F1 São Paulo Grand Prix 2025 Recap: Lando Norris extends championship lead with comfortable win

Lando Norris built on his championship lead after putting in a strong drive to win the 2025 Formula One São Paulo Grand Prix.

Even though Norris took the win, he had to share the spotlight with Max Verstappen, whose pit lane-to-P3 finish on the back of a drive for the ages made for sensational viewing.

Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli finished P2, rounding out a strong weekend for himself after a second-place finish in the Sprint as well.

Norris’ teammate, Oscar Piastri, had another troublesome outing and was handed a ten-second penalty, which left him playing catch-up for the majority of the race; he could only manage a P5 finish.

While the likes of McLaren, Red Bull, and Mercedes found their drivers on the podium, Ferrari had a Sunday to forget as both their drivers had to retire. Leaving São Paulo with zero points, the Scuderia have fallen further behind in the Constructors’ standings.

Lando Norris got the better start off the line, while Kimi Antonelli managed to keep Charles Leclerc at bay. Local boy Gabriel Bortoleto went into the wall early on after contact with Lance Stroll, which brought out the Safety Car on the opening lap itself. Lewis Hamilton also suffered wing damage early on and dropped right to the back of the pack. He was hit by Carlos Sainz at the start before Alpine’s Franco Colapinto clipped his front wing.

While Bortoleto’s race was declared over before it could begin, Hamilton went into the pits for a new front wing.

The Safety Car came in at the end of the fifth lap, with Norris getting the jump on Antonelli on the restart. While the top two kept it clean, Oscar Piastri tried to squeeze up the inside of Antonelli going into Turn 1 but instead hit the rookie Italian, who took out Leclerc in turn. The Ferrari driver lost his left front tyre and dropped to the back of the grid. Piastri moved up to P2 behind his teammate, while Antonelli lost a place and slotted in at P3.

Leclerc became the second retiree of the race as his car came to a halt on the track, bringing out the Virtual Safety Car. As the VSC ended, Norris got things going, with his teammate right on his gearbox.

Max Verstappen, meanwhile, having pitted under the Safety Car, was flying on his set of mediums. Despite starting from the pit lane, the reigning world champion was up to P14 by Lap 14.

Hamilton came into the pits on Lap 15 and switched to mediums. Piastri, meanwhile, was handed a ten-second penalty for his collision with Antonelli, which ended up taking Leclerc out of the race as well.

Ollie Bearman and Carlos Sainz pitted together on Lap 18, which brought Verstappen into the points as he stormed through the field to reach P9 by Lap 18. With Antonelli pitting on Lap 22 — the first of the frontrunners to pit — Verstappen moved up to P4, looking in a league of his own.

As the race entered Lap 30, Norris led from his teammate, being almost seven seconds clear at the top, while Verstappen was five seconds behind George Russell in fourth. Antonelli was another one who was flying through the field after his stop and was up to P5 in no time.

Norris came in for his stop on Lap 30, rejoining in P4 behind Verstappen, while Piastri inherited the lead of the race. Norris passed Verstappen for P3 on the main straight on Lap 33, having an advantage on a set of soft tyres.

Russell and Verstappen came in for their set of pit stops, with the Dutchman getting his second stop out of the way. He rejoined the track in P12 on a new set of mediums, while Russell came out in P7 after his first stop. Verstappen was in the points places in two laps’ time, once again being the quickest on the track after his stop.

Piastri came in for his stop on Lap 38, being the final driver on the track to pit. After serving his penalty, the Australian rejoined in P8 on a set of soft tyres. Hamilton, meanwhile, retired his car on Lap 39 — Ferrari suffering a double DNF. Piastri was up into P5 by Lap 43 when Bearman came in for his second stop amid another stellar outing.

As the race entered its final 20 laps, Norris came in for his second stop on Lap 51 and rejoined in third place behind Verstappen and Piastri, who was called in for his second stop a lap later and came out in P8. Piastri dispatched Bearman and Nico Hülkenberg in no time, moving up to P6 by Lap 54, while Verstappen was called in for his third stop on Lap 55 and switched to a set of softs, rejoining in P4.

Verstappen and Piastri were flying on their fresher tyres as the race entered its final ten laps. On Lap 63, Verstappen overtook George Russell in stunning fashion, going into Turn 1 to move into P3.

The final couple of laps saw Norris leaving the rest of the grid behind, with Antonelli using all his talent to keep Verstappen behind. Despite his lack of experience, Antonelli managed to stay ahead of the reigning world champion, who came inches away but finished P3.

Behind them, Russell — like his teammate — managed to hold off Piastri. Bearman put in another strong drive to finish P6, with Liam Lawson, Isack Hadjar, Hülkenberg, and Pierre Gasly rounding out the points places.

Norris’ win has put him 24 points clear of Piastri in the Drivers’ standings, while Verstappen is now 49 points behind Norris and creeping up on Piastri.

In the Constructors’ standings, Ferrari’s double DNF has seen them fall down to fourth, while Haas’ double points finish has seen them gain crucial points in the midfield battle.

Racing will move to Las Vegas in two weeks’ time, with three drivers still in the mix for the Drivers’ title.