Sao Paulo Grand Prix qualifying was delayed as rain poured on Interlagos, but Max Verstappen kept himself entertained with Premier League football.
The heavy rain delayed the qualifying session by over an hour, with drivers and teams sitting in the garages waiting for the green light. Verstappen spent the time watching the Nottingham Forest versus Manchester City football match.
Coming into qualifying, the stakes were low for Verstappen; the Dutchman had replaced his engine and was starting from the back of the grid. So his qualifying results didn’t matter, and Verstappen left the pits in Q1, then stayed in the garage.
With the entire day spent on track, knowing he’d be at the back of the grid regardless of the results, Verstappen joked to Viaplay, “I’ve lost twelve hours of my life that I’ll never get back.”
When asked how he spent the delay and the remainder of qualifying he didn’t take part in, he told the media, “I was watching football”, when questioned further, he specified, “The Premier League.”
The interviewer pressed for specifics, and Verstappen said he had been following multiple games, with Nottingham Forest and Manchester City as the matches in through qualifying.
He then asked the Viaplay interviewer the current score, having missed the update while in the car. “What is it now?” He asked. Nottingham Forest had upped the score from 2-1 to 3-1. This then prompted a conversation on Forest’s goal.
Verstappen, who was clearly enjoying the moment, brought his press officer, Anna, into the conversation. “She’s not happy, because she’s a City fan,” Verstappen teased.
A look to Sunday
However, eventually the conversation returned to the Race on Sunday, with Verstappen expressing no preference for the weather, with rain threatening across Sunday.
“It doesn’t matter whether it’s dry or wet,” Verstappen told the media.
He then said that despite starting from the back of the field, the goal is to score points. He’s also been open that the overtake mode in Interlagos isn’t that powerful.
“That is the goal, but as I explained on Saturday morning, the overtake mode doesn’t make that much difference. So it’s a bit difficult,” he said.
In the past, Verstappen has had no issue climbing from the back of the field to the front.
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