Kevin Magnussen, discreet driver of the peloton, ranked 13th in the World Championship, lived his day of glory in F1 with his first pole position. Thanks to the rain, the Dane gave Haas the first preferential starting position in his seven seasons in F1. The Nordic will start ahead of Max Verstappen in the sprint race this Saturday (8:30 p.m.) over 24 laps.
"I don't know what to say, the team took me out at the right time. We were the first in the pit lane and I did a pretty decent lap," said Magnussen, 30, who returned to F1 this season "after of a sabbatical year.
The session started with the asphalt wet from the rain and the cars riding intermediate wet tyres, although the track dried up with the passing of the cars and the minutes. An uncertainty that led to changes to slick of the most daring. And that led to surprising results, such as the momentary first place of Latifi or that of Albion, of Williams, the cinderella. Norris closed Q1 with the fastest time. Sainz suffered, 14th, on the edge of the cut.
In Q2, the 15 cars with soft rubber (red) and the threat of rain on the radar. Without a clear dominator, the favorites hiding cards, Norris became a reference, then Alonso and finally Verstappen, imposing his champion law. The weather worsened, the sky darkened and drops fell on Interlagos with 6 minutes to go. The weakest were left out of the top 10, without surprises. Alonso entered as 6th and Sainz 2nd.
In the definitive Q3, Leclerc was the only one who wore the intermediates; the other nine, with soft. The Monegasque played it, who destroyed the tires and had to change them in the middle of the sleeve. With the rain getting heavier by the minute, Magnussen set the fastest time. Russell went to the gravel and the red flag appeared with 8 minutes to go, so the times would remain as they were with the rain becoming more and more persistent, and the cars returning to intermediate shoes.
So Magnussen and Haas made history, thanks to one of those winks of sporting fortune towards the modest. The rain made it possible for a small fish to eat the F1 sharks. Magnussen has taken 8 seasons, 140 grand prix, to score his first pole position. It took him much less time to score his first podium: it was on his debut in Australia in 2014.
Carlos Sainz will penalize five positions on the starting grid on Sunday by receiving a new combustion engine, the sixth of the season. The penalty will be applied in the feature race, and will not affect the Sprint race on Saturday.
1. Kevin Magnussen (Haas)
2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
3. George Russell (Mercedes)
4. Lando Norris (McLaren)
5. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)
6. Esteban Ocon (Alpine)
7. Fernando Alonso (Alpine)
8. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
9. Sergio Perez (Red Bull)
10. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
11. Alex Albon (Williams)
12. Pierre Gasly (Alpha Tauri)
13. Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin)
14. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren)
15. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
16. Nicolas Latifi (Williams)
17. Guanyu Zhou (Alfa Romeo)
18. Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo)
19. Yuki Tsunoda (Alpha Tauri)
20.Mick Schumacher (Haas)
