Max Verstappen took his 17th win of the 2023 Formula 1 season with victory at the Brazilian Grand Prix, having fended off Lando Norris’s early challenge for the lead.
There was early drama before the race even started with Charles Leclerc had suffered a hydraulic issue on the formation lap and hit the wall at Ferradura, which killed his race before it had even begun.
This opened up a grid space on the front row, which Norris moved into as the slow-starting Fernando Alonso ahead offered a prime opportunity to break down the inside into the first corner and collect second, as Lewis Hamilton rounded both Aston Martins on the outside to slot in behind.
The race was red-flagged thanks to a crash between Alex Albon and Kevin Magnussen at the first corner, and Norris crucially held off Hamilton at the restart to ensure he retained second place.
Norris began to put Verstappen under scrutiny over the next three tours and harried him on the eighth lap, when he attempted to prise open a gap on the outside of the first corner.
This was to be Lando’s only real chance of the race with the gap between the leaders soon opened to over two seconds as Norris struggled to get back on level terms, with the arrears continuing to increase as Verstappen had the pace advantage.
Fernando Alonso took the final podium position after a stunning drive in the Aston Martin, re-passing Sergio Perez’s Red Bull on the last lap after losing the place a lap before.
Mercedes had their worst race of 2023, Lewis Hamilton finishing eighth and George Russell retiring when running 11th.
Stroll also went some way to answering his critics after a poor season in which he has usually lagged well behind Alonso with a strong drive to fifth, ahead of Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, Alpine’s Pierre Gasly and Hamilton. Tsunoda & Gasly took completed the top 10.
