News and Views from a Wet F1 Brazilian Grand Prix in Sao Paulo

Formula 1 learns from its past failures in the rain, South Africa inches closer to possible return to schedule, and Gabriel Bortoleto inches closer to a 2025 seat.

Autoweek rounds up some talking points from the São Paulo Grand Prix weekend.

Formula 1 Learns From Past Weather Failures

Saturday’s forecast at Interlagos was for a risk of thundery showers and the deluge that struck proved worse than expected, wiping out the remainder of track running for the day.

Sunday’s weather forecast had long been for heavy and persistent rain, particularly in the afternoon, and the race was scheduled for 2 p.m. local time.

In past years, race times have not changed and the championship has been caught out, most notably in Belgium in 2021 and Japan in 2022, when races were cut short due to heavy rain and fading light.

This time, Formula 1 and the FIA were proactive in bringing forward the race start time to 12:30 p.m. local time—the earliest race for many years—while the delayed qualifying session began at the very early hour of 7:30 a.m. As it transpired, a race start time of 2 p.m. would have been fine, as the intensity of rain was not as bad as feared, bar a brief heavier interlude that triggered a safety car during the race.

The early qualifying session did mean an exceptionally early wake-up call of 4 a.m. for many in the paddock on Sunday, given the traffic in São Paulo and the need to prep the cars for the session. Given it came at the end of an intense triple header of grands prix across the Americas there were a fair few tired faces in the paddock at the close of play.

Leclerc Hit with Fine for Swearing

Remember Charles Leclerc swearing in the post-race press conference in Mexico City?

Well, he met with the stewards in São Paulo, who issued him a €10,000 (approx. $10,800) fine (half of which is suspended) rather than the community service order given to Max Verstappen in Singapore.

The reasoning for a lessened sanction was that the language “was not directed at anyone or any group and that Leclerc immediately apologized,” both during the press conference and with the stewards afterwards, while pointing to the fact that Leclerc had been asked a leading question about his feelings in the moment.

Stewards noted that because a breach has occurred a penalty is warranted, but added that the breach was lesser than Verstappen’s use of a profanity in Singapore.

Colapinto-mania

Brazil is Formula 1’s outpost in South America and despite the usual rivalry between Brazil and Argentina, there was a frenzied reception to Williams’ new boy Franco Colapinto.

Argentina has hugely got behind its latest sporting hero—with social media traffic at Williams spiking since his promotion—and more flights were put on between Buenos Aires and São Paulo to cope with the increased demand, though some were disrupted by a transport strike on Thursday.

Colapinto even had a security guard shadowing him during Thursday’s pit lane walkabout, with fans clamoring to get a sight of the Williams driver. A huge group of Colapinto fans gathered on Saturday evening in one of São Paulo’s main square while he was among the most cheered by trackside spectators prior to the start of the race.

Colapinto himself nonetheless had a more challenging weekend both off- and on-track. His grandfather, Leonidas, passed away on Thursday evening, while the youngster crashed out both in qualifying and the race.

Senior officials from Argentina’s motorsport federation were also at Interlagos and held meetings with Stefano Domenicali over the prospect of reviving the country’s grand prix, which has not been held since 1998.

Ocon Ready for Haas Colors

Alpine driver Esteban Ocon is set to have his first outing for future employers Haas at the postseason test in Abu Dhabi in December.

The test at Yas Marina has traditionally been a chance for some drivers to get an early run with their new teams, despite being under contract with present teams until the end of December. Haas has reached an agreement with Alpine for Ocon to drive the VF-24 on December 10.

Per the rules of the test, teams have one car being used for a Pirelli tire test, which Ocon will drive, and another dedicated to young drivers, which had been earmarked for Ollie Bearman. However, due to Bearman partaking in the São Paulo Grand Prix, he no longer qualifies for that car, as the rules state that drivers can only be classified as a "young driver" if they have entered no more than two races—and São Paulo was his third.

Haas’ current driver, Nico Hulkenberg, is expected to get a chance to run for Sauber, while Williams is hopeful that it can field its new recruit Carlos Sainz.

“It’s very important—it’ll be the first time Esteban will drive our car,” said Haas Team Principal Ayao Komatsu. “The regulations are stable so next year’s car is an evolution, so it’s good he’ll taste the car as soon as possible, so that he can see the strengths and weaknesses, and then if he has any input we can still work on it during the development.”

Kyalami Takes Next Steps for F1 Return

South African circuit Kyalami says it has begun preparing a roadmap to upgrade its circuit to FIA Grade 1 status as it strives to return to the Formula 1 calendar.

South Africa has not featured on the schedule since 1993 but has been linked to a comeback for several years, as Formula 1 strives to hold a grand prix on each habitable continent. Lewis Hamilton has been particularly vocal about his desire for the championship to compete in Africa.

South Africa’s Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture, Gayton McKenzie met with F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali at the recent Azerbaijan Grand Prix for discussions and the minister noted that they are “one step closer” to bringing the sport back to the country. Kyalami has now engaged Apex Circuit Design to highlight the changes required to secure FIA Grade 1 accreditation, with the venue currently Grade 2.

Any prospective South African GP is nonetheless still several years away from reality given the timeframe involved in updating the circuit, upgrading the infrastructure, not to mention securing the necessary long-term finances. Formula 1 remains in dialogue with officials in Rwanda for a Grand Prix but this would be in the late 2020s at the earliest.