George Russell finally wins in dramatic race in Sao Paulo

Mercedes converted their first 1-2 finish since 2020 as Russell converted his sprint race triumph to his first Grand Prix victory in Brazil.

Formula 1 had reached its penultimate race before we were treated to a classic which will remain in the history books for years to come. Criticism had come in going into the weekend over the Sprint race, but it assisted one of the most enthralling races we have seen, and as Martin Brundle would say, it was far better than a practice session.

Team orders being refused at Red Bull, teammate friction at Alpine, old rivals coming together again and a team at the back of the grid got pole. So much could be unpicked in Brazil, which was one of the most dramatic weekend’s we have seen since last season’s title fight.

It started off in mixed conditions on Friday in Sao Paulo, where qualifying took place. In the interchanging weather, you normally need an element of luck, and an element of skill to judge the track’s grip in order to find the limit and get the best times. Enter Kevin Magnussen, who was the first to leave the pit at the start of Qualifying 3, where rain was beginning to fall on the track.

After the first hot laps were completed, the Haas driver was on pole, and another lap was not to be completed. Kevin Magnussen, who after his years at McLaren never earned pole, did so in a car which is relatively over a second off of that rapid Red Bull. It was amazing to see Haas have an amazing moment, after the hellish 2021 campaign where a finish in 15th was a fantastic result.

The sprint race was fantastic as well. Despite Max Verstappen’s class, it was quite nice to see him struggle this weekend. George Russell had a fantastic battle with him, where he eventually overtook him to win, then his first contact of the weekend caused him to lose a front wing endplate, and also lose positions to Carlos Sainz and Lewis Hamilton. This set up a Mercedes 1-2 for the race, with both Red Bulls in the hunt behind, setting up a glorious race.

Unfortunately, Kevin Magnussen’s luck ran out on lap 1 after being taken out by Daniel Ricciardo, which led to the first safety car of the race. It was the restart which inflicted drama, with Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen reminding us of their battles in 2021, with contact at the Senna ‘S’. Verstappen was harshly given a 5-second penalty in the end, where I think most would admit it was a racing incident – if you are neutral.

Just a few seconds later Charles Leclerc was taken out by Lando Norris, and miraculously continued after making contact with the barrier, and made a fantastic recovery drive to finish 4th after taking on the rest of the field. He is in a battle with Sergio Perez for 2nd in the championship, with both tied on 290 points heading into Abu Dhabi.

However, if Max Verstappen had given his 6th place back to Sergio Perez, we would have seen the Mexican ahead – but the champion decided to display pettiness from a moment earlier on in the season and not return the place to his teammate. Verstappen was angered after Perez admitted to deliberately crashing in Monaco qualifying, denying the Dutchman from pole, and returned some revenge.

Perez was rightfully angry on the radio, exclaiming that it “shows who he really is”, and went to the media pen and told broadcasters “If Max has 2 championships, it is because of me”. This will inevitably cause friction, and don’t expect this to be the last of these two acting against each other.

The plaudits this weekend should rightfully head George Russell’s way, along with Mercedes. The Brit became the next new winner in Formula 1 after a composed drive, especially towards the end against his 7-time championship winning teammate. After the heartbreak of Bahrain 2020, this day would have felt extremely emotional, and it definitely will not be his last win for the Silver Arrows.

It is a shame that the final race is next week, but the fans have been treated to a glorious race in Sao Paulo.