Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen will start the Brazilian Grand Prix from 20th and 21st on the grid respectively, setting up a high-stakes recovery challenge at the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace.
- Both Ferrari and Red Bull Racing face significant challenges as they attempt to salvage constructors’ points from deep in the field amidst anticipated wet weather.
Formula 1 arrives in Sao Paulo with two of the grid’s most successful wet-weather and recovery drivers buried deep in the starting order. Motorsport.com reported that both Hamilton and Verstappen face daunting climbs through the pack following troubled qualifying sessions.
Both world champions possess history at Interlagos that proves a charge from the back is possible. In 2021, Hamilton fought from last on the grid in the sprint up to fifth, before taking a five-place grid penalty and storming from tenth to win a titanic grand prix duel against Verstappen.
Three years later, Verstappen overcame an elimination in Q2 and a five-place engine penalty to start 17th in wet conditions and comfortably drive past Esteban Ocon for victory.
The aerodynamic and power unit regulations of 2026, however, present a starkly different tactical puzzle. Hamilton explained to motorsport.com that overtaking will be far harder than during his 2021 charge.
“Harder, because back then we had, obviously, a very long straight, and if you got close, you had the DRS, and maybe a car wouldn’t have it – whereas now, everyone is just opening up their wings.
I think overtaking will be very, very, very hard. I’m not sure you’re going to see the same sort of races that you’ve seen in the past. But maybe the wet conditions will change that.”
Without the traditional DRS device, the current power unit overtake mode operates under entirely different constraints. Verstappen echoed these aerodynamic and energy deployment concerns to motorsport.com ahead of Sunday’s lights out.
“Now we don’t have DRS anymore,” Verstappen concurred. “And the overtake mode is very limiting around here because of the long straight, everyone is draining the battery. So, your speed difference on the straight is going to be a lot less – a bit like Mexico, really. So, it will be quite a lot harder to pass than normal.”
| Driver | Grid Position | Notable Past Interlagos Recovery |
|---|---|---|
| Lewis Hamilton | 20th | 10th to 1st (2021 Grand Prix) |
| Max Verstappen | 21st | 17th to 1st (2024 Grand Prix) |
When questioned about his tactical blueprint for the race, Hamilton told motorsport.com bluntly that he does not have one and will try to win somehow.
Verstappen is looking toward race control and meteorological factors to bridge the gap to the front-runners. The Red Bull driver told motorsport.com that he is banking on a chaotic race filled with interruptions.
“Lots of safety cars, so they can’t pull away, it keeps coming back to me. We’ll see. I don’t really think about it too much. I’ll just go from lap one and see where I end up.”
Across nineteen grands prix contested so far in the 2026 season, only two races have been won by a driver starting outside the front row. Verstappen secured victory from fifth on the grid in Mexico after seizing the lead on lap one, while Andrea Kimi Antonelli triumphed from 19th in Italy. But as motorsport.com highlighted, if the expected rain materializes at Interlagos, historical dry-weather statistics from 2026 will become entirely irrelevant.
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