The 2024 São Paulo Grand Prix might have been a
Simply Lovely affair for Max Verstappen, but the same can be said about Formula 1's overall weekend at Interlagos.
Now it has to be said that the weather was annoying last weekend in Sao Paulo. Rain is always welcome when you want to mix things up in F1, but when it becomes too much that you have to postpone qualifying till race day, then it is Simply Hideous
It was a bad thing for the fans to endure, and most importantly for the teams' mechanics and employees, those unsung heroes behind the scenes, who had to wake up even before the crack of dawn to set the cars up and make sure they were ready for the 20 superstars who will drive them.
And I have to say something here: At the end of a grand prix, when the drivers are celebrating on the podium and the cameras are all over them while they spray champagne, I usually focus on their mechanics down with the mere mortals as the looks on their faces are so rewarding. That look of a hard-working mechanic proud that he had a part in that win or podium his team's superstar driver achieved.
We cannot deny the drivers their credit, of course, as they are truly the best 20 drivers in the world, maybe the best 19 drivers, and Lance Stroll to be more precise.
However, it is always good to give a shoutout every now and then to the hard working F1 team mechanics and other employees that plug away behind the scenes to make sure we get to watch a proper F1 weekend.
With that said, F1's latest show at Interlagos was the ultimate roller coaster of a weekend, where the cream rose to the top in the most treacherous of conditions.
If you didn't know who I meant, it is Max Verstappen, and with him we start our Takeaways from the 2024 São Paulo Grand Prix.
For those who needed a reminder, this is Max Verstappen
Verstappen arrived in São Paulo on the back foot, not only because his RB20 was still lacking compared to its rivals, but also due to the grid penalty (five positions) he had to serve for taking a sixth Internal Combustion Engine.
From the start, Verstappen did not look competitive, and fourth in Sprint qualifying was proof, especially as his long pace was not better in the Sprint race; he also finished fourth.
Then the weather took a turn and qualifying got postponed till Sunday morning, and Verstappen was always expected to do well in such conditions, but he got unlucky with the Red flag—I won't go into conspiracy theories about its timing—and 12th place was his result, which meant 17th on the starting grid of the Grand Prix.
In a way, that disastrous qualifying was a good thing for Max and for us, to be honest. In a way, it set the stage for the wet weather driving masterclass we were lucky to witness during the main race.
From the start, drivers were sliding and crashing left right and center, except for Verstappen, who was clinical and faultless in his driving, executing clean and brave passes, Turn 1 being his favorite place to send it, having mastered his line and braking into that corner, which is tricky in dry conditions, let alone in the wet.
Esteban Ocon, usually a tough driver to pass, did not even put up a defense at the second restart because he simply did not expect Verstappen to be there, so late on the brakes.
Just so we do not irk Lando Norris, let's point out that Verstappen got lucky with the Red flag having gambled and gone longer on the tyres in the first stint, but that does not take anything away from his great drive on Sunday.
At least he took a risk and was not crying over the radio asking for fresh tyres, and that risk paid off massively, and Norris missed to mention that his rival was unlucky in qualifying.
The flurry of fast laps Verstappen delivered once in the lead was a statement against all his detractors, and there were plenty of those recently, and while the Red Bull pit wall must have been quite nervous, their driver knew what he was doing as he was at one with his car, having fun as went on with his race.
As Verstappen has been under much criticism recently, questioning his racing with pundits, drivers, and fans all having a go at him, his answer was simply delivered on track.
While it was great to hear "Simply Lovely" once again, the funniest part was listening to all those who have been attacking Verstappen trying to find ways to perform U turns on what they said...
It was a great weekend for Verstappen, who faced all the challenges with a cool head and emerged from all the chaos with an extended championship lead, almost certainly putting an end to Norris' challenge.
McLaren and Norris show yet again that they are not ready to win
While Norris said Verstappen was lucky, the Briton's driving last Sunday meant even luck could not help him.
Let's put the aborted start violation behind us, as it had no consequences aside from some embarrassment for not knowing the rules. His team should've informed him as well—I said before McLaren need a new sporting director.
As we have got used to seeing from Norris, he fluffed his start and Russell overtook him, and while he managed to take the position back, a series of errors meant he finished the race sixth.
While Red Bull took a risk and kept Verstappen out on aging Intermediate tyres and capitalized on the Red flag, McLaren did not, maybe since Norris was consistently asking for them to pit him.
When you are the one chasing, you should be the one taking risks, but McLaren are not doing that, nor is Norris.
Norris needs to know that sometimes you have to make your own luck, which is exactly what Red Bull and Verstappen did last Sunday at Interlagos and showed why they are multiple F1 champions. That is what McLaren need to do if they hope to fight for championships. I said it before that fast cars do not win titles; it is a necessary but not a sufficient factor.
While McLaren are still on course to take their first F1 constructors' title since 1998, Norris' title hopes have been washed away by the São Paulo rainstorms.
São Paulo Grand Prix quick hits
- I mentioned Stroll earlier. Now my issue is not with his spin, as Fernando Alonso revealed the brake issue Aston Martin had and may have caused the Canadian to lose control of his AMR24 on the formation lap.
But here is the thing. Even if I am to believe Alonso was not defending Lance because that is part of his job description set by Papa Stroll, how come he could drive the car with those faulty brakes for the whole race without crashing while Stroll couldn't manage more than a few corners?
Moreover, what the hell was Stroll thinking trying to join the track going through the dirt patch??!!!! - What a great result that was for Alpine. They took risks with their strategy, and both Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly kept their noses clean to deliver a double podium for their beleaguered team.
Is that the Oliver Oakes/Flavio Briatore effect? It is too soon to judge based on just one weekend with so many variables in play. - Where the hell were Ferrari? Did anyone see them at Interlagos? They have two red cars, so they should be easy to spot.
Well, Carlos Sainz was in the barriers a couple of times while Charles Leclerc was better, but given Ferrari won the last two races in Austin and Mexico City, their form in São Paulo was unacceptable. - Bouncy Merc was back this weekend, and Lewis Hamilton received another beating by the car.
While Russell fared much better in the sister car, it is clear that Hamilton cannot be bothered anymore. I refuse to believe the issue is with the driver that won the British Grand Prix a while ago. He is just counting the days to join Ferrari; I hope that ends up being better for him than his current situation.
At several moments in the weekend, I felt that Hamilton was going to park the car in the pits, throw the steering at Toto Wolff, and tell him: I won't be driving this piece of sh!t anymore until you fix it.
At least he got to drive Ayrton Senna's McLaren, and what a glorious scene that was!! - My heart feels for the accountants at Williams after the team's São Paulo crash fest.
- While Oliver Bearman and Franco Colapinto have impressed so far, their respective races showed the difference experience makes in F1. Liam Lawson was better, by the way.
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