2023 F1 Brazil GP: Full starting grid for the sprint race explored as Lando Norris takes pole

Lando Norris secured pole position with Max Verstappen in second as the Sprint Shootout at Sao Paulo for the 2023 Brazilian Grand Prix came to an end.

The largely improving track during the Sprint Shootout made the session quite competitive amongst the drivers, but in the end, it was Norris who managed to get in the fastest lap. This might be a good opportunity for the McLaren driver to claim victory as the last four Sprint races have been won from pole position.

Here is the entire starting grid for the Sprint later today.

Position	Driver	Team
1	Lando Norris	McLaren
2	Max Verstappen	Red Bull
3	Sergio Perez	Red Bull
4	George Russell	Mercedes
5	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes
6	Yuki Tsunoda	AlphaTauri
7	Charles Leclerc	Ferrari
8	Daniel Ricciardo	AlphaTauri
9	Carlos Sainz	Ferrari
10	Oscar Piastri	McLaren
11	Kevin Magnussen	Haas
12	Nico Hulkenberg	Haas
13	Pierre Gasly	Alpine
14	Valtteri Bottas	Alfa Romeo
15	Fernando Alonso	Aston Martin
16	Esteban Ocon	Alpine
17	Lance Stroll	Aston Martin
18	Zhou Guanyu	Alfa Romeo
19	Alex Albon	Williams
20	Logan Sargeant	Williams

While Lando Norris did take pole position for the Sprint, his teammate, Oscar Piastri could only qualify P10. This is because the latter was on used tires and was the first one to put in a lap during the final part of the session. This made him lose the mechanical grip from the tire.

Since McLaren's major improvement in performance this season, being in the top five hasn't been surprising for the team, but starting the Sprint P1 will surely be a dream start for Norris.

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Lando Norris was 'gutted' earlier after not achieving pole for the race in Brazil

The qualifying session for the main race on Sunday took a turn after it started raining during the final minutes, changing the dynamics of the session. Still, it was Max Verstappen who took pole position, and was followed by the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc.

Lando Norris, who will be starting the race on P7, was disappointed in his qualifying performance. This was because he was confident in the car's pace and even told Sky Sports that it had the potential to be on pole.

When he was asked about how the car felt, he said:

"It was amazing. Probably quick enough to be quickest today and on pole. So, pretty gutted. I don't know. I don't know what to feel about it. The car was amazing, it came alive a lot in qualifying, easily good enough to be quickest, let's say."

He added:

"Delivering the lap and putting together in Q3, and everything, it's a different job. Easily quick enough. Disappointed, another disappointing [Friday]. Not a lot we could have done."

While Lando Norris will have to work a lot harder during the main race on Sunday, he will have the opportunity to make the Sprint his best one yet, as he will start from pole position.