Again and again him. For the 11th time this season, Max Verstappen will start in pole position this Sunday (6:40 p.m., live on canal+Sport), for the Brazilian Grand Prix. The Dutchman, already assured of the title of 2023 world champion and winner of sixteen Grand Prix this season, beat the Monegasque Charles Leclerc and the Canadian Lance Stroll.
The French did not shine during these qualifications, shortened due to the rain. The two Alpine team drivers, Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly, were eliminated in Q2 and will start in 12th and 13th places respectively. The Chinese Guanyu Zhou was the worst in this session and will be last on the starting grid on Sunday for the 20th and antepenultimate race of the season.
For the sixth and final time of the season, a sprint race will be contested this Saturday by the drivers. Qualifying will first take place from 3 p.m., while the race will start at 7:30 p.m. As usual, eight points will be awarded to the winner of this event, while the top eight will earn points.
This weekend will not, however, change the face of this 2023 Formula 1 season. Untouchable, Max Verstappen is already guaranteed to win a third consecutive title. His team, Red Bull-Honda, has also already been crowned in the constructors’ standings. However, the suspense remains for second place in the drivers’ standings since Sergio Perez is only ahead of Lewis Hamilton by 20 small points. Among the manufacturers, the battle between Mercedes and Ferrari for this same second place is also fierce.
The starting grid
1st line:
Max Verstappen (NED/Red Bull)
Charles Leclerc (MON/Ferrari)
2nd line:
Lance Stroll (CAN/Aston Martin-Mercedes)
Fernando Alonso (ESP/Aston Martin-Mercedes)
3rd line:
Lewis Hamilton (GBR/Mercedes)
George Russell (GBR/Mercedes)
4th line:
Lando Norris (GBR/McLaren-Mercedes)
Carlos Sainz Jr (ESP/Ferrari)
5th line:
Sergio Pérez (MEX/Red Bull)
Oscar Piastri (AUS/McLaren-Mercedes)
6th line:
Nico Hülkenberg (GER/Haas-Ferrari)
Esteban Ocon (FRA/Alpine-Renault)
7th line:
Pierre Gasly (FRA/Alpine-Renault)
Kevin Magnussen (DEN/Haas-Ferrari)
8th line:
Alexander Albon (THA/Williams-Mercedes)
Yuki Tsunoda (JPN/AlphaTauri-Red Bull)
9th line:
Daniel Ricciardo (AUS/AlphaTauri-Red Bull)
Valtteri Bottas (FIN/Alfa Romeo-Ferrari)
10th line:
Logan Sargeant (USA/Williams-Mercedes)
Zhou Guanyu (CHN/Alfa Romeo-Ferrari)
