Verstappen wins from 17th on the grid, Alpine record their first double podium finish in 11 years and Hulkenberg is the first driver to be disqualified during a race since 2007. Here are the facts and statistics from the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
VERSTAPPEN WINS THE 2024 SAO PAULO GRAND PRIX
Max Verstappen recorded his first Grand Prix victory in over four months, winning the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix from 17th on the grid. It ended a ten-race win-less streak – his longest such streak since the 11 races between the 2020 Spanish and Sakhir Grands Prix.
This was Verstappen’s third win at Interlagos, making him only the fourth driver – after Michael Schumacher, Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton – to win as many as three Grands Prix at the track.
Verstappen’s win was the first from 17th on the grid since Kimi Raikkonen won from that position at the 2005 Japanese Grand Prix. It was the third win in total from 17th on the grid, with John Watson’s win at the 1982 Detroit Grand Prix being the only other F1 win from 17th.
In total, this was the fifth Grand Prix to be won from 17th or further back on the grid after the 1982 Detroit Grand Prix, the 1983 United States Grand Prix West, the 2000 German Grand Prix and the
Verstappen became the first driver in Formula 1 history to win from as many as ten different grid positions.
This was the 30th time that Verstappen won a Grand Prix having not started from pole position. He is only the fourth driver to record as many as 30 wins having not started from pole, after Alain Prost, Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton.
Verstappen’s podium was the tenth in Formula 1 history to be recorded from 17th on the grid. It was the first podium result scored from this position since Romain Grosjean finished third in the 2013 Indian Grand Prix.
Verstappen won the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix by 19.477 seconds – the largest winning margin at Interlagos since the 2000 Brazilian Grand Prix.
Verstappen became the first driver to win at Interlagos in successive seasons since Nico Rosberg in 2014 and 2015.
Gaining 16 positions over the course of the race, this was the most places Verstappen has gained in a Grand Prix since making up 18 positions during the 2021 Russian Grand Prix. He had never previously gained more than three places in a Grand Prix at Interlagos.
This was Verstappen’s sixth podium finish in Brazil, making him the fifth driver to record as many as six podium finishes at Interlagos.
For the 40th time in his career, Verstappen was voted Driver of The Day, with one of the largest winning margins ever seen in the vote.
Race day in Brazil marked the 897th consecutive day on which Verstappen has led the Drivers’ Championship standings, having been at the top of the order since the 2022 Spanish Grand Prix. That saw him overtake Michael Schumacher’s former record of 896 days leading the championship from the 2000 United States Grand Prix to the 2003 Australian Grand Prix.
With Verstappen scoring points in the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix, this was the 65th consecutive race at which Red Bull have scored points. It saw them overtake McLaren for the second-longest scoring streak for a team in Formula 1 history.
DOUBLE ALPINE PODIUM
Max Verstappen was joined on the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix podium by the two Alpine drivers – Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly.
Having not finished in the top eight positions in any of the first 20 races of the year, Alpine recorded a double podium result. This was the Enstone team’s first double podium finish since the team was under its Lotus guise at the 2013 South Korean Grand Prix.
This was the first time that the Enstone-based team finished on the podium at Interlagos since 2008, when Fernando Alonso finished second with Renault. The team had never previously recorded a double podium result here in any of their guises.
The 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix marked the first time since the 1997 Spanish Grand Prix that two French drivers finished on the podium.
Esteban Ocon recorded the fourth podium finish of his career – his first since the 2023 Monaco Grand Prix. This was his best result since his victory at the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix and his first second place finish since his maiden podium at the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix.
Ocon’s second place marked the first time he has scored a point, or finished in the top 12, in a Grand Prix since the 2024 Belgian Grand Prix.
Ocon had never previously finished in the top seven at Interlagos.
Interlagos becomes the first circuit at which Pierre Gasly has taken multiple podium finishes in his career. He recorded the first podium of his career at the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix.
Gasly became the 27th driver to record multiple podium finishes at Interlagos.
This was Gasly’s fifth podium finish in total – his first since the 2023 Dutch Grand Prix. All of Gasly’s last three podium finishes have been third place finishes.
Gasly’s podium marked the first time since 2012 that the driver starting 13th in Brazil scored a point.
This was the first podium finish recorded from 13th on the grid since Kimi Raikkonen finished third in the 2013 Singapore Grand Prix.
This was the first race in which none of the top three starters finished in the top three positions since the 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
The 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix was the first race since the 2019 German Grand Prix in which two drivers who started outside of the top ten on the grid finished on the podium. It was the 28th Grand Prix in total in which this has happened.
IN THE POINTS
George Russell finished fourth in the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix, recording a fifth consecutive top five finish.
For only the second time in the last eight races, Charles Leclerc did not finish on the podium. Finishing fifth, he retained his record of finishing in the top five at all of the last nine Grands Prix.
Having started from pole position, Lando Norris finished sixth in the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix. He became the first Interlagos polesitter to fail to finish on the podium since 2012, when Lewis Hamilton retired from the race. That was the last time prior to 2024 that a McLaren driver took pole at the track.
This was the first time Norris finished outside of the top five since his retirement at the Austrian Grand Prix.
With Norris sixth and Oscar Piastri eighth, this was the first race since the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix in which neither McLaren driver finished in the top five.
This was the first time Piastri scored a point in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix. He finished 14th last year.
The 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix was the first time since 2019 that both McLaren drivers finished in the points in Brazil.
Both RB drivers finished in the points, recording the Red Bull junior team’s first double points-scoring race since the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. It was the team’s first double points race at Interlagos since the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix.
Yuki Tsunoda finished seventh, scoring his first Grand Prix points since the Hungarian Grand Prix. This was his third seventh place result of the season, having also finished seventh at the Australian and Miami Grands Prix.
With ninth place, Liam Lawson equalled the best result of his career to date. He also finished ninth at the 2023 Singapore Grand Prix and the 2024 United States Grand Prix. Every time Lawson has scored points, he has done so with a ninth place result.
Finishing tenth, Lewis Hamilton made this the third consecutive season in which the driver starting 14th in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix scored a point.
Hamilton’s tenth place marked his worst result at Interlagos since retiring from the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix.
THE OTHER FINISHERS
Sergio Perez finished 11th, failing to score for a second consecutive race. In the last 15 races, he has recorded a single top six result.
Perez’s 11th place made this his first visit to Brazil since 2015 in which he did not score any points.
Ollie Bearman finished 12th in the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix, failing to score in a Grand Prix for the first time in his career. With Bearman 12th and Nico Hulkenberg disqualified, this was the first race in which Haas failed to score since the Italian Grand Prix.
With 13th place, Valtteri Bottas recorded the Sauber team’s best result since the Canadian Grand Prix, where he also finished 13th.
Finishing 14th, Fernando Alonso failed to score at the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix. This is the first time he has failed to score at as many as three races in a row since failing to score at all four races between the 2022 Saudi Arabian and Miami Grands Prix.
This was the first time since 2018 that Alonso failed to score at Interlagos.
DNFs, DNSs AND DSQs
After a heavy crash in Q3 on Sunday morning, Alex Albon’s car could not be fixed in time for the start of the race. He therefore recorded the first DNS of his career.
This was the third time Albon failed to reach the chequered flag in the last four races.
Crashing out and getting beached in the gravel on the formation lap, Lance Stroll recorded the second DNS of his career. His first came as the result of a qualifying crash at the 2023 Singapore Grand Prix. The Aston Martin’s driver’s off led to an aborted start procedure.
It was the second year in a row that a driver crashed out on the formation lap at Interlagos, with Charles Leclerc having done the same thing last year.
As a result of two extra formation laps, the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix ran to 69 laps rather than the scheduled 71. This was the first race to not reach its full distance since the 2023 Italian Grand Prix. It was the first Interlagos race to not reach full distance since the 2003 Brazilian Grand Prix.
Franco Colapinto was the first actual retirement from the race, crashing out before the halfway point. This was the first DNF of his career – and the first time he finished outside of the top 12 positions.
With Albon failing to start and Colapinto retiring, Williams recorded their first double non-finish in Brazil since 2012.
Carlos Sainz also crashed out of the race, recording his first retirement at Interlagos since his maiden season in 2015. This was Sainz’s third DNF of the season.
After going off track, Nico Hulkenberg received outside assistance on his way to re-joining the race. As a result of the assistance, Hulkenberg was shown the black flag and disqualified from the race. He was the first driver to be disqualified during a Grand Prix since the 2007 Canadian Grand Prix, when both Felipe Massa and Giancarlo Fisichella were shown the black for exiting the pits under a red light.
2017 remains the last time that Hulkenberg scored a point in a Grand Prix at Interlagos.
This was the second time, after the 2019 Japanese Grand Prix, that Hulkenberg has been disqualified from the race. He is the 29th different driver to record multiple DSQs during his career. Lewis Hamilton is the only other current driver with more than one disqualification.
