Sao Paulo (AFP) – British F1 driver Lando Norris (McLaren), world champion in 2025, won the Brazilian Grand Prix on Sunday in Sao Paulo, ahead of the two Red Bulls of Dutchman Max Verstappen and Frenchman Isack Hadjar.

Published on: 08/11/2026 - 20:24

At the end of this thrilling 20th round of the World Championship, Mercedes also won the constructors' world title thanks to the fourth and fifth places of its drivers, the Briton George Russell and the Italian Kimi Antonelli, crowned 2026 world champion last weekend in Mexico.

“It was a very hard race,” admitted Norris upon arrival at the microphone of the F1 organizer, after taking pole on Saturday, his third in a row in Brazil and having managed the lead of the race on 47 of the 71 laps of the Interlagos circuit in Sao Paulo.

The GP was very lively with the tire changing strategies of the teams, depending on the showers - the rain had completely disrupted the qualifying session on Saturday evening.

“There were a lot of challenges to overcome today, the weather conditions and driving with slick tires in the wet is difficult,” added Norris, 26, who won his third Grand Prix of the year, after Hungary and the Netherlands this summer.

The feat of the day also came from Verstappen, who started from the back of the grid for a penalty due to an engine change and who finished in second place.

He also said that the Interlagos GP had been "filled with challenges" and that he had been able to overtake many cars to move up, as he did in 2024 in Sao Paulo, from 17th to victory that year.

As for his young Parisian teammate, Hadjar, 22, he signed his third podium of the year with Red Bull and confided that it was "so hard" to stay on the track that he compared it to "ice", particularly in his fight against Antonelli.

Mercedes now has enough points in the provisional constructors' standings to be assured of the world champion title, three GPs before the end (Las Vegas, Qatar and Abu Dhabi), ahead of Ferrari.

“It took us a few years to get back to the top (...). Few teams can do it,” rejoiced the boss of the German team, Toto Wolff, about this ninth world title, the first since 2021. Mercedes succeeds McLaren, titled in 2024 and 2025.

© 2026 AFP

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