Alex Albon is out of the Formula 1 Sao Paulo Grand Prix after sustaining heavy damage to his Williams machine during a hefty shunt in qualifying.
Qualifying at Interlagos was delayed to Sunday morning due to inclement weather on Saturday afternoon.
Still, rain and several red flag incidents blighted Sunday morning’s sessions.
The last came courtesy of Albon, who was running in a provisional second during the top-10 Q3 shootout before hitting the barriers hard at Turn 1.
Multiple corners of Albon’s Williams FW46 were affected in the incident, triggering what would typically be overnight repairs.
“I think we had an issue; I know we had an issue, we just need to go through it,” Albon said.
“Immediately when I hit the brake pedal there was a beep in my ear which normally means there’s a failure, rear locking and a big crash.
“So that’s us out for the race, unfortunately… so yeah.”
However, with more rain feared for Sunday afternoon, the Sao Paulo GP has been brought forward by 90 minutes, to 12:30 local time.
That handed Williams the tough task of repairing Albon’s car in just over three hours, which was deemed unviable.
“No, it won’t be fixed,” Albon said.
Williams Team Principal James Vowles added: “It’s a heartbreaking day for the team.
“We’re here to go racing and nobody wants to be in this situation. The most important point is that all the drivers who had incidents in Qualifying are okay, including Alex and Franco.
“Despite the best efforts of our hard-working, talented and resilient team, there simply was not enough time to repair Alex’s car in time for the Grand Prix.
“It’s a bitter pill to swallow at the end of a tough triple-header, especially when both drivers showed tremendous pace this morning.
“We will focus on maximising this afternoon with Franco and putting on a show for the incredible fans here in Brazil.”
Double-jeopardy for Williams after Franco Colapinto crash
It was double jeopardy for Williams as Franco Colapinto crashed out of Q1 and sustained damage to his car as well.
Speaking after the session, the Argentine said, “I had a bit of wheelspin, I lost the rear very aggressively and I couldn’t recover it.
“First time in the wet it was a bit slippery and a bit of a mistake.
“I’m sorry for the guys in the garage they have a lot of work.”
William’s position of eighth in the Constructors’ standings now looks to be in serious jeopardy.
The Grove-based outfit has 17 points, one ahead of ninth-placed Alpine.
Alpine is poised to score in Sao Paulo on Sunday as Esteban Ocon stayed out of the wall to qualify in an impressive fourth.
Williams wasn’t the only team caught out by the tricky conditions with both Aston Martin’s and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz crashing out of a treacherous qualifying session.
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