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The 2023 F1 Brazilian GP featured a lot of action and a red flag as well. It also hosted a battle for the third spot on the podium that culminated on the last lap of the race.
In the end, it was Max Verstappen once again taking the chequered flag. This was his 17th win of the season, a record that he continues to consolidate. He was followed by Lando Norris in P2, an impressive drive from the McLaren driver. Fernando Alonso fended off Sergio Perez to secure an impressive P3 finish.
With the race now in the rearview mirror, who will look back at the 2023 F1 Brazilian GP weekend with satisfaction and who will be a bit disappointed? Let's take a look.
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2023 F1 Brazilian GP
Winner - Max Verstappen
This was win No. 17 for the season for Max Verstappen.
It is fair to say that he was keeping a keen eye on what Lando Norris had to offer right behind him. However, one aspect that many don't give enough credit to when it comes to Verstappen is the tenacious nature of his drives.
He's not only winning but he's winning at such consistency that it puts him on a record-breaking path every race. The race in Brazil marked another record for Verstappen as he bettered the 75% win rate achieved by Alberto Ascari in the 1950s.
Loser - Charles Leclerc
"Why am I so unlucky?" was the heartfelt cry from Charles Leclerc when he had to end his race before it even began.
This was not the first time this season that Leclerc was compromised and this was certainly not the last time. The problem for him is a lack of opportunities outside of Ferrari; if there was a credible option, he would have likely moved by now.
The 2023 F1 Brazilian GP was heartbreaking for Leclerc. One has to wonder how many times this particular statement has been said for the Ferrari driver in the last two years.
Winners - Aston Martin and Fernando Alonso
Aston Martin did what Ferrari did in 2018 where it took off all the upgrades and surprisingly that made the car faster. Now, there is a caveat attached to this. Alonso was still around 35 seconds behind Max Verstappen, which amounts to about half a minute slower.
There is still a question mark on whether Aston Martin can produce results such as these if Ferrari and Mercedes were not compromised. The 2023 F1 Brazilian GP has not answered that, but made sure that the team and the driver secured another podium.
Loser - Mercedes
The 2023 F1 Brazilian GP was akin to the Singapore GP for Mercedes. The team did not have the speed in the low drag conditions and the tire wear was just exaggerated to a completely different level.
In all of this, Mercedes could only muster a P8 finish in what was the worst performance over a race weekend for the team.
Winner - Lando Norris
Slowly but steadily, Lando Norris is seemingly becoming a primary challenger for Max Verstappen. In terms of pace, Norris has been there or thereabouts at almost every race this season. This was evident in the 2023 F1 Brazilian GP sprint and the race as well.
The driver finished P2 in both races and closed the gap to Lewis Hamilton to just 32 points. He looks likely to be the best of the rest over a race weekend in the latter stages of the season.
Loser - Oscar Piastri
Oscar Piastri's performances seem to have fallen off a cliff recently with the driver unable to put together strong results compared to teammate Lando Norris.
It might be because Piastri hasn't raced at some of these tracks and is still adapting to it. However, the level at which he's performing right now is unacceptable and he needs to pick up the pace to avoid being left behind entirely.
