by F1 correspondent Michael Butterworth

BEIJING, Nov.4 (Xinhua) -- A masterclass from Max Verstappen saw the Dutchman rise from 17th on the grid to take victory in an enthralling Brazilian Grand Prix and take a big step towards the 2024 Formula 1 World Championship title.

But Verstappen's title rival Lando Norris could only finish sixth, as his race unravelled thanks to an unfortunately-timed pit stop and a trip across the run-off area.

After Norris had won Saturday morning's Sprint from McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri, heavy rain on Saturday afternoon saw the Grand Prix qualifying session shunted to Sunday morning, with the race start also brought forward by 90 mins.

The revised schedule meant there were only four hours between qualifying and the Grand Prix, meaning several teams' mechanics faced a race against the clock to rebuild damaged cars in time for the race.

Carlos Sainz had to start from the pit lane after an off in qualifying, and Alex Albon failed to take the start after his team was unable to fix his stricken Williams in time.

The changeable conditions had also resulted in some drivers lining up for the race in unfamiliar positions, with Verstappen falling victim to a badly-timed red flag and being joined near the back of the grid by Lewis Hamilton, while the unheralded trio of Yuki Tsunoda, Esteban Ocon and Liam Lawson lined up third to fifth.

There was further drama before the race had even started, as Aston Martin's Lance Stroll spun out on the formation lap, resulting in the start being aborted.

But rather than wait in their grid slots for their mechanics to attend to their cars, Norris and several others elected to complete another formation lap, resulting in their being investigated for a starting procedure infringement - which may yet result in time penalties being applied to the final race classification. Notably, Verstappen was one of the drivers who remained in their grid slots and did not make an extra tour of the circuit.

Starting from pole in slippery conditions, Norris again made a poor getaway and immediately lost the lead to Mercedes' George Russell. With DRS disabled due to the wet track, Russell was able to comfortably hold Norris at bay.

By contrast, Verstappen made up six places on lap 1, and was up to sixth by lap 11, as he seemed much more confident under braking than his rivals, evoking memories of a similar charge through the field in wet conditions in Brazil in 2016.

A spin for Haas' Nico Hulkenberg on lap 28 saw the deployment of the Virtual Safety Car, prompting Russell and Norris to pit for fresh tyres.

However, the VSC period ended sooner than they had anticipated, resulting in their losing track position behind Esteban Ocon, Verstappen and Pierre Gasly, who did not pit and were now running first to third.

That trio's decision not to pit was vindicated on lap 32, when Williams' Franco Colapinto crashed at the final corner to bring out the red flag, allowing all the drivers to change tyres outside of racing conditions.

When the race resumed, Verstappen immediately took the lead from Ocon, and the Dutchman was subsequently never headed as he took his first win in ten Grands Prix.

In contrast to Verstappen's serene progress, Norris ran wide at the restart and fell to seventh, on a day when McLaren did not seem to have the pace they had had in Saturday's Sprint.

"My emotions today have been a rollercoaster, with qualifying being really unlucky with the red flag," said Verstappen, who also took home the bonus point for fastest lap.

"Starting in P17, I knew it would be a very tough race. We stayed out of trouble, made the right calls, we stayed calm and we were flying. All of these things together. I mean unbelievable. To win here from so far back on the grid...yeah."

"It was very hard to pass around here with the new tarmac. I knew I had to go for it.

"It was always easy to front lock but I had confidence on the brakes. Turn 1 is always a great corner to pass."

Behind Verstappen, Ocon and Gasly took second and third in a welcome fillip for the beleaguered Alpine team, as the duo's points haul saw the Enstone squad vault from ninth to sixth in the Constructors' Championship.

Russell took fourth, ahead of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, with Norris only sixth on a hugely damaging day for his title hopes.

Tsunoda finished seventh for RB, ahead of Norris' teammate Oscar Piastri, Liam Lawson in the second RB, and Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton.

Following the race, Verstappen extends his lead in the Drivers' Championship, and now has 393 points, 62 ahead of Norris with only three Grand Prix weekends left.

Despite a bad day, McLaren extend their Constructors' Championship lead, and now have 593 points. Ferrari stay second with 557, and Red Bull remain third with 544 points.

The 22nd round of the 2024 F1 season is the Las Vegas Grand Prix on November 23, where Verstappen will seal the title if Norris does not outscore him by at least three points. Enditem

Related

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)