Verstappen third again in São Paulo practice as Antonelli sets fastest time

Antonelli quickest in the second session

Kimi Antonelli set the fastest time in the second free practice for the São Paulo Grand Prix on Friday, 6 November, 0.253 seconds quicker than Lando Norris. Max Verstappen finished third, 0.259 seconds behind Antonelli. Antonelli had clinched the world title in Mexico City, and he led a session in which drizzle kept falling over the Interlagos circuit. At one stage the track was too wet for drivers to improve their lap times.

Lando Norris0.253

Max Verstappen0.259

Lando Norris

0.253 s

Max Verstappen

0.259 s

Data from the article text

Norris had posted the fastest time in the first session, where Verstappen was again third. Ferrari had a harder time than in recent weekends, with Lewis Hamilton sixth and Charles Leclerc seventh in the second session. That was partly expected given the type of circuit, and the top teams sat close together in the race simulations. Verstappen ran his long run on the medium tyre and ended his simulation early, climbing out with more than five minutes left on the clock.

Verstappen battles gearbox and steering

Verstappen again complained about gear changes that did not run smoothly, costing him speed. Late in the session he also reported a power steering problem, which made it hard to turn into right-hand corners. His race engineer for the weekend, Tom Hart, said the car would adapt to the way Verstappen drives. On the radio, the Dutch driver described the situation bluntly:

“It's unacceptable. Unacceptable! The downshifting is just terrible again!”

Verstappen is no longer in contention for the drivers' championship, but getting out quickly in the first session still mattered to him. He called the steering a real workout, a comment that matched the difficulties he had all day.

Camara's debut and incidents on track

Rafael Camara finished 16th on Friday, 6 November, in the first weekend of his Formula 1 career. The 21-year-old Brazilian is racing for Haas in place of Esteban Ocon, and he is currently leading the Formula 2 championship. Camara did not notice that Charles Leclerc was approaching at full speed, forcing the Ferrari driver to move right against the wall to avoid him. Gabriele Mini was seventh for Alpine, while Freddie Slater's Audi stopped with problems after eight laps. Several teams again put rookies in their cars in the first session, as each team must give an inexperienced driver a car four times per season. Colton Herta has now received his superlicence and appears to be among the candidates for a Cadillac seat next year.

Weather and the rest of the weekend

Rain chances increase through the weekend. Rain is mainly forecast for Saturday, 7 November, after qualifying starts at 19:00 Dutch time, and there is a chance of rain all day on Sunday, 8 November. During the second session, low clouds brought drizzle and mist hid the city from the circuit. George Russell was fourth in the second session, and he faces a five-place grid penalty after an engine change. McLaren brought a set of late-season updates, including a first version of next year's front wing.