F1 news: Brazilian Grand Prix grid changed as Max Verstappen punished by FIA
Express Sport has the latest F1 news and updates on the day of the Brazilian Grand Prix as Lando Norris battles Oscar Piastri and Max Verstappen.
Lando Norris extended his drivers' world championship lead on Saturday after winning the sprint in Sao Paulo. The Brit leads McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri by nine points after the Australian crashed out.
Max Verstappen came fourth behind the Mercedes pair Kimi Antonelli and George Russell. The Red Bull driver gained five points on Piastri, but the gap to Norris grew by three more and is now 39.
That could increase even further as the championship leader is on pole, while Verstappen, who was due to start 16th after being eliminated in the first session of qualifying, will now begin the race at 5pm UK time from the pit lane after changing his engine. Antonelli and Ferrari's Charles Leclerc separate the McLaren drivers, with Piastri starting fourth.
Follow along below for all the latest F1 news from the Brazilian Grand Prix...
KEY EVENTS
Lando Norris worried about Mercedes
Pole-sitter Lando Norris is wary of the Mercedes of Kimi Antonelli behind him for this evening's race.
The young Italian starts second while his team-mate George Russell is in P6.
And Norris, bidding for a win to strengthen his chances of winning a maiden F1 title, said yesterday: "In terms of our race pace, it's not the most [confidence] I've had.
"I think after this morning, with the Mercedes pace and Kimi's pace, it certainly lowered my confidence level altogether.
"But we're still quick. We've still got that little advantage in qualifying, and I really hope that we can continue that into the race tomorrow.
"But the weather is going to change again - I think it's meant to be even colder, which might suit them even more. And the wind is meant to change also. So it's difficult."
Daniel Ricciardo spotted at Premier League match
Daniel Ricciardo is spending his Sunday at the Gtech Community Stadium to watch Brentford play Newcastle United in the Premier League.
Daniel Ricciardo at Brentford vs Newcastle! \ud83c\udfc1 pic.twitter.com/oPVdu3zsDs
\u2014 Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) November 9, 2025
F1 confirm Verstappen and one other driver will start from the pit lane
Esteban Ocon will join Max Verstappen in the pit lane at the start of the Brazilian Grand Prix after having a new Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) fitted, which exceeds his season allocations for all elements.
The FIA have confirmed that Verstappen's car also has a new ICE, as well as a new Turbocharger (TC), Motor Generator Unit-Heat (MGU-H), Motor Generator Unit-Kinetic (MGU-K), Energy Store (ES) and Control Electronics (CE).
A pre-race note from the FIA reads:
"All the above-listed PU elements were changed during Parc Ferme without the approval of the FIA Technical Delegate. Also, changes have been made to the setup of the suspension of car number 01 (Verstappen) without the approval of the FIA technical delegate.
"Therefore, car numbers 01 and 31 (Ocon) should now be required to start the race from the pit lane according to Article 40.9 a) of the 2025 Formula One Sporting Regulations.”
Lando Norris: "I just feel like I'm doing a good job. I'm driving well."
Lando Norris believes that addressing his weaknesses has helped him improve as the season has progressed.
"I just feel like I'm doing a good job. I'm driving well.
"Before, earlier in the season, I would just have weaknesses, and I feel like I've, let's say, I've maybe still got some here and there, but I've lessened them.
They're not like 0.1secs now — it's two hundredths. So when I can put together the good parts and have those not-so-bad parts, things go very well."
Brazilian Grand Prix grid after Max Verstappen penalty
1. Lando Norris (McLaren)
2. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
4. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
5. Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls)
6. George Russell (Mercedes)
7. Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls)
8. Oliver Bearman (Haas)
9. Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
10. Nico Hulkenberg (Stake)
11. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
12. Alex Albon (Williams)
13. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
14. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
15. Carlos Sainz (Williams)
16. Esteban Ocon (Haas)
17. Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
18. Yuki Tsunoda (Red Bull)
19. Gabriel Bortoleto (Stake)
Pit Lane Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
F1 record broken after closest ever Q3
Even without Max Verstappen, yesterday's Q3 was the closest ever, with P1 and P10 separated by just 0.528s. Lando Norris led the way with a fastest lap of 1:09:511, with Nico Hulkenberg coming 10th.
Lewis Hamilton airs Ferrari frustrations
Lewis Hamilton aired his frustrations after qualifying in 13th place, describing the Brazilian Grand Prix as "another write-off weekend".
"The set-up is fine, just couldn’t get the tyres working. Tyre temps. It’s all done in the garage. The rears are at a place that I can’t get to the temperature for them to stop that."
"I’ll just do what I can tomorrow. It just continues to go bad every weekend, but I’ll get up tomorrow and try again."
"I’m not expecting anything, to be honest, but we’ll see what happens. It’s another write-off weekend, I guess."
Verstappen: "There was just no grip"
Max Verstappen conceded after qualifying that he and Red Cull do not know why they are so uncompetitive.
"We need to understand what our problems are, first of all. It's not been good. It seems that we don't really understand why it's going that way.
"There was just no grip. I changed a few times the car and it didn't work. That's something that we need to figure out."
Max Verstappen will start in the pit lane
Max Verstappen will start the Brazilian Grand Prix in the pit lane rather than 16th on the grid. Red Bull Racing is changing the RB21's engine and adjusting its setup, according to the Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf.
