Verstappen fastest in Sao Paulo qualifying, will start Sunday's GP from pole
Red Bull's Max Verstappen claimed pole position for Sunday's Grand Prix in Sao Paulo after completing a shortened Q3 session with the quickest time during Friday's qualifying.
| Position | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1:10.727 |
| 2 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | +0.294 |
| 3 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | +0.617 |
| 4 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | +0.660 |
| 5 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | +0.742 |
| 6 | George Russell | Mercedes | +0.863 |
| 7 | Lando Norris | McLaren | +1.260 |
| 8 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | +1.262 |
| 9 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull | +1.594 |
| 10 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | -- |
| 11 | Nico Hulkenberg | Haas | Q2 |
| 12 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine | Q2 |
| 13 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | Q2 |
| 14 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | Q2 |
| 15 | Alex Albon | Williams | Q2 |
| 16 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri | Q1 |
| 17 | Daniel Ricciardo | AlphaTauri | Q1 |
| 18 | Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo | Q1 |
| 19 | Logan Sargeant | Williams | Q1 |
| 20 | Zhou Guanyu | Alfa Romeo | Q1 |
* - George Russell, Esteban Ocon, and Pierre Gasly all received two-place grid penalties after the race for impeding in the pit lane. Russell will start Sunday's race eighth, Ocon will start 14th, and Gasly will start 15th.
Q3 was cut short as dark storm clouds hovered over the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace in Interlagos, causing the session to be red-flagged with more than four minutes remaining.
"This is insane weather," Verstappen said after qualifying ended, according to Sky Sports F1.
Ferrari's Charles Leclerc will start alongside Verstappen in the front row. Led by Canadian Lance Stroll, Aston Martin locked out the second row.
Sergio Perez qualified ninth. Verstappen's teammate enters Sunday just 20 points ahead of Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton for second place in the drivers' standings.
McLaren's Oscar Piastri didn't post a time in Q3 after spinning out as the rain arrived.