F1’s journey through the Americas ends with the Brazilian Grand Prix a classic old circuit with much history. Talking of classics, we’re sure our 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix Results, Lap by Lap Review & Summary will be one of the best of the season, and includes summaries for both Sprint and Main Race.
Our review covers what happened in the race so you don’t have to with our laps that matter. Plus we throw in our Race Ratings, the Best (Great) and Worst (Grape) drivers of the race weekend.
The 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix Results, Lap by Lap Review & Summary gives you just enough to catch up with. With just a small serving of cynicism. The perfect bite sized review for those who couldn’t be bothered, or don’t have enough time.
And why not check out our latest Grand Prix Power Rankings which highlight our driver of the season so far and the last race.
2022 Brazilian Grand Prix Results – Sprint Race
THE LAPS THAT MATTERED
Didn’t see the race live? Don’t have time to watch the whole race? Well here are the top laps where stuff happened. We write these live as we go, sort of like a minute by minute for the football, but marginally more interesting.
Setting the scene – Kevin Magnussen took a surprise pole position on the Friday leaving him in first place for the sprint race. That hands fans the ultimate joker in the pack that might actually make the sprint race interesting for a change.
GRID (Starting Order) – MAG VER RUS NOR SAI OCO ALO HAM PER LEC
Lap 1 – Pole sitter Kevin Magnussen gets away brilliantly and leads into the first corner. Max Verstappen slots into second. All drivers behave themselves around the first lap, except for the Alpine drivers who appear to touch at turn five. Alonso dropped a few places on lap two leading one to think he has damage from that incident. Replays show it happened later around lap one.
ORDER – MAG VER RUS NOR SAI ALO OCO HAM PER LEC
Lap 3 – Max Verstappen overtakes Kevin Magnussen, who least he got two laps of glory at the front. George Russell gets by a lap later and Sainz a few corners after that.
Lap 6 – Lewis Hamilton gets past Kevin Magnussen for fourth. Charles Leclerc gets past Esteban Ocon for 8th. Word from commentary that some drivers are being looked into for startline procedure issues including Lewis Hamilton
Lap 8 – Sergio Perez gets by Lando Norris and Kevin Magnussen a lap after that.
Lap 9 – Keeping a theme of team mates being not nice, Lance Stroll put Sebastian Vettel onto the grass on the back straight. Somehow Vettel keeps it out of the wall at 200kmh+. He gets past Stroll at the end of lap 9 with DRS. A lap later Vettel moves past Ocon and Ricciardo moves past Stroll. Minutes later Stroll gets a ten second penalty for the incident.
Lap 12 – In among all the excitement of the overtaking further back, George Russell has caught up to the back of Max Verstappen for the lead. He attempts overtaking around the first half of the lap, but Max being Max keeps the place with some close racing.
Lap 13 – Verstappen and Russell race side by side for the first half of the lap again but somehow Verstappen stays in front.
ORDER – VER RUS SAI HAM PER MAG LEC NOR GAS VET
Lap 15 – George Russell eventually gets past Max Verstappen down the back straight and takes the lead. The Mercedes look quite quick in race trim. Lewis Hamilton is challenging Carlos Sainz for third now.
Lap 18 – Underlining the Mercedes speed, George Russell is nearly three seconds up the road, and Verstappen is falling back towards Sainz and Hamilton.
Lap 19 – Carlos Sainz passes Max Verstappen into turn one. Verstappen looks to have front wing endplate damage. Replays later show the damage happened as Sainz was getting past Verstappen. Now it’s Verstappen v Hamilton for third. Their battles always end well……
Lap 20 – Hamilton gets by Verstappen into turn one without incident. Further back Kevin Magnussen loses 7th place to Lando Norris. Hopefully he can hold onto 8th for a point.
Last Lap – George Russell has cleared off by this stage and comfortably wins his first race, albeit it’s only sprint race, but he will be in good shape to do it properly tomorrow as he will start from 1st on the grid. Mercedes showed some real pace with Hamilton third right on Sainz’s tail. Verstappen hangs on for fourth in front of Perez. Magnussen hangs on for a bonus point in 8th.
ORDER – RUS SAI HAM VER PER LEC NOR MAG VET GAS
2022 Brazilian Grand Prix Results – Race
THE LAPS THAT MATTERED
Didn’t see the race live? Don’t have time to watch the whole race? Well here are the top laps where stuff happened. We write these live as we go, sort of like a minute by minute for the football, but marginally more interesting.
Setting the scene – As strange as it is to say, it is a refreshing change to see a Mercedes 1-2 at the head of the grid, after George Russell claimed the Sprint Race win yesterday. He’ll be looking to win a proper race today, but so will his team mate – who hasn’t gone an F1 season without a win. Two Red Bulls behind and you know Max isn’t going to cruise either with Championship already claimed. On a track made for racing, there’s going to be action all the way down the grid too. Could be an exciting race.
GRID (Starting Order) – RUS HAM VER PER LEC NOR SAI MAG VET GAS
Lap 1 – George Russell gets away well so does Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen too so all good up the front. Lando Norris was a mover up to 5th from 6th. Norris’ team mate Daniel Riccairdo is involved in a sizeable crash halfway around the lap, tangled up with Qualifying hero Kevin Magnussen. Neither team look impressed with Ricciardo, so glad he didn’t want that Haas drive. They probably shouldn’t be, Ricciardo clips Magnussen into a spin as he turns into the tight right hander, and unluckily for both the McLaren driver tries to avoid him to the right but that’s where the Haas spins to and they crash.
SAFETY CAR DEPLOYED
ORDER – RUS HAM VER PER NOR LEC SAI VET GAS MSC
Lap 7 – Race Resumes. George Russell bunches the field up nicely on the restart, nicely enough for Max Verstappen to close in on Lewis Hamilton. Verstappen goes for a move around the outside of turn one, and then as he tries to claim the inside line on turn two they collide – like old times. Both continue but have dropped down the order – Verstappen pits for new front wing, Hamilton appears to have no damage as he starts the overtaking of the midfield the next lap. Halfway around the lap Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc clash putting Leclerc into the barriers, not too hard as he continues.
ORDER – RUS PER NOR SAI VET GAS MSC HAM STR BOT
Lap 10 – Lewis Hamilton is already up to 6th. Further back in last and second last Leclerc and Verstappen trade fastest laps.
Lap 13 – Lap 13 is unlucky for some – the stewards deemed Max Verstappen was to blame for the clash with Lewis Hamilton and gets a five second penalty. That’ll make him happy. Commentator Martin Brundle expresses surprise.
Lap 14 – Lewis Hamilton gets past Sebastian Vettel for 5th after following him for a few laps. He only needs one more lap to get by Lando Norris for 4th. Two laps later Vettel passes Norris.
ORDER – RUS PER SAI HAM VET NOR GAS NOT MSC OCO
Lap 18 – Carlos Sainz is first of the front runners to stop for tyres without an accident before hand. He drops from 3rd to 12th. Although it takes only a few corners to get past Albon for 11th. A few laps later he is 9th.
Lap 19 – Talking of front runners, about time to mention that George Russell is still in front and doing well. He is 2.5 second in front of Sergio Perez, but only ten seconds in front of Lewis Hamilton, who we think is the big danger to victory for him. Unless Hamilton clashes with another Red Bull.
Lap 24 – Perez pits for tyres and he comes out 5th behind Valtteri Bottas but in front of Carlos Sainz. He passes Bottas before the end of the lap. Max Verstappen pits too, takes his five second penalty, and gets a further three second delay from an issue changing one of the tyres. He rejoins in second last, but at least ahead of Nicholas Latifi.
Lap 25 – George Russell pits from the lead. He just manages to stay in front of Sebastian Vettel and is second behind his team mate.
Lap 30 – Lewis Hamilton pits from the lead and rejoins 4th – 27 seconds behind George Russell.
ORDER – RUS PER SAI HAM ALO BOT VET OCO GAS NOR
Lap 36 – A check at the front for a change – George Russell is nearly six seconds to the good of Sergio Perez, Carlos Sainz about four seconds further back, and Hamilton has rocketed to within 11 seconds of the lead. He overtakes Sainz after the Ferrari pits at the end of the lap and only drops to 4th.
Lap 40 – Time to check on those back markers who were crash-affected. Leclerc has made it into the top ten but is a long way behind the leaders. Verstappen is 10th and three or so seconds behind Leclerc. Neither will probably make the podium.
Lap 44 – Lewis Hamilton is right on Sergio Perez’s tail now and challenging for second place. He gets past around the outside of turn one at the start of lap 45. Perez pits on lap 48 for new tyres and drop to fourth behind Sainz who has already pit for a third set of tyres.
Lap 49 – Lewis Hamilton pits for tyres, presumably to keep him ahead of Perez, which he does. George Russell pits from the lead a lap later and stays first. Only just and Carlos Sainz behind is going very fast. Could be a battle for the lead anytime soon. Everyone on their last set of tyres by the looks now.
ORDER – RUS SAI HAM PER ALO BOT VET LEC OCO GAS
Lap 52 – Lando Norris’ McLaren stops on the track in the tight infield section, which brings out the Virtual Safety Car. Some pit for tyres – Sainz, Alonso, possibly some other midfield teams. Eventually a full safety car comes out. That will make these last 15 or so laps very interesting…..Max Verstappen is still 10th, anyone could win this race now.
SAFETY CAR DEPLOYED
ORDER – RUS HAM PER SAI BOT LEC VET OCO ALO VER
Interesting conversation from Alpine with the team insisting that Ocon “not race” with Fernando Alonso. Probably from their clashes in the sprint race. They are on track to score points and McLaren none.
Lap 60 – Race Resumes. George Russell bunches the field again, but Lewis Hamilton is lurking. Russell stays in front. The only move in the top ten is Leclerc on Bottas and Ocon on Vettel. Somehow a lap later Alonso has passed both Ocon and Bottas. Go figure.
Lap 61 – Carlos Sainz and Sergio Perez battling for third and the Red Bull just stays in front. Not for long though, by lap 63 Sainz is past into 3rd.
Lap 63 – Max Verstappen overtakes two cars going into turn one. He is up to 7th and within striking distance of the front.
Lap 64 – Charles Leclerc passes Sergio Perez for 4th, which is key in their battle for second in the championship.
ORDER – RUS HAM SAI LEC PER ALO VER OCO BOT VET
Lap 65 – Fernando Alonso gets past Sergio Perez too. Max Verstappen passes Perez to a lap later, but he is sent on a mission from his team to take points off Charles Leclerc in 4th to limit damage of Perez’s decline through the pack.
Lap 69 – At the front George Russell is 1.1 seconds in front of his team mate with three laps to go. Mercedes are going to break their winless streak for 2022, but which driver will it be? A first time winner or the driver who has won ore than anyone?
Lap 70 – Russell is 1.3 seconds in front, and Russell has this sewn up, barring an error.
Last lap – Russell stays in front and wins his first race from Lewis Hamilton. Despite a request from Charles Leclerc to let him by Carlos Sainz, he stays fourth. Red Bull ask Verstappen to give back a place to Perez if he doesn’t get past Alonso for 5th. Max doesn’t.
FINAL ORDER – RUS HAM SAI LEC ALO VER PER OCO BOT STR
2022 Brazilian Grand Prix Results
GREAT & GRAPE OF THE RACE
Here we go through the field and highlight the very best (Great) of the race, and the plodders, the over-ambitious, the out of luck, and simply hopeless (Grape).
These points get added to our Driver of the Season scores. Five points for a great nomination, and -5 for the worst or grapest driver in the pack. Then it is +2 /-2 for honourable or dishonourable mentions.
It used to be called the good, bad and ugly, but everyone is using that now. And who doesn’t like grapes.
THE GREAT-EST – GEORGE RUSSELL
Can’t go past a first time winner for best of the race, and what a job he did too. Confident at the front, and held off a challenge from his illustrious team mate at the end. Throw in a sprint race victory on the Saturday and a fastest lap for a bonus point and it was a decent weekend.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS
Lewis Hamilton – Second is still a great result for Hamilton. He recovered well after the early clash with Max Verstappen.
Carlos Sainz – A podium and a solid race from the Ferrari driver.
Fernando Alonso – Came alive after the safety car, passing Perez for 5th and charging towards the front. A decent recovery after a terrible sprint race that ended in a clash with his team mate.
Sebastian Vettel – As high as third in the race after going long on his first stint, he was comfortably best of the rest of the non big three teams on the day in the first half of the race. Ended up outside the points but still impressed.
Valtteri Bottas – After a poor qualifying he moved up during the sprint race, then found himself in the mid section of the top ten for the race. Challenging Vettel for best of the rest in the first half of the race too.
Kevin Magnussen – Despite dropping from 1st to 8th in the sprint race, and being punted out of the proper race, you can;t take away the joy of his pole position in qualifying.
THE GRAPE-EST – DANIEL RICCIARDO
A first lap for which he was at fault and took out Kevin Magnussen in the process. Also harming his soon-to-be ex team’s chances to keep 4th place in the team championship.
DIS-HONOURABLE MENTIONS
Lando Norris – After a great start saw him gain places, he ran into Charles Leclerc after the safety car restart and dropped through the field thereafter, finally ending the misery is a mechanical retirement towards the end of the race.
Yuki Tsunoda – Finished last and forgot to unlap himself when given the opportunity to do so late.
2022 Brazilian Grand Prix Results
RACE RATING
Was it a good race, loads of action, tense, or just a big, fat, snooze-fest.
We rate the big race itself so we know which races to go back and watch in the off season or one to simply remember the winner for the post season quiz nights.
SEASON IMPORTANCE – 5 / 10
OK, so they may not be the big championship deciders, but the battle for 2nd in the World Championship (Drivers) went heavily in favour of Sergio Perez after Lando Norris wiped out Charles Leclerc and sent him to the back of the field. And then it didn’t as Perez went backwards after the final Safety Car and ended up 6th to Leclerc’s 4th. Another McLaren accident involving Daniel Ricciardo might have ramifications for McLaren in their battle for 4th place. It sure did when Lando Norris retires and both Alonso and Ocon both ended in the points.
ON TRACK ACTION – 9 / 10
Brazil is a track that always produces, and doesn’t need rain or a mixed grid to do so. Old time Verstappen-Hamilton clashes at the front. Ambitious overtaking going wrong. Faster cars recovering through the field. Midfield battles with actual overtaking. Yeah, the Brazilian Grand Prix had plenty of action.
ENDING 8 / 10
Lando Norris’ retirement brings out the safety car and so a new mini race (like a sprint but actually meaningful?) is set with a dozen laps to go. So a bonus piece of racing throughout the top ten, and a welcome buzz of energy after a 4am start in this part of the world.
OVERALL RATING 22 / 30
As ever the Brazilian Grand Prix produces a good event, with first time pole position and race winners adding some feel good factor to the rest of the action.
2022 SEASON RATINGS SO FAR
Want to know what we thought of previous races? Or which ones to to back and watch?
R1 Bahrain Grand Prix 26/30
R2 Saudi Arabia Grand Prix 21/30
R3 Australian Grand Prix 16/30
R4 Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix 17/30
R5 Miami Grand Prix 19/30
R6 Spanish Grand Prix 17/30
R7 Monaco Grand Prix 24/30
R8 Azerbaijan Grand Prix 22/30
R9 Canadian Grand Prix 21/30
R10 British Grand Prix 26.5/30
R11 Austrian Grand Prix 24/30
R12 French Grand Prix 17/30
R13 Hungarian Grand Prix 23/30
R14 Belgian Grand Prix 17/30
R15 Dutch Grand Prix 21/30
R16 Italian Grand Prix 11/30
R17 Singapore Grand Prix 15/30
R18 Japanese Grand Prix 22/50
R19 US Grand Prix 23/30
R20 Mexican Grand Prix 9/30
2022 F1 Season Power Rankings
Stay tuned for our Power Rankings from the race soon as it is currently being calculated.
