Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing’s three-time Formula One World Champion, clinched victory at the F1 Brazilian Grand Prix Sao Paulo sprint, overtaking pole sitter Lando Norris of McLaren right at the start.
Norris managed to hold on to second place after his initial pole advantage slipped, with Verstappen’s teammate, Sergio Perez, rounding out the top three. Verstappen’s triumph marks his fourth sprint win in this season’s six Saturday short-format races.
George Russell, who claimed the sprint race at Interlagos last year, secured a fourth-place finish for Mercedes, while Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc followed closely in fifth. Yuki Tsunoda brought home a rewarding sixth place for AlphaTauri, earning the team its first sprint race points of the season.
Lewis Hamilton, the seven-time world champion, crossed the finish line in seventh place for Mercedes, and Carlos Sainz of Ferrari captured the last point on offer in the standalone sprint event, which spanned 24 laps and covered a distance of 100 kilometers at the Interlagos circuit.