© Getty ImagesA Splash In Sao PauloThe nut that holds the wheel and the weather
InthehighlytechnicalsportofFormula1,whereeveryaspectofacar’sperformanceisrunandmonitoredthroughthousandsofdatapoints,thetwovariablesthatarehardesttocontrolarethedriver–jokinglyreferredtobyengineersas“thenutthatholdsthewheel”–andtheweather.InSaoPauloyesterdayYukiandLiamwerenearenoughimpeccable,bringinghomeeightpoints,finishingseventhandninthrespectively,whiletherainthatwashedoutmuchoftheSaturdayactionwasstillonhandtoaddspiceandspectacletoathrillingGrandPrix.
Sao Paulo is a nine hour flight from our previous stop in Mexico City, but there are similarities: both densely populated, both sitting at altitude, with the inhabitants adopting a freeform approach to driving in the heavy traffic, all choreographed by police who love blowing their whistles. Inside the Interlagos circuit, the whistling continues in the grandstands, supplemented by trumpets and drums delivering an incessant Samba beat.
At Altitude Again© Getty Images
The enthusiastic Brazilian fans do not have one of their own on the grid to cheer for, but Lewis Hamilton and his Senna-esque helmet is particularly popular, while rookie Franco Colapinto from neighbouring Argentina became an overnight sensation, requiring additional security wherever he went. And you might have noticed that Yuki got a very noisy welcome after qualifying a sensational third on Sunday morning, which could be down to the fact that Sao Paulo is home to the largest Japanese diaspora in the world.
Yes, you read that correctly, “qualifying on Sunday morning.” It’s not the first time Formula 1 has had to adapt to deal with a Saturday washout, but cramming qualifying and the Grand Prix into the space of a few hours, with cars taking to the track at the unearthly hour of 7.30 for Q1 was a first. Prior to that, Friday practice and Sprint qualifying produced mixed results, with an on-form Liam on his first visit to this track, making it into SQ3 to secure eighth place on the grid for the short 100 kilometre race, while there was some head-scratching as to why Yuki got no further than SQ1 in 18th spot. In the Sprint race, Liam just missed out on points, finishing ninth, while, having made up three places, Yuki at least felt that we had learnt some useful lessons for the main race.
Grip and Grit© Getty Images
Rain and poor visibility led to qualifying being postponed and thus begun the busiest Sunday of the season. Chaotic doesn’t begin to describe the early morning qualifying action, run in the rain, with no fewer than five red flags and plenty of crashes, that meant only seven cars actually took part in Q3. We opted to go for just one timed lap, keeping our Intermediate tyres warm in their blankets until the very last moment and it paid off, with Yuki and Liam both recording their highest ever grid positions in third and fifth places respectively. A couple of hours later it was race time and it was still wet. With everyone on Intermediate tyres, Yuki was running strongly in third in the early stages, while Liam had dropped to seventh, but having switched to full wets when the rain intensified, the subsequent red flag meant that some of our rivals effectively got a ”free” tyre change and we lost position to the Alpines, eventually finishing seventh and ninth.
With eight points in the bag, we closed to the gap to Haas to just two points. However, what no one could have expected based on recent race form, was that both Alpines would finish on the podium behind Max Verstappen. It means the Anglo-French squad has leapfrogged both us and Haas, so that we have dropped to eighth in the Constructors’ championship. With only five points covering the three teams and the VCARB-01 having demonstrated clear progress during this triple-header in the Americas, there’s everything to play for going into the final three races of the season, starting under the lights of Las Vegas in three weeks’ time.
