The crucial lap that swung F1's Brazilian GP from Norris to Verstappen

The early demise of Charles Leclerc and a rocket first start from Lando Norris put the McLaren driver in a position to challenge Max Verstappen for the lead in Interlagos. But this proved fleeting as the Red Bull driver had enough in hand to romp away to his 17th win of the year

Published Nov 6, 2023, 9:29 AM

“If I was going to have one opportunity, it was going to be there and then.” Lando Norris hadn’t exactly raced out of the blocks on the Brazilian Grand Prix’s second standing start, but had gathered momentum after waving away a sniff of an attack from Lewis Hamilton as he gave chase to inevitable race leader Max Verstappen. It produced a showdown that was as fleeting as it was intense.

During the infant laps of the 71-tour race at the famed Interlagos circuit, a venue that has hosted more than its fair share of iconic F1 moments, Norris intended to fight Verstappen. The Red Bull driver was not given the opportunity to perform his usual trick of running off into the distance, at least, not until much later, as Norris stuck to the RB19’s tail through the opening laps and then began to pile on the pressure.

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Author Jake Boxall-Legge

Jake Boxall-Legge Autosport’s Technical Editor. Having studied Automotive Engineering with Motorsport at the University of Hertfordshire, West Country-born Jake's original ambition was to design racing cars. During a year between studies in which he accidentally rekindled a love of writing, he took up a Master's in Motorsport Engineering at Oxford Brookes. Halfway through his master's year, he was offered a place on the Autosport Academy, conducting occasional freelance duties before becoming the press officer for Formula 2 and GP3 in 2018. Autosport offered him a return to the fold later that year to serve as its Technical Editor. His voice appears on a number of videos and podcasts, and can often be found writing about terrible Formula 1 cars in excruciating detail. In his spare time, Jake enjoys baking and blames his failure to make it past the Great British Bake-Off interviews on his tenuous grasp on choux pastry. His dream is to open a brunch cafe - and his willingness to make outrageous puns in inappropriate situations has earned him the contempt of his colleagues.