Sao Paulo, Brazil, November 8, 2026: Lando Norris is hoping for another rain-affected race at the 2026 FIA Formula 1 São Paulo Grand Prix after securing pole position in a dramatic qualifying session at Interlagos. The McLaren driver admitted that his team lacked the pace of Mercedes in dry conditions but made the most of the changing weather to claim his third consecutive pole at the Brazilian circuit. George Russell, who qualified second, rued a communication error that potentially cost him pole position, while Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli was confident of challenging Norris from the front row.

Norris produced a fastest lap of 1:27.470 in Q3 to beat Russell by 0.204 seconds, with Antonelli completing the top three. However, Russell’s five-place grid penalty means Antonelli is set to start alongside Norris on the front row for Sunday’s race, subject to the final starting-grid confirmation.

The qualifying session was heavily influenced by changing weather conditions, with two red flags interrupting proceedings before the rain intensified during Q3. Norris capitalised on the improving track conditions early in the final segment, knowing that the opportunity to improve his time could disappear as the rain became heavier.

Speaking during the post-qualifying press conference, Norris described the session as particularly tense, given the rapidly deteriorating conditions.

“It was a tense session, especially knowing the weather was only going to get worse. You could already on that lap see that it was getting a little bit wetter and starting to rain more, so I knew that was probably my only chance, those two laps,” Norris explained.

The McLaren driver admitted that balancing the need to push for a competitive lap with the risk of making a mistake was particularly challenging.

“It’s a lot to try and do and be correct on in such a short amount of time and under such pressure. But actually, I felt pretty confident through the whole of qualifying. Q3 was definitely the trickiest because it was also difficult to see, because of the light, where were the dry bits, the wet bits and puddles, things like that,” he added.

Norris admits McLaren lacked Mercedes’ dry-weather pace

Despite securing pole position, Norris was candid about McLaren’s relative performance throughout the weekend, acknowledging that the team had not matched Mercedes’ pace in dry conditions.

The Briton suggested that the wet weather had provided an opportunity to challenge for pole, particularly after he found confidence in the car during the opening qualifying segment.

“We’re lucky it’s wet, because if it was dry, I wouldn’t be sitting here. In the dry, we definitely didn’t have the pace,” Norris said.

He also revealed that this was his first experience driving the 2026 McLaren in wet conditions, making the qualifying session an important learning opportunity.

“Already in Q1, I seemed very quick from the off and had a lot of confidence in the car, so that’s a good sign. But I mean, I try and get pole everywhere. It’s just they’ve come together well here, and I do like the track,” he said.

Norris also acknowledged that the latest McLaren upgrades had delivered performance, although the improvements were not particularly noticeable from behind the wheel.

“They’ve brought performance. If we didn’t have them, we’d be slower. So, I think I have to say a big thanks to the team because they’re still working very hard on trying to give me this opportunity to go quicker and put the car on pole, and I’m very happy that I managed to do it for them today,” he added.

With further rain expected on race day, Norris made it clear that he would prefer another wet contest rather than a completely dry Grand Prix.

“I was certainly more confident in the wet and inters than I was in the dry. I think in the dry we just didn’t have the pace compared to these guys, so I’ll certainly be happier if I wake up and see rain in the morning,” he said.

Russell rues Mercedes miscommunication that cost him pole opportunity

Russell was left frustrated after qualifying second, believing that he had the pace to challenge Norris for pole position.

The Mercedes driver revealed that a communication issue with the team prevented him from completing what he believed was a potentially competitive final lap in Q3.

Russell had caught up with Alexander Albon during his run and was instructed to back off. However, the rain intensified before he could make another attempt.

“I think it was just a bit of miscommunication. I need to speak with the team because we believed we’d get another lap before the rain came in. So, I was on a really strong lap and I was asked to back off because I caught up with Albon, and then obviously the rain came,” Russell explained.

The Briton admitted that pole position had been within reach, but stressed that the team needed to understand how the decision was made rather than single out individuals.

Asked whether he had considered ignoring the instruction from his race engineer, Russell said the drivers had to trust the information coming from the team.

“They’ve got the weather forecast in front of them and I don’t. And, you know, this is where you need that trust and you’re relying on one another,” he said.

“Obviously, it was the wrong decision, and it was a decision that I think as soon as it was made, I think we knew it was the wrong one because already they could actually feel the rain pouring harder.”

Russell added that Mercedes needed to examine its weather forecasting systems and communication processes to understand what had gone wrong.

“It’s not my engineer’s fault. He’s relaying information. He’s ultimately the one who passes the message on, but he’s got 12 people talking to him, giving him that information to relay on. So, we just need to understand why we made that decision,” he explained.

Russell confident of challenging for victory despite grid penalty

Despite losing a potential pole position and facing a five-place grid penalty, Russell remained optimistic about Mercedes’ prospects in Sunday’s race.

The Briton believed that his pace in wet conditions, alongside Norris, had been among the strongest throughout qualifying. He also felt that the absence of some of the usual front-running contenders from the immediate battle could create opportunities.

“I think so. You know, I felt really confident in the rain. I think my pace, along with Lando’s, was by far the best out there,” Russell said when asked whether he could still challenge for victory.

The Mercedes driver also recalled his previous battle with Norris at Interlagos, referring to the 2024 São Paulo Grand Prix, when the two drivers were fighting at the front before an unfortunate Virtual Safety Car timing affected their prospects.

“Lando and I had a race here two years ago when we were one and two, and unfortunate timing of the VSC, and we were off the podium,” Russell recalled.

Antonelli ready for front-row challenge against Norris

Antonelli qualified third with a lap of 1:28.095, 0.625 seconds behind Norris. However, Russell’s grid penalty is expected to promote the young Italian to the front row alongside the McLaren driver.

The Mercedes youngster admitted that the changing conditions made it difficult to extract the maximum performance from the car, particularly as he was experiencing wet conditions at Interlagos for the first time.

Antonelli explained that he had limited experience on intermediate tyres during Q2, having completed only an out-lap before returning to the pits. This left him with little preparation for the conditions he encountered in Q3.

“It was tricky because I was trying different lines during the lap and trying to understand where the best grip was. But obviously, on that second lap, the rain started to get quite intense, especially in the second half, so it was a bit more difficult to gain lap time,” Antonelli said.

He also revealed that a significant moment at Turn 5 and a loss of time at Turn 9 prevented him from improving his position.

“Just was trying some different lines, so it didn’t really quite work out for me. But let’s see if tomorrow is going to be wet. Definitely, I will have a lot more knowledge about the car and about the conditions,” he added.

Asked about the prospect of starting alongside Norris, Antonelli was confident that Mercedes had the performance to challenge for victory, regardless of the weather.

“Yeah, I think we do. Hopefully, we can get off the line well, and let’s see if it’s going to be wet or dry. In the dry, I felt very good over a single lap and on the long run, especially yesterday in FP2. So yeah, let’s see. I’m looking forward to it,” he said.