F1 Fantasy: Verstappen gets top marks for Brazil comeback

Landon Norris stole the headlines with a comfortable win that has put him nearly a race win clear at the top of the drivers’ standings. However, Verstappen was easily the driver of the day. In qualifying, his Red Bull looked undriveable. But race day was another story, and the Dutchman rebounded brilliantly, to the point that he nearly pinched P2 from Kimi Antonelli.

Mercedes had looked imperious—Toto Wolff even labeled his team’s car the fastest in the Brazil paddock. So Verstappen did incredibly well to snatch P3 from George Russell, and pick up 62 F1 Fantasy points in the process. The Silver Arrows didn’t quite realize their car’s potential but still grabbed second and fourth for 40 & 31 points. Not a bad day at the office!

Ferrari, meanwhile, had yet another meltdown. Lewis Hamilton tripped over Franco Colapinto, while Charles Leclerc was crashed into by Antonelli. Both DNF’d, causing Ferrari President John Elkann to hit out at his drivers, who scored -12 in-game points between them.

Elsewhere, many in the midfield capitalized on a double-points Sprint weekend to bring home big hauls for their F1 Fantasy backers. Let’s look back at the thrills and spills of a rollercoaster weekend with massive repercussions for the world championship fight.

In my Brazilian GP Virtual Grid Walk, I said that Max needed a miracle to close the gap in the title fight… and he nearly got one. Martin Brundle has since called his performance a “drive for the ages” and possibly a career best. This was in stark contrast to Oscar Piastri’s weekend, which saw him hit the barrier in the Sprint, and it barely improved from there.

Somehow the Aussie ended up behind Verstappen on pace after the final pit stop, and even without a harsh penalty for his role in the Leclerc incident, he never looked a threat to his teammate. All this saw him lose ground in the title race—and get -1 fantasy points.

Other strugglers included Aston Martin. Fernando Alonso may have impressed with a drive to P6 in the Sprint, but he and his teammate were nowhere to be seen in the race. This saw them slapped with a net zero fantasy points. Understandably, two of our other crashers, Colapinto and Gabriel Bortoleto didn’t do very well in the Fantasy league either, earning -16 & -24 points.

Nico Hulkenberg, who bounced off the wall at Juncao and continued, is the next lowest scorer we haven’t mentioned so far, with five points. All the others managed to perform well enough in one race or the other to get a reasonable haul, spicing up this week’s in-game round-up.

Ferrari’s woes in the main event opened up a big opportunity in the back half of the top ten, and Racing Bulls took it with both hands, grabbing seventh and eighth. Liam Lawson & Isack Hadjar earned 22 & 12 points, respectively, but Ollie Bearman earned a whopping 36 fantasy points for P6.

The youngster looked rapid all weekend. If anything, he probably underperformed with eighth place in qualifying. Yet, in the race he came alive. He pulled off multiple overtakes, including one around the outside of Lawson, and finished comfortably in the end.

Carlos Sainz has endured a tricky first year at Williams. But he and Alex Albon did reasonably well in F1 Fantasy—he picked up 16 points to his teammate’s 19. This despite not registering a top-ten finish in either race! Esteban Ocon had a similar weekend, earning 17 in-game points without finishing anywhere near his less experienced teammate.

Remarkably, in the midst of a difficult Alpine campaign, Pierre Gasly scored 23 points (and one real one) for his P8 finish in the Sprint. It won’t change the fact this has been a very disappointing year, but it’ll offer a crumb of encouragement for the final rounds.

44th Gear continues to top our F1 Fantasy league standings, but their lead has shrunk once again. Including Leclerc proved a mistake, as did selecting Gabriel Bortoleto, who clattered the walls twice at his home event.

Interestingly, Piastri became $0.3 million cheaper after his Brazil disasterclass, while the likes of Antonelli got $0.6 million more expensive (making him less of a bargain). Hadjar & Sainz didn’t do that well, despite being the two most selected drivers this week. Perhaps drivers like Lawson, who was picked by just 11% of players, deserve reconsideration!

As the season winds down, Norris looks the nailed-on favorite for this year’s drivers’ crown. Will there be any more surprises (in F1 Fantasy or the real deal)? Stay tuned to GP247 for full coverage of the season climax, continuing in Las Vegas from November 21-23, 2025.