Martin Brundle
Expert Analyst @MBrundleF1
Martin Brundle on Sao Paulo GP: Max Verstappen navigates chaos as need for Sprint format tweak remains clear
Sky Sports F1's Martin Brundle reviews a Sao Paulo Grand Prix that produced thrilling racing, wild weather, but raised further questions over the Sprint format on the last of the six alternative format weekends of the 2023 season
Last Updated: 08/11/23 3:19pm
Sky Sports F1's Martin Brundle delivers his expert verdict on a Sao Paulo GP Sprint weekend that saw plenty of drama and incidents behind Max Verstappen's latest victory...
It was the sixth and final relentless 'Sprint' weekend of the season with two qualifying sessions and two races of 24 and 71 laps in duration. The qualifying session on Friday afternoon for the main race was terminated early because of a storm the likes of which we've rarely experienced in F1. The sky had made its intentions clear looking very black and ominous not too far in the distance, but its influence arrived earlier than expected.
Qualifying had already been delayed to clean the track because drivers had experienced debris flying their way and there had been a couple of punctures.
- Race report: Verstappen wins from Norris, as Alonso beats Perez
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Heading out on track with ever-threatening skies the for the top-10 shootout in Q3, the likes of Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc were struggling so much that they both considered abandoning their all-important laps. Oscar Piastri arrived at turn 12 and simply slid off the road with apparently almost zero grip. It seemed the rain had arrived earlier than forecast, but in fact it was the wind shear and turbulence which got to there first. There were a lot of surprised teams and confused drivers.
Through all the chaos emerged Max Verstappen on pole position for the 11th time this season. As has become usual, other teams were taking it in turn to challenge the Dutchman in the Red Bull. This weekend it would be McLaren, with Aston Martin returning to form from goodness knows where these past two months. And Mercedes, who were strong in Mexico a few days earlier, were looking all at sea, and the tide would take them ever further into stormy waters during the races.
Leclerc's inherent and natural speed popped his Ferrari onto the front row for the main race, but for the second time for Ferrari in four races, after Carlos Sainz had technical issues and didn't start in Qatar, Leclerc would lose his car on the warm-up lap due to electrical problems which affected his ability to control the throttle and steering wheel, and he swiped the barriers at Turn 6.
Sprint provides further evidence of need for change
Of course, between the biblical storm of Friday and the 40th running of a Grand Prix at Interlagos on Sunday, we had a whole Saturday full of Sprint Shootout (slightly reduced qualy format) and the Sprint (significantly shortened race). Because the track was dry throughout, the two grids were fundamentally different, most notably with Norris being able to show what might have been the day before by taking an impressive pole position for the Sprint.
The chronology of the Sprint events is confusing, with the disconnect between Friday qualifying and Sunday race, and the different session formats and tyre allocations. Sprint events have an allocation of 12 sets of dry tyres instead of 13, but less sets have to be handed back over the event.
But less tyres with more meaningful-timed sessions and races, and only one practice hour, certainly forces different approaches to tyre use, team by team. This was particularly relevant as the hard compound tyre simply didn't work on this track, as was the case last season.
I see a lot of social media traffic, as well as talking with fans, friends, and media, where many say they don't like Sprint format at all. Despite being a pure racer and having won many of them, Verstappen says the same.
That's all valid opinion, but the TV audience numbers show a lot more eyeballs watching these 'appointments to view' live sport. And that's fact. As I said in our shows, the worst Sprint will always be better than the best FP2, because in free practices nothing is decided, and the teams need to keep the cars well apart on track and use as little tyre and power unit life as possible. The Sprints simply must be more entertaining trackside too for those splashing their hard-earned cash.
The Sprint format will be tweaked for next year and qualifying for the main race will revert to Saturday afternoon I suspect. Saturday will become a thrilling day should they schedule the Sprint race in the morning and Qualifying in the afternoon, although teams will be nervous of having sufficient time to repair any damage from the morning event.
Friday will then be one practice session in the morning, which I believe should revert to 90 minutes, and the Sprint Shootout qualification in the afternoon. Another very decent day for the fans trackside and watching on TV or online.
That chronology flows more logically, and tyre allocations should be standardised for every weekend - we already talk more than enough about tyres. Parc Fermé times need opening up too, there's no point in teams being locked into a rubbish race set-up from Friday lunchtime for the duration, especially if FP1 is wet or curtailed.
Perhaps Sprint championship points should go down to 10th place, and the circuits chosen should be those which naturally generate decent overtaking where possible, like Interlagos. Reversing grids will just make everybody try to go slowly in that qualifying session, and if you simply reverse grids based on say championship positions, then you don't have a qualifying session at all, although it would generate a thrilling race probably.
If you have a standalone Sprint championship then a good percentage of the field will know they have no chance of winning and so will cruise to save accident damage, engine mileage, and tyres. There's no reason why there can't be a notional Sprint championship where the top few are rewarded accordingly, with much if not all of that money going to a charity of their choice who will also then get a lot of airtime. Or put the money into grass roots Motorsport to help tomorrow's stars.
The whole Sprint format needs sharpening up schedule wise, and then it can likely work at a few more circuits. Let's see what the F1 Commission come up with after their meeting in Abu Dhabi.
Verstappen displays start prowess | Tactical master Alonso denies Perez
Verstappen has perfected many of his driving skills these past two seasons and getting off the start-line is very much one of them. He led both races (in fact three starts) into the first corner and would win both in a commanding fashion.
Only Lando Norris in his McLaren could remotely keep the metronomic Red Bull leader in sight. In the main Sunday GP he gamely followed, then closed, and on lap 7 when Verstappen was still very much managing his race, Lando had a go at seizing the lead so that he could control the pace and spoil the tyres of Verstappen in his turbulent slipstream for a change.
It was valiant but Verstappen placed his car well and then checked out to get the pesky McLaren off his tail.
Norris had made a tremendous start in the first part of the race, taking second place from sixth on the grid. There was a second start because of a mighty shunt when Alex Albon and Kevin Magnussen got together on the narrow track after earlier contact with Nico Hulkenberg, which also innocently nailed Oscar Piastri's rear wing with contact from behind, and Daniel Ricciardo with a flying tyre carcass clouting his rear wing too. A red flag was called upon to clear up the mess.
So there were already three cars retired plus the two Aussies repaired but a lap down by the time the accident was cleared away and Verstappen delivered another, and final, rapid standing start of the weekend.
It wasn't a classic race by any means, both Mercedes' of Hamilton and Russell continuing their poor race pace of Saturday, but for three times as long and it was painful to watch. They eventually retired Russell, and Hamilton grabbed a few points in eighth place.
Sergio Perez had already shown his rejuvenated talents on a number of occasions with some deft out-braking manoeuvres while recovering from a poor-ish grid slot, and then homed in on Fernando Alonso for the final podium spot. I thoroughly enjoyed watching this battle of high-speed tactics. Alonso was using and placing his car well to frustrate Perez behind him, in what looked like a much faster car.
Their tyre lives were identical and it was a straight fight to the flag. The racing would be hard, the defensive moves dramatic and bordering on late, but always leaving racing room, for which they would both applaud each other post-race.
Alonso was using unconventional lines to get the best traction from critical corners with his battery suitably charged. But then he ran slightly wide in Turn 12 and Perez passed him into turn one, and made it stick during the wild thrash to Turn four. Surely game over?
But Alonso stayed close enough to get his DRS rear wing open behind Perez heading into the last lap, and Perez over defended and ran a little wide. This gave Alonso all the incentive he needed to grab more DRS and seize back the podium place into Turn 4 with some aggression. But it wasn't over yet, there would be the drag race from the foot of the hill at Turn 12 all the way to the chequered flag, and Alonso would win out by 0.053 seconds. Great racing from a pair of drivers with a combined age of 76 and 630 F1 races between them.
Lance Stroll would take fifth place to conclude a fine day for Aston Martin and we now have an intriguing battle between Mercedes and Ferrari, and also McLaren and Aston Martin, for placements and significant financial rewards in the Constructors' Championship over these final two races.
Lando Norris would take a point for fastest lap and yet again the fans' driver of the day with 26.7 per cent of the vote. The driver who dominated the weekend like he's dominated the past two seasons, and who surpassed Alain Prost with 52 victories, was fourth most popular with just six per cent of the vote. I don't know how many people actually vote but I find all that quite fascinating to say the least.
Next up will be the sheer glitz and atmospheric craziness of Las Vegas. Hopefully it's not my turn to do the gridwalk again…
Get ready for the big one: Formula 1 in Las Vegas! See drivers race down the Strip, and past landmarks like Caesars Palace and the Bellagio, on F1's newest street track. Watch the whole Las Vegas GP weekend live on Sky Sports F1 on November 17-19. Stream F1 on Sky Sports with NOW
