Did A Shocking Saturday In Brazil Just Decide The F1 Drivers Championship?

Going into Saturday, it still looked like the Formula 1 Drivers' Championship was anyone's game.

After Saturday? Not as much.

There are just four race weekends, plus two Sprint Races, the first of which took place on Saturday morning, with McLaren's Lando Norris — who entered the weekend with a one-point lead over his teammate Oscar Piastri — on pole.

Meanwhile, the only other driver with a chance to take the title is four-time champion Max Verstappen, whose Red Bull started in P6.

While not a full-wet race, the track surface in São Paulo was damp and greasy, especially off the racing line, conditions that have historically worked well for Verstappen.

However, Norris got a great jump and built a gap to Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli in P2, with Piastri close behind.

But this is where things got nuts. Piastri took a bit too much curb and spun out into the barrier.

Some of the water that he put on the track also caused Sauber's Nico Hulkenberg and Alpine's Franco Colapinto to find the wall as well, and that brought out the red flag.

But, crucially, with Norris leading and Piastri crashing out, that meant that an 8-point swing was possible.

The race finished under caution after a massive crash by Sauber's Gabriel Bortoleto — a bummer of a way to end his home race — and Norris scooped up 8 points for the win. Stretching his championship lead to 9 points.

As for Verstappen, he struggled for grip in the Sprint but managed to come home in P4, which was good for 5 points.

Max Verstappen suffered a shocking early exit in qualifying which had major championship implications. (Photo by Kym Illman/Getty Images)

Things Stayed Wild In Qualifying

But that wasn't the only session of the day as qualifying for the Grand Prix took place in the afternoon, and this is where Verstappen's championship hopes may have gone down in flames.

Remember when I said he struggled for grip in the Sprint? Well, that carried over into qualifying, where the Dutchman made a shocking Q1 exit.

A stunner.

Interlagos is not one of those tracks where overtaking is impossible… but Verstappen is going to have to do a lot of it on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Norris continued his heater and qualified on pole for Sunday's Grand Prix. Crucially, Piastri will start P4 with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc in P3 and Antonelli (who has been great this weekend) in P2 between himself and his teammate.

If Norris scampers off like he did in the first part of the Sprint Race, it's going to be hard for Piastri to catch him, and if the Brit can extend his championship lead, it won't clinch the title, but it will put him in control heading into the final three weekends in Las Vegas, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi.