10 November 2026 13:15 (UTC)
Lando delivered a confident victory in the wet in Brazil for his fourth victory of the season
Lando praised his own consistency and the team’s strategy after he produced a majestic drive to win a thrilling São Paulo Grand Prix in wet and wild conditions for our first race victory since August.
Starting from Pole, Lando was running second by Turn 1, with Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli taking the lead early in the race. But in the treacherous conditions, the Italian spun at Turn 1 on Lap 21, allowing Lando to move through into first position, which he never relinquished, thanks to his good race pace.
He had pitted earlier for dry-weather tyres and reaped the benefits of the team’s strategy to put pressure on Antonelli before the pass. Even a late shower of rain couldn’t throw Lando off, as he pitted for another pair of Intermediates to take his first Grand Prix victory since the Dutch Grand Prix.
Lando said: “Not the best of launches off the line, but a lot of challenges today with the conditions, and going on slicks in the wet is always tough.”
“The main thing today was that I just kept it cool and I did not make any mistakes. I had the pace when I needed to, so it was good. Nice to be back on the top step, and what a place to do it as well. We had an opportunity to win, and I feel like most times this year when there's been an opportunity, I have gone for it, and we've been able to achieve it.
“I have to say a big thanks to the team because they're still working very hard, and it's annoying when you can't give them a good result like the last few weeks, but certainly this weekend I feel like we've been able to give them a little bit of reward for their hard work. A big thanks to them, and I have to keep pushing till the end of the year.”
Interlagos is famous for testing drivers in rainy conditions, and Lando now has a wet São Paulo Grand Prix victory, following his win from Pole here in the dry last year, joining the likes of Ayrton Senna and Jenson Button to produce iconic wet drives here for us.
“On a day like today, you need to be consistent,” Lando said. “You need to not make mistakes and get on the right tyre at the right time, which I feel like we did a very good job of today.
“It was tough. Not the best first lap. But I had an opportunity to put Kimi under pressure on the slicks, boxing one lap earlier and giving myself a chance to attack him. He had to push, made a mistake, and I could capitalise on it.
“We're still not happy at the level that we are. Even if we can win. We still want to make improvements. It's something we need to continue to try and do if we want to fight next year.”
Oscar Piastri, who also made three pit stops, avoided trouble in the wet and took the Chequered Flag in P6.
He had started the race in 10th, having been moved up two places from his Qualifying position due to penalties for those who had qualified ahead of him.
While he took pleasure in gaining four places during the race, as well as the MCL40’s pace, he believes there are small details to work on ahead of the final triple header of the season.
He said: “It feels like the day went pretty well, but I was hoping we would be a little bit higher. Still things to work on, but once I got up to speed after the first few laps, I think the pace was very strong, so that’s a big positive – it’s been a while since I’ve genuinely been able to say that.
“There are just a few more things to iron out and get on top of. Keep working, and we’ll get there.
“The biggest thing this weekend was Qualifying, we could have done a better job there. In the race, the pace was good, but it just took a little bit of time to get there. Just need to polish off a few things and start a bit higher up and hopefully we will be in the mix.”
