Lando Norris secured pole position for the São Paulo Grand Prix on Saturday. Following his brilliant victory at the Mexican Grand Prix, he confirmed his strong form by also securing the best starting position for the Brazilian weekend. With title rivals Oscar Piastri and Max Verstappen in P4 and P16 respectively, Norris seems assured of a good result. However, he fears Mercedes, which could surprisingly perform well at Interlagos.
According to Norris, the cooler conditions favor Mercedes. During the Grand Prix on Sunday, it cools down significantly on and around the circuit, which could potentially benefit the Silberpfeile – in the past, the W16 often came to life in low temperatures. Kimi Antonelli also qualified just behind Norris on Saturday and will start from the front row on Sunday – his best starting position ever in Formula 1. Teammate George Russell had to settle for the sixth time.
Decreased Confidence
After the qualification, Lando Norris was asked about his confidence level for the main event. “I think in terms of race pace, I don’t have the most confidence I’ve ever had,” he admitted candidly. “I was much more confident in Mexico. I think my confidence has significantly decreased after this morning, considering the pace of Mercedes and Kimi. That being said, we are still fast. We still had that slight advantage in the qualification, and I really hope we can maintain that in tomorrow’s race.”
“But the weather is going to change again – I think it’s going to get even colder, which might suit Mercedes even better,” Norris continued cautiously. “And the wind will probably shift, so it’s hard to say.” Nevertheless, Norris’ pole position puts him in an excellent position to further extend his lead in the championship. After his sprint victory, he now has a nine-point lead over teammate Oscar Piastri. “The feeling I have on one circuit is different from another,” he said about his current form. “But I just feel like I’m doing well. Earlier in the season, I had some weak points, but that’s much less now. It’s not about a tenth anymore, but about two hundredths.”
