Lando Norris Wins Wet Sao Paulo Grand Prix as Mercedes Clinch Constructors' Title

SAO PAULO. Lando Norris won the Sao Paulo Grand Prix on Sunday, surviving a race at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace that started wet, dried out and finished in rain. The McLaren driver started from pole and beat Max Verstappen by 14.602 seconds for his third win of the season. Mercedes clinched the 2026 Constructors' Championship with George Russell fourth and new World Champion Kimi Antonelli fifth.

Verstappen climbed from 21st on the grid to second, and Isack Hadjar finished third to give Red Bull Racing a double podium.

"It was a very tough race, very, very tough," Norris said. "Obviously, not the best of launches off the line, but a lot of challenges today, obviously with the conditions. So the main thing today was I just kept it cool and I didn't make any mistakes. And I had the pace when I needed to. Nice to be back on the top step, and what a place to do it as well."

Antonelli spins twice from the lead

Antonelli spun at Turn 12 on his reconnaissance lap before the start, scrambling for grip on the wet grass, and went back to the garage for checks. He then jumped from second to the lead at the start, while Liam Lawson of Racing Bulls went around the outside of Norris into second.

The intermediate tyres overheated quickly on the drying track. Lewis Hamilton, who climbed from 20th to ninth on the first lap of his 400th F1 start, was the first to switch to slicks on Lap 14. Norris, Russell and Hadjar stopped on Lap 16, and Russell spun backwards at the pit exit and glanced the wall. Antonelli and Verstappen stopped a lap later, with Antonelli keeping the lead by about two seconds.

Antonelli told his team "something is weird with the car" and suggested a suspension problem. He spun into Turn 1 at the start of Lap 20, handing Norris the lead, and ran off at Turn 1 again on Lap 23.

Verstappen's charge and a late shower

Verstappen passed Hadjar for second on Lap 38 and pitted for a second time on Lap 45, while Red Bull split strategy and left Hadjar out. Norris made his second stop on Lap 49 and was back in front once Hadjar and Antonelli pitted. Light rain arrived in the closing laps, and Russell and Alonso were the first to switch back to intermediates at the end of Lap 61 before the rest of the field followed.

Norris held a 10-second lead through the shower. Mercedes swapped its two cars twice in the closing laps, with Russell finishing fourth, and Antonelli was placed under a post-race investigation for pulling into the path of an Alpine as he left his pit box.

Leclerc penalty hands Lawson seventh

Oscar Piastri finished sixth for McLaren. Charles Leclerc passed Lawson on the penultimate lap but got a five-second penalty for causing a collision with the Racing Bulls driver, so the two swapped places after the race, leaving Lawson seventh and Leclerc eighth. Hamilton finished ninth after a spin, and Nico Hulkenberg took the last point for Audi.

Arvid Lindblad, Fernando Alonso, Franco Colapinto, Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon followed. Brazilian Gabriel Bortoleto was 16th, Ollie Bearman 17th, Sergio Perez 18th for Cadillac, Carlos Sainz 19th, and Rafael Câmara finished 20th on his F1 debut for Haas. Lance Stroll retired, and Valtteri Bottas was wheeled off the grid before the start with an issue on his Cadillac.

Mercedes' ninth constructors' title

The title is Mercedes' first since 2021 and its ninth overall, tying Williams for third all time behind Ferrari (16) and McLaren (10). It came in the first year of regulations that overhauled the cars' aerodynamics and power units.

"I'm so proud for the organisation," team principal Toto Wolff said. "We've taken a few years to be back on the top spot. Not many teams have been able to come back from such a situation."

Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali said Wolff's ninth constructors' title draws him level with Sir Frank Williams. McLaren CEO Zak Brown posted his congratulations on X, adding, "Looking forward to fighting you for it again next year."

Mercedes leads the constructors' standings with 652 points to Ferrari's 510. The series moves to the Las Vegas Grand Prix, with the race set for Saturday, Nov. 21, at 11 p.m. ET.

For more, see Formula 1's race report (opens in a new tab), its story on the reaction to Mercedes' title (opens in a new tab) and the constructors' standings (opens in a new tab).

This was Round 20 of the 2026 season, one week after Antonelli's title-clinching race in Mexico City. For the full title picture, see our 2026 F1 standings breakdown. Since then, Haas has kept Rafael Câmara in the car and Oscar Piastri has split with his management team.

Sources: Formula 1. More Formula 1 coverage on Undrafted.

Photo: McLaren via X