Sao Paulo grid penalties send Verstappen and Hamilton to the back, with four drivers 16 points apart

The Sao Paulo grid penalties handed out on Saturday have scrambled Sunday’s race. Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton will start from the back, Charles Leclerc drops 10 places and George Russell five. The four drivers are separated by only 16 points in the fight for second place behind newly crowned world champion Kimi Antonelli.

Why the Sao Paulo grid penalties hit these four drivers

All four penalties come from power-unit rules, but the reasons differ. Verstappen’s Red Bull team found problems after Friday practice and fitted an all-new engine, which put him at the back. Russell takes a five-place drop for a new internal combustion engine. It is the second time he has gone past that component’s limit, which is why his penalty is smaller.

Ferrari’s situation is more painful. Leclerc’s 10-place penalty is larger than Russell’s because it is the first time Ferrari have exceeded the four-engine allowance on his car. Hamilton began the day with the same 10-place penalty. His replacement engine then failed in final practice, and Ferrari chose to fit a complete new power unit, which sends him to the back too.

That failure was visible on track. Hamilton complained of vibrations, came in, then returned to the pits with smoke pouring from the rear of the car. His mechanics started taking it apart with 23 minutes left. He managed only seven laps and finished 12th.

Ferrari tension and a rare opening for rivals

The timing is awkward for Ferrari. Hamilton and Leclerc held talks with team boss Fred Vasseur on Thursday evening after Hamilton’s anger over Leclerc’s first-lap overtake in Mexico. Hamilton questioned his team-mate’s mentality and said he would not be silenced at the team. Vasseur and Leclerc say the matter is now settled. Having both cars sent backwards by engine trouble will not make the weekend any easier.

Their Mexico clash also helped Verstappen win last weekend. He has now taken three of the last four races and has climbed to second in the standings. Starting from the rear is familiar for him in Brazil. He has done it in each of the last two years and famously won from 17th in the wet in 2024.

Pace is not the problem. Verstappen was fastest in final practice in 1:11.622, only 0.025s ahead of Antonelli, with McLaren’s Lando Norris a further 0.106s back in third. Russell was fourth and Leclerc, after big setup changes, was fifth, 0.274s off the pace.

Wet weather could add to the chaos

With so many front-runners penalised, Antonelli and Norris look the favourites for pole. Rain began about an hour before qualifying and could return at any point on race day. Oscar Piastri, sixth in practice, and the Racing Bulls and Red Bull drivers from seventh to ninth could all benefit from the shuffled order. Home hope Gabriel Bortoleto was 10th for Audi.

Haas have also made a change. Rafael Camara makes his F1 debut after the team said Esteban Ocon will not drive in the remaining races following a dispute in Mexico. Camara was 15th in practice, ahead of team-mate Oliver Bearman.

Away from the track, F1 announced a five-year extension that keeps Interlagos on the calendar until 2035. Series chief executive Stefano Domenicali called Brazil “an important part of F1’s history and our future”.

For the fight over second place, the Sao Paulo grid penalties make Sunday a damage-limitation exercise. Whoever carves through the field best, especially if rain arrives, could gain the most.

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