Haas Driver Magnussen Takes First Evder Pole Position in the Surprise of The Weekend.
Brazil has long had a love affair with Formula 1 so while both championships may have already been decided, that hasn’t dampened the enthusiasm of the country’s fans as the series rolls into town for the penultimate round of the campaign.
The Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace is one of F1’s great circuits and has delivered some incredible on-track moments over the years and it delivered another stunner this weekend in qualifying as Haas driver Kevin Magnussen took the pole beating out Red Bull driver Max Verstappen just Eight months after making his shock return to Formula 1.
Although Q1 began on a damp track, slicks were soon fitted and it was Lando Norris who led the opening session, before Max Verstappen took over in a dry Q2. The top-10 shootout was a different story.
With two minutes of Q3 completed, Kevin Magnussen was top of the timesheets, and it was then that George Russell locked up and beached his Mercedes at Turn 5, bringing out a red flag to leave the Dane incredulous. A short stoppage later, and the rain began to fall: Magnussen’s time would stand, and he would have his first Formula 1 pole position.
Verstappen finished second, 0.203s off the pace, while Russell took third for the Sprint. Norris ended up fourth for McLaren, while Carlos Sainz – who has a five-place penalty for Sunday – rounded out the top five.
“Honestly I don’t know what to say,” said Magnussen post qualifying. “We worked hard for this. I don’t know what to say. The team put me out on track at exactly the right moment. We’re on pole. It’s incredible. Never would I have guessed that we would be in this position today. Tomorrow starting from the front we will bring the maximum attack.”
Magnussen is joined on the front row with newly crowned two-time world champion Max Verstappen, who has been in scintillating form this year, winning a record 14 races already. Should the conditions remain stable after a rainy day today, it’s difficult to see how anyone can stop him adding to that tally on Sunday.
“It’s always nice to be back in Brazil, it’s beautiful here and so rich in culture,” said Verstappen. “Interlagos is a short track and with all the elevation changes and cambered corners, it’s a really cool track to drive. There’s obviously a lot of history at the track too, which I love. The Sprint race set up this weekend means we only have a short practice window, so that always makes it a slightly more difficult, ensuring that the car is perfect and that we set up the car well with limited time. As a Team we want to finish first and second in the Championship so it’s important that we make sure Checo stays ahead of Charles.”
The team who sits second in the constructors standings currently, Ferrari, are expecting to be better in Brazil. Though the track is at altitude, around 800m above sea level, it’s 1,500m lower than it was in Mexico – where they struggled in the thinner air and ran the engine at lower power levels as a precaution. Charles Leclerc reckons they should be in contention for pole on a layout that does encourage great racing.
Best celebration of the year#BrazilGP @HaasF1Team pic.twitter.com/hIAzNeFiOJ
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 11, 2022