As it happened: 2024 Brazilian Grand Prix qualifying

This session has finished. No further updates will be posted.

Qualifying for the 2024 Brazilian Grand Prix is coming up next

The start of qualifying has been delayed due to rain at the track. Next update at 3pm.

Qualifying has been further delayed, another update is due at 3:30pm.

Race control says the estimated starting time for qualifying is 4pm.

The estimated starting time of qualifying has been pushed back to 4:15pm local time.

Rain is still falling at the track, the prospects of getting the session started on that projected time do not look good. More concerningly, the forecast for tomorrow is dire as well.

A further delay to the projected start time. Race control now say they expect to begin at 4:30pm local time.

Qualifying normally takes one hour if there are no interruptions. So if they start on time at 4:30pm and there are no red flags they can finish the session before sunset at 6:21pm. That is a big ‘if’, however.

The estimated start time of qualifying has been delayed to 4:45pm.

Another delay to the starting time, it’s now 5pm.

The start of qualifying has been postponed. More information here.

So we have no qualifying session today. Our live coverage will resume tomorrow when qualifying is rescheduled.

It’s 7am at Interlagos and the delayed qualifying session for the Brazilian Grand Prix is due to begin in half an hour.

It’s still wet at the circuit but the prospects of the session going ahead look better than yesterday. Here’s a clarification on what would happen if qualifying has to be cancelled.

“Better” is very much a relative term, however. The Safety Car is out on the track and there’s clearly a lot of standing water around.

Encouragingly we are 10 minutes away from the start of the qualifying session

We have seen the grid decided without all of qualifying taking place in the past, such as at COTA in 2015 when Q3 was cancelled. Therefore it’s possible Q1 or Q2 could end up setting the grid.

Drivers are already queuing to leave the pits. Oscar Piastri is told all the drivers are on full wet weather tyres.

The session has begun and the drivers are joining the track. DRS is, of course, disabled.

Yellow flags for Liam Lawson who spun at the exit of Juncao. He gets going again. Verstappen: “I can’t see anything.”

Esteban Ocon goes quickest with a 1’30.096, one-and-a-half seconds up on Lando Norris in second.

Zhou Guanyu is the next driver to go off at turn 12 and rejoin. Russell: “How are they going off? Just locking up I guess?” Dudley: “Going straight on.”

Verstappen is accusing Norris of holding him up.

Bottas has opted for intermediates but Ferrari believe the rain is about to get heavier.

It may be too soon for intermediates. Bottas slides off at Subida do Lago. Meanwhile Hamilton goes off at the Senna S.

Russell: “Tyres just not working. There doesn’t seem to be that much standing water so think about intermediates.”

Red flag: Colapinto has gone off at the Senna S.

This will be a disaster for Mercedes if the drivers aren’t able to improve when the session improves as both their drivers are in the drop zone. The Sauber pair are too along with, ironically, Colapinto’s team mate Alexander Albon.

The plight of the Mercedes drivers potentially has implications for the championship as well. Norris would have liked to see Verstappen’s coming five-place grid penalty drop him behind a couple of W15s, but if they can’t approve that time they’re set to start a long way down.

Russell shouting: “Dan, forget it, forget it, Dan!” as he leaves the garage.

Piastri doubts they’ll be able to improve as the conditions are at the moment: “It’s pissing down.”

The session resumes. Bearman, who is on intermediates, has pulled over at the pit exit and the Haas crew are pushing him back into their garage.

Many drivers have taken fresh sets of wet weather tyres including the McLaren drivers but not Verstappen who is still on his original set. Saving fresh wet weather rubber could prove valuable later on.

Five minutes to go. Drivers are improving their sector times. Piastri, contrary to his expectations, goes up to fifth.

Norris has slipped to 13th place and is a full second down in the first sector, so it’s looking risky for him.

Verstappen 11th, Norris 14th, both could really do with improving their times. Hamilton has a brief off and is languishing in 17th.

Norris does his personal best middle sector and goes 14th, but is immediately relegated to 15th.

Zhou could have eliminated Norris there but fell short. A huge scare for McLaren there.

Hamilton is eliminated along with both Haas drivers, Zhou plus Colapinto who crashed.

Q2 is go and the drivers are filtering out. Norris appears to be on his original set of wet weather tyres from Q1, Verstappen has taken a fresh set.

Carlos Sainz Jnr sets the initial pace with a 1’29.406, Charles Leclerc pips it by less than a tenth of a second – then Russell splits them.

Fernando Alonso has a brief spell at the top before Sergio Perez does a 1’28.158 to go quickest.

Norris only tenth with that run, Verstappen goes quickest on his fresh rubber, 1’27.771. Norris is now calling for intermediates.

Piastri is on intermediates already and going quickest of all in the first sector, so the pits are about to get very busy.

Piastri goes fastest by six-tenths of a second. Russell has spun at Bico de Pato on his intermediates but gets going again.

The intermediates working beautifully for Piastri who now enjoys a two-and-a-half second margin at the top of the times.

Sainz has crashed – and Norris is in the drop zone. Red flag.

Sainz went off at the Senna S, he’s gone in quite heavily at the back.

If the drivers are unable to improve their times once the session resumes, Norris, Gasly, Albon, Tsunoda and Ocon will be eliminated.

Norris will be in serious trouble here if the session doesn’t restart before the conditions improve. McLaren will need to get him to the pit exit as soon as possible before the session improves – and he can expect to encounter Verstappen either on his way out or when he comes around to start his flying lap.

The session will restart in just under three minutes time.

Perez saying they should have stayed in the garage.

Q2 has restarted. Norris is eight tenths of a second slower than Piastri in the first sector, but on course to improve his time.

Relief again for Norris as he goes third. Tsunoda also escapes the drop zone in fourth. Leclerc now into the bottom five.

Verstappen had to abandon a lap there as Ocon came past him at the finishing line. Lambiase says they’ve lost GPS signal.

Verstappen has fallen into the drop zone and there’s a red flag!

Huge drama at the end of Q2. Verstappen is out and so is his team mate Sergio Perez. Valtteri Bottas, Gasly and Sainz fall too.

Q3 will start in three minutes. The drivers are already queueing up, not least because there’s more rain coming.

Piastri: “I think if it keeps raining like this we should just stay out.”

Piastri puts up a 1’26.099 but Norris beats that by four tenths of a second to go fastest. Ocon third for Alpine.

Another crash! Fernando Alonso is in the wall at Mergulho. That’s both Aston Martins in this session. Red flag again.

The session will restart yet again in two minutes’ time. Norris fastest so far ahead of, remarkably, Albon and Piastri. Ocon fourth, so as things stand we have an unusual grid shaping up.

Albon says the track feels drier than before.

Piastri goes off at the Senna S, then Tsunoda at Descida do Lago – and now Albon! Huge crash for the Williams driver at the Senna S. He’s moving in the car.

Red flag again for the fifth crash of the day. There is still three-and-a-half minutes of time left on clock so in theory the session could resume.

Albon: “Did the brakes fail?” He’s told it looks like they did not.

Verstappen is very unhappy after his elimination in Q2. Here’s what he had to say.

Two damaged cars each for Aston Martin and Williams. Official race start time is three-and-half hours away, so there’s a serious chance some teams will be unable to repair their cars in time.

“We think there will be some class one rain starting,” Joseph advises Norris, before reminding him to be very careful given the conditions.

Ocon locks up but goes fastest of all in the middle sector and ends up fourth quickest. Norris improves his best time to a 1’24.092.

Piastri locks up and goes off at the Senna S which may spoiled the start of Leclerc’s lap.

A stunning lap by Lawson! He goes second, then Tsunoda pips it and almost beats Norris.

Norris improves to a 1’23.405 but will anyone beat that?

Russell grabs second for Mercedes, Leclerc only sixth.

Tsunoda has been noted for crossing the line at the pit lane entrance.

Here’s the grid for the 2024 Brazilian Grand Prix.

No further action against Tsunoda.

What a dramatic qualifying session. And the race is just three hours away! That concludes our coverage, read our report here

2024 Brazilian Grand Prix Vote for your 2024 Brazilian Grand Prix Driver of the WeekendVerstappen shatters Norris’ title hopes by winning from 17th in Interlagos rain2024 Brazilian Grand Prix race result and championship pointsRate the race: 2024 Brazilian Grand PrixNorris and three others face post-race investigation for starting infringement

Browse all 2024 Brazilian Grand Prix articles