Five key aspects to monitor at the F1 Brazilian Grand Prix

Has Ferrari taken lessons from Mexico?

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari

Aside from preventing Mercedes from becoming champions, Ferrari faces its own significant challenges following the aftermath of the Mexico Grand Prix. That race saw the Scuderia miss a clear victory opportunity, with Hamilton starting on pole—his first in a Ferrari—and Leclerc in third, quickly overtaking Russell for second at the start.

Instead of settling for a Ferrari 1-2, Leclerc attempted to overtake Hamilton on the outside of Turn 1, aiming to complete the move down the inside of the next corner. The seven-time world champion held his ground, but Leclerc returned on the outside of Turn 4, where both drivers out-braked each other—resulting in Leclerc going off track while Verstappen seized the lead from Hamilton.

Leclerc received a penalty for leaving the track, effectively handing Verstappen the win. Hamilton expressed his frustration afterward, criticizing Leclerc’s “do or die” mentality and suggesting that “serious discussions” were necessary.

There’s no doubt that the Ferrari duo will face questions about this incident on Thursday and whether they have had discussions since the events in Mexico City. It will also be intriguing to see if, should they find themselves in a close battle again, Ferrari intervenes to prevent any conflict, or if they continue to race each other aggressively.

This is a lesson Ferrari must learn if it hopes to contend with Mercedes for the 2027 title, especially with a revitalized Red Bull in the latter part of 2026.

- Ed Hardy

Verstappen and Brazil – a stage for remarkable comeback performances

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing

After his victory in Mexico, Verstappen now stands second in the championship. However, he places little importance on this position, as he recently stated to Motorsport.com. “Yes, because ultimately you're not winning the title, and that's the only thing that matters.”

Nonetheless, it’s noteworthy that Verstappen currently holds second place in the championship standings, reflecting a remarkable turnaround for Red Bull. The Dutch driver has triumphed in three of the last four grands prix and returns this weekend to a track where he has previously won three times and produced several memorable comeback performances.

Last year, the Red Bull racer surged from the pit lane to the podium to keep his title hopes alive; in 2024, he won from 17th on the starting grid, and in 2016, he delivered perhaps his most astonishing F1 race to date—featuring ‘that’ save on the start-finish straight and an outside pass on the eventual world champion Nico Rosberg in wet conditions.

Interlagos is always a source of excitement, although Verstappen may prefer a more straightforward race this year. And why not? Yes, Ferrari is currently strong and McLaren is introducing upgrades in Sao Paulo, but after the past few weeks, Red Bull can have some confidence in its package, especially if their starts are as effective as they were in Mexico.

- Ronald Vording

What can we expect from Camara in his F1 debut?

Rafael Camara

The French saying goes, ‘one person’s misfortune makes another’s fortune’. At Haas, Esteban Ocon is the former, while Ryo Hirakawa and Rafael Camara are taking full advantage of the situation.

After Ocon’s fallout with Ayao Komatsu, Hirakawa made his grand prix debut in Mexico, and now Camara is poised to make his entrance into the F1 scene at his home race.

This will be a challenge for him. Unlike the seasoned Hirakawa, Camara has limited experience driving F1 cars—reportedly, he only participated in that TPC test alongside Hirakawa and Fornaroli.

However, during that test, Camara significantly outperformed the Japanese driver. Whatever experience he may lack, he compensates for with raw speed, as evidenced by his five Formula 2 pole positions as a rookie this year.

As he familiarizes himself with the Interlagos circuit and the Haas VF-26, Camara will gain invaluable experience ahead of his full-time debut in 2027. He may even compare favorably to Hirakawa, who, despite miraculously scoring a point in Mexico, was seven tenths slower than Oliver Bearman on average.

- Ben Vinel

More excitement from Colton Herta

Colton Herta, Cadillac Racing

For a driver who has faced a notably disappointing year in Formula 2, Colton Herta has certainly logged significant F1 mileage, preparing for his sixth FP1 appearance of 2026 for Cadillac this weekend.

By doing so, he should meet the 40-point requirement for an FIA superlicence necessary to compete in F1. This follows confusion over whether the 26-year-old had achieved the threshold, as Cadillac believed he had met it with his race in Mexico last week, only for it to come to light that he was still one point short due to misunderstandings regarding his previous IndyCar results.

Thus, the American team will correct that oversight this weekend as they continue to evaluate whether to offer Herta a chance as part of their full-time 2027 lineup, or to retain Valtteri Bottas alongside Sergio Perez.

Herta will drive Perez’s car during the opening practice, and his aim is to “execute the run plan flawlessly, provide Checo and the engineers with optimal setup data to kick off their weekend, and keep building on my progress in the car.”

- Ed Hardy