for a while longer. 

In the latter half of the top 10, Lawson and Piastri made contact that forced the VCARB rookie off the road. Piastri was noted for causing the collision and later haded a 10-second penalty. 

The real turning point of the race came on lap 28 when a yellow flag waved in sector one, brought on by Hulkenberg spinning off track. A virtual safety car was announced soon after, seemingly giving the top cars a perfect opportunity for a quick stop. Multiple cars took advantage of the shorter pit, including the two Brits fighting for race lead: Russell and Norris. The McLaren driver managed to gain an additional advantage when he overtook Russel for what was, at that point, a net race lead. And when it came to Hulkenberg, even though he was able to get his car moving, he was given the black flag and could not continue racing.

The cars in the top three were Ocon, Verstappen, and Gasly, none of whom had decided to pit. While for a moment it seemed like a questionable choice, the alternative strategy quickly paid off. On lap 30 the rain intensified significantly and a full safety car was deployed. It was under that safety car that Colapinto, who had just bolted on new intermediates, went into the barrier. He wasn't harmed in the crash but his Williams was completely totaled. A red flag waved over the track to the joy of the unexpected top three. With the race stopped, they had effectively been given a free change of tires.

A rolling start got us back into action. Verstappen immediately began chasing Ocon for the lead but came just short of catching the Alpine. The first change in the top 10 was Leclerc, who managed to overtake Tsunoda and secure a P6. Behind him, Russel was closing in on Norris and when the McLaren driver went off the road, trying to defend his position, Russel gladly took advantage and slid past him. A while later, the Monegasque lost the position he managed to gain, this time to Piastri. 

The conditions were as tricky as ever, a fact that Bearman became acutely aware of as he suffered two spins within a few laps. Even though he lightly tapped the barrier on one of them, he managed to get back on track without significant damage. The same couldn't be said about Sainz who, on lap 40, found the barrier for the second time that day. Another safety car was deployed following his incident, running all the way to lap 42. 

It was exactly what Verstappen needed. Soon after racing was resumed he closed up on Ocon and hungrily took the lead. After a few months of disappointments, he was finally on his way to the top step of the podium. To achieve it, he needed to put all his focus into staying on track, a task that wouldn't be easy with another burst of rain expected before the race would come to an end. 

With his main rival in the lead, Norris saw the championship slipping away from his fingers. He pushed harder to try and make up some time but in his effort went off the road and fell to P7. Luckily for him, the person in P6 was his teammate so soon enough the two orange cars swapped positions. In front of him, Leclerc managed to fight his way to P4, only to be overtaken by Russel after a slight loss of control that resulted in his Ferrari going off track. With that, he found himself in P5 with two McLarens breathing down his neck. They tried to chase him to make up some points, but couldn't seem to find a way past. 

Meanwhile, Verstappen, powered by his need to remind everyone that the Dutch anthem used to be a sure part of a Formula One weekend, soared through the track, getting fastest lap after fastest lap and building a significant gap to Ocon in P2. As the race settled behind him, it seemed that nothing could stop him from the glory of a Grand Prix win. With only a couple of laps to go, the only real fights were happening around the 10th and 9th spots and did not affect him. 

For the first time since June, Max Verstappen crossed the finish line first, adding 26 points to his tally. He had done what no one thought possible and won the race despite starting from P17. Even among his many impressive career races, this one shines like a crown jewel. The other two spots on the podium were occupied by Ocon and Gasly, in what was by far Alpine's best result of the season. The perfectly executed strategy and impressive driving had earned the team 33 points which pushed it all the way to P6 in the constructor's championship. The podium in São Paulo was filled with utter joy. 

Order of the grid:

1. Max Verstappen

2. Esteban Ocon

3. Pierre Gasly

4. George Russel

5. Charles Leclerc

6. Lando Norris

7. Yuki Tsunoda

8. Oscar Piastri

9. Liam Lawson

10. Lewis Hamilton

11. Sergio Perrez

12. Oliver Bearman

13. Valtteri Bottas

14. Fernando Alonso

15. Zhou Guanyu

DNF: Carlos Sainz, Franco Colapinto Lance Stroll

DSQ: Nico Hulkenberg

DNS: Alex Albon