F1 Team Form: Sao Paulo Grand Prix at Interlagos

While Ferrari have more wins at Interlagos than any other team, Red Bull and Mercedes are the most recent winners at the track. Here’s everything you need to know about each team’s history at Interlagos!

RED BULL

WINS: 6, POLES: 4, PODIUMS: 12 | 2023 SAO PAULO GRAND PRIX RESULT: VERSTAPPEN 1st, PEREZ 4th

Red Bull took four wins in the five Interlagos races between 2009 and 2013, with 1-2 finishes in 2010, 2011 and 2012. In 2019, Max Verstappen secured the team’s first win at the track since 2013 and took the team’s sixth win in Brazil at the 2023 Sao Paulo Grand Prix. Verstappen has scored three further podiums for the team at the circuit, with third place in 2016 and finishing as runner-up in 2018 and 2021.

Mark Webber’s 2009 win here marked the first time that the team scored points at the circuit, recording one non-points scoring finish and a DNF in every season before that. Since then, Daniel Ricciardo’s 2014 retirement is the only time a Red Bull driver has failed to cross the finish line.

Red Bull finished only sixth and seventh in the 2022 Sao Paulo Grand Prix – the first time neither of the team’s drivers finished in the top six at the track since 2015. Their race ended on a sour note, as Verstappen refused to let team-mate Sergio Perez by into sixth place in order to aid his battle for second in the Drivers’ Championship.

Red Bull at Interlagos for the 2022 Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

Both Red Bull drivers have reached the final part of qualifying at Interlagos in all of the last 12 races here, while 2006 and 2008 are the only years in which neither car featured in Q3. Since 2016, Sergio Perez’s ninth place in qualifying for the 2023 Sao Paulo Grand Prix is the only time that a Red Bull driver has qualified outside of the top six at the circuit.

The team has taken pole position here four times, in 2011 and 2013 with Sebastian Vettel and in 2019 and 2023 with Max Verstappen. In addition, Verstappen started Sprint Qualifying from the front of the grid in 2021 – but finished the Saturday as runner-up to Valtteri Bottas. The team have had a single front row lock-out at Interlagos, in 2011.

MERCEDES

WINS: 6, POLES: 6, PODIUMS: 12 | 2023 SAO PAULO GRAND PRIX RESULT: HAMILTON 8th, RUSSELL DNF

Mercedes took their only win of the 2022 season at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, with George Russell becoming the team’s newest winner. It was the team’s sixth victory at Interlagos and with Lewis Hamilton finishing second, it was Mercedes’ fourth 1-2 finish at the track – their first since 2016.

In 2023, neither Russell nor Hamilton finished on the Interlagos podium. It was only the second time in the V6 hybrid era, after 2019, that neither Mercedes driver finished in the top three in Brazil. In both of those years, one of the team’s cars failed to finish. Valtteri Bottas recorded the team’s first ever retirement at the circuit in 2019, while Russell failed to finish in 2023.

The team has scored on all 13 of their visits to the track, with Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg’s 15th place finishes in 2011 and 2012 respectively being the only occasions in addition to their two DNFs on which a Mercedes driver has failed to score points at Interlagos. In 2021, Hamilton won from tenth on the grid – the furthest back win at the track – while Bottas joined him on the podium in third place.

Image: © Andrew Balfour

Lewis Hamilton set the fastest qualifying time at Interlagos in 2021, but was disqualified from the session and subsequently started Sprint Qualifying from the back of the grid. He went on to make up 15 places in the Sprint, while Valtteri Bottas secured pole position. George Russell took pole position for Sunday’s race as a result of the Sprint in 2022, recording Mercedes’ seventh pole at Interlagos.

Mercedes took pole in every year between 2014 and 2018 and locked out the front row at Interlagos in 2014, 2015 and 2016. 2019 and 2023 are the only times since 2012 that neither Mercedes driver qualified on the front row at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

There have been just three occasions on which a Mercedes driver has failed to reach the final part of qualifying at Interlagos. Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher each exited in Q2 in 2010 and 2012, while Hamilton was eliminated in Q1 at the circuit in 2017, failing to set a time after crashing out.

FERRARI

WINS: 9, POLES: 6, PODIUMS: 28 | 2023 SAO PAULO GRAND PRIX RESULT: SAINZ 6th, LECLERC DNS

Ferrari have taken nine wins at the Interlagos circuit, more than any other team, with Sebastian Vettel’s 2017 victory their first since Felipe Massa’s in 2008. Ferrari are regular podium visitors in Brazil, with eight top three finishes in the last 11 races here – but only one of those has come in the last four races at the track.

Up until 2019, Kimi Raikkonen’s spin out of the rain-hit 2016 Brazilian Grand Prix had been the team’s only failure to finish at the track since 2004. However, Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc collided in 2019, leading to a Ferrari double DNF – their third at Interlagos. 1980, 1993 and 2003 are the only other years in which Ferrari have left the track point-less.

In 2021, Leclerc finished fifth with Carlos Sainz just behind in sixth. Sainz finished on the podium in 2022, while Leclerc finished just behind in fourth. While Sainz finished sixth in 2023, Leclerc recorded a DNS: the team’s first DNS at Interlagos.

Image: © Andrew Balfour

Giancarlo Fisichella’s Q1 exit in 2009 is the only time a Ferrari driver has failed to reach the final part of qualifying at Interlagos. At least one Ferrari has qualified in the top ten on all of F1’s 40 visits to the track, while 1993, 2005 and 2014 are the only years where neither Ferrari have qualified in the top six.

The Italian team has taken six poles at the circuit, but have never locked-out the front row here. The 2021 Sao Paulo Grand Prix is the only race at Interlagos since 2017 at which neither Ferrari driver has qualified on the front row.

McLAREN

WINS: 8, POLES: 9, PODIUMS: 25 | 2023 SAO PAULO GRAND PRIX RESULT: NORRIS 2nd, PIASTRI 14th

Jenson Button’s 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix win was McLaren’s last for almost nine years. McLaren celebrated their first podium finish since the 2014 Australian Grand Prix with Carlos Sainz finishing third in 2019. With Lando Norris also finishing eighth, it was the first season since 2014 that both McLaren drivers scored points at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Norris’s second place in the 2023 Sao Paulo Grand Prix marked the team’s best result at Interlagos since Button’s 2012 win. The team was less fortunate on their previous two visits to Interlagos. Norris scored only a single point in 2021, while Daniel Ricciardo retired from the race. In 2022, both drivers retired, making it the first Interlagos race in which neither McLaren driver was classified since 2000.

From 2015 to 2019, Fernando Alonso was the only driver to score points for McLaren in Brazil, finishing tenth in 2016 and eighth in 2017. At least one McLaren has featured in the top five at this track on 29 of F1’s 40 visits.

With nine poles, McLaren have started from the front at Interlagos on more occasions than any other team. They’ve locked-out the front row five times at the circuit, most recently in 2012.

For the first time since 2014, both McLaren drivers qualified in the top ten at Interlagos in 2023. Both drivers reached Q3 at the Brazilian Grand Prix in 2021, but only one actually qualified in the top ten as a result of Sprint Qualifying.

At least one McLaren has been eliminated in Q1 at the circuit in five of the last eight Interlagos races. The team has recorded three double Q1 exits at the track, most recently in 2018.

ASTON MARTIN

WINS: 1*, POLES: 0, PODIUMS: 4* | 2023 SAO PAULO GRAND PRIX RESULT: ALONSO 3rd, STROLL 5th

Under their Jordan guise between 1991 and 2005, 2000 – when both cars finished in the top four – is the only season in which both of the Silverstone-based team’s cars reached the end of the race. Giancarlo Fisichella recorded Jordan’s last win at the Interlagos circuit in 2003. That would remain the Silverstone-based team’s last win until the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix.

The team scored at least one point in all of their last six visits to the track under their Force India and Racing Point guises. On their first appearance as Aston Martin in 2021, neither driver scored – but Lance Stroll picked up a point with tenth place in 2022.

Fernando Alonso recorded the team’s first Interlagos podium finish in 20 years in 2023, finishing third by just 0.053 seconds. With Stroll finishing fifth, this was the Silverstone team’s first double top five result at the track since 2000.

The team has recorded three retirements in the last six races at the circuit – the last two being recorded by Stroll in 2019 and 2021.

The Silverstone-based team’s best qualifying result at Interlagos was recorded by Rubens Barrichello for Jordan in 1996, when he lined up on the front row at his home race. Sebastian Vettel did qualify tenth in 2021 and ninth in 2022 thanks to Sprint Qualifying but 2023 was the first time since 2017 that the team reached Q3 – and the first time since 2016 that they did so with two cars.

2016 was the first time since 2001 that both of the team’s cars qualified in the top ten at the circuit. Adrian Sutil recorded the team’s second-best qualifying result with third on the grid for Force India in 2009 – though his race was short-lived after a first-lap collision with Jarno Trulli. Lance Stroll equalled Sutil’s third place in qualifying for the 2023 Sao Paulo Grand Prix and with Fernando Alonso fourth, it was the team’s best-ever combined qualifying result at the track.

ALPINE

WINS: 1*, POLES: 2*, PODIUMS: 12* | 2023 SAO PAULO GRAND PRIX RESULT: GASLY 7th, OCON 10th

Michael Schumacher gave Benetton two victories at the Brazilian Grand Prix in 1994 and 1995. That remains the last time that the Enstone-based team won at Interlagos. The team has recorded a further nine podium finishes here, most recently with a second place for Fernando Alonso in 2008.

Alonso’s fifth place here in 2022 marked the Enstone team’s best result at Interlagos since his last podium at the track with the team in 2008. With Esteban Ocon eighth and Alonso ninth, 2021 was the first time both of the Enstone team’s cars scored points in a single Interlagos race since 2015. Both drivers scored again in 2022 and 2023.

Image: © Andrew Balfour

The Enstone-based team has recorded a single pole position at Interlagos. That came courtesy of Fernando Alonso in 2005. Michael Schumacher is the only other driver to have recorded front row starts for the team, doing so with Benetton in his first two title-winning years.

Since 2014, 2017 and 2022 are the only years in which both of Team Enstone’s cars have reached Q3. Both drivers reached Q3 in 2022 but made contact in the Sprint and subsequently qualified only 17th and 18th – the team’s worst combined qualifying result at Interlagos since 2001.

WILLIAMS

WINS: 4, POLES: 8, PODIUMS: 12 | 2023 SAO PAULO GRAND PRIX RESULT: SARGEANT 11th, ALBON DNF

Williams have won four times at Interlagos, including a 1-2 finish in 1992. At least one Williams car finished in the top two in every season between 1991 and 1997. In the last 18 Interlagos races, Felipe Massa’s podium in 2014 is the only time a Williams driver has finished in the top three at the track.

Neither Williams has scored a point here in any of the last five races here, with Massa’s seventh place in 2017 being the only time a Williams driver has scored at Interlagos in the last eight races.

Williams took six consecutive poles for the Brazilian Grand Prix between 1992 and 1997, including front row lock-outs in 1992 and 1993. Since then, the team have taken two further poles at the track in 2002 and, most recently, with Nico Hulkenberg in 2010.

Williams’ only Q3 appearance at the track in the last seven races at Interlagos came courtesy of Felipe Massa in 2017. The team recorded their third double Q1 exit at the track in 2021. Both cars also exited in Q1 in 2008 and 2019.

VISA CASH APP RB

WINS: 0, POLES: 0, PODIUMS: 1 | 2023 SAO PAULO GRAND PRIX RESULT: TSUNODA 9th, RICCIARDO 13th

The former Toro Rosso team celebrated their second-best ever result at the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix, as Pierre Gasly finished as runner-up. It was the first time the team had scored at Interlagos since 2016. Furthermore, with Daniil Kvyat finishing tenth, it was the first time both Toro Rosso cars had picked up points at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Sebastian Vettel, Carlos Sainz and Brendon Hartley are the only other drivers to have recorded a DNF with Toro Rosso at the track, in 2007, 2015 and 2017 respectively. The team have scored points in nine of their 17 races here, their most recent points finish being ninth place for Yuki Tsunoda in 2023.

Image: © Andrew Balfour

2022 was the first time since 2017 that neither of the Red Bull junior team’s drivers reached Q3 at Interlagos – though Pierre Gasly qualified tenth as a result of the Sprint. 2021 was the first time neither driver was eliminated in Q1 at the track since 2016. Both drivers were out in Q1 in 2023.

2008 and 2013 are the only seasons in which both Toro Rosso drivers have reached Q3 here. Sebastien Buemi’s sixth place in qualifying in 2009 is the only time that the team has qualified in the top six for the Brazilian Grand Prix – though Pierre Gasly set the fourth fastest time in conventional qualifying at the circuit in 2021.

SAUBER

WINS: 0, POLES: 0, PODIUMS: 2* | 2023 SAO PAULO GRAND PRIX RESULT: BOTTAS DNF, ZHOU DNF

Sauber recorded two podium finishes at the Brazilian Grand Prix. Their first came with Nick Heidfeld, who finished third in 2001. Robert Kubica went one better in 2009, finishing as runner-up to Mark Webber.

Heidfeld’s third place in 2001 was a rare highlight for Sauber in their early years at the track. They failed to finish six of the first ten races they competed in here, with both cars retiring. Both cars also failed to start in 2000 due to safety concerns after rear wing failures.

In 2018, Charles Leclerc recorded the team’s best finish here since Kubica’s 2009 podium, with seventh. Then in 2019, in their first race here as Alfa Romeo, the team finished in fourth and fifth in their best result of the season. It was the first time since 2007 that both of the team’s cars finished in the points.

Valtteri Bottas brought the team more points in 2022, finishing ninth, but neither driver scored in 2023 with both Bottas and Zhou Guanyu retiring from the race. It was the team’s first double DNF at Interlagos since 2002.

Alfa Romeo at Interlagos in 2022.

After double Q1 exits in 2016 and 2017, Sauber returned to the top half of the grid in 2018, with both cars reaching the final part of qualifying, and Marcus Ericsson qualifying a career-best seventh. It was the first time since 2007 that both Sauber drivers had reached Q3.

Felipe Massa recorded Sauber’s best qualifying result at Interlagos, with fourth in 2004. In 2021, both Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi were out in Q2, while both drivers were out in Q1 in 2022 – though they moved up to 13th and 14th in the Sprint. Both drivers were out in Q1 once again in 2023.

HAAS

WINS: 0, POLES: 1, PODIUMS: 0 | 2023 SAO PAULO GRAND PRIX RESULT: HULKENBERG 12th, MAGNUSSEN DNF

Kevin Magnussen recorded the Haas team’s first ever pole position in Formula 1 by setting the fastest time on Friday afternoon in 2022. While Magnussen mastered the wet, he lost positions in the Saturday race and started only eighth – which is still one of the team’s best starting positions at the track.

Haas scored at the Brazilian Grand Prix for the first and so far only time in 2018. Both Romain Grosjean and Magnussen scored points in 2018, with eighth and ninth place finishes. It marked the first season where neither Haas car failed to finish the race.

Both cars failed to finish in 2016. After a great qualifying performance, Grosjean crashed on the slippery track on his way to the grid, while Esteban Gutierrez retired just a handful of laps from the finish. Neither car scored in 2019 or 2021, but both drivers made it to the end of the Grands Prix.

After his strong qualifying performance in 2022, Magnussen was eliminated in a first lap collision with Daniel Ricciardo. Mick Schumacher could finish no higher than 13th. Magnussen was again out on Lap 1 in 2023, while Nico Hulkenberg finished 12th.

Haas recorded their first double Q3 appearance at the Brazilian Grand Prix in 2019. Romain Grosjean has reached Q3 here three times with the team. The Frenchman qualified in seventh in 2016 and in ninth in 2018. In 2019, Grosjean qualified eighth while Kevin Magnussen qualified tenth. Magnussen’s 2022 pole was the first time a Haas driver qualified in the top six at Interlagos.

2021 was the first time that the team recorded a Q1 exit at the circuit. They remain the team’s only Q1 eliminations here.

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