Mercedes seals the title as Brundle hails ‘chaotic’ Interlagos

Mercedes won the constructors’ championship for the ninth time at a São Paulo Grand Prix marked by what Brundle called Interlagos’ “chaotic style”. He congratulated the entire Mercedes Benz team, including its car and power unit, on the title. He enjoyed the race, though felt it might have benefited from a late twist or a more dramatic finish.

The event also featured a rain-affected qualifying session. The 2026 cars had seen relatively little wet running, and Interlagos had remained dry until qualifying. The session took 146 minutes to complete, with Lando claiming pole position. Brundle described this edition of the São Paulo Grand Prix as one that brought its share of challenges and surprises.

Lando, driving an upgraded McLaren, was Brundle’s driver of the weekend. In his view, Max Verstappen did not get the chance to display the full extent of his ability during the first part of qualifying: power-unit penalties meant he was set to start from the back, and he took part only in that opening segment. Verstappen later finished second, behind Lando, whom Brundle considered to be in commanding form. Isack Hadjar, his Red Bull teammate, also had a strong race, Brundle said, taking the final podium place.

The race also affected the constructors’ championship battle. The rain began again on lap 61 of 71, and Oscar Piastri ended the race in sixth after stopping one lap late for his last set of intermediate tyres. McLaren and Red Bull therefore scored 33 points each in their contest for third, with the advantage going to Red Bull ahead of the final three races.

Mercedes, meanwhile, secured the title with George Russell fourth and Kimi Antonelli fifth, putting the team beyond Ferrari’s reach with three races left. Brundle also noted that Mercedes’ ninth constructors’ title drew Toto Wolff level with Sir Frank Willams for the most in F1. He added that Mercedes’ eight drivers’ titles under Wolff brought him level with Sir Ron Dennis’ combined total as a team principal.

After the race, Wolff said celebrations would wait until the team returned to the UK. He floated the idea of a toast on the overnight flight with George, then joked about taking Lewis Hamilton, the Ferrari driver, along “for the good and the bad”. Hamilton, for his part, congratulated Mercedes on Instagram for its title and season, calling them “truly deserved”.

Interlagos’ chaotic outcome also meant Mercedes had no driver on the post-race podium: the team was represented there only during the constructors’ championship celebrations.