As we were gearing up for the qualifying session of the Brazilian Grand Prix yesterday, torrential rain hit Interlagos, near Sao Paulo.
The session was postponed, then postponed again, and ultimately canceled because the lighting conditions did not allow for a safe qualifying session. But what happens if a qualifying session in F1 is canceled?
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Why were the qualifications for the Brazilian GP postponed?
At Interlagos on Saturday, heavy rain fell on the circuit, leading to multiple postponements and eventually pushing the event to the following day. However, the area around Sao Paulo lives up to its name Interlagos means “between lakes,” and the ground is highly saturated with water. When it rains, the water struggles to seep into the ground, resulting in accumulation that leaves the track soaked. The Interlagos circuit is also quite dated in its design, and the concrete and asphalt areas quickly form large puddles. Even after the rain stopped on Saturday afternoon, the track remained un-drivable for a long time due to poor drainage.
Unfortunately, we won’t have any more track action today
Qualifying has been postponed until tomorrow morning 🌧️ #BrazilGP 🇧🇷 #F1 pic.twitter.com/MumjtrbaCr
— Scuderia Ferrari HP (@ScuderiaFerrari) November 2, 2024
Postpone rather than cancel
First, it’s important to understand that whenever possible, a Formula 1 qualifying session will always be postponed rather than canceled. In fact, there is no time limit on Saturdays for conducting this qualifying session, except for the visibility on the track. Stefano Domenicali, President of Formula 1, announced yesterday the cancellation of the session due to insufficient lighting after several postponements. Thus, qualifying was supposed to take place on Sunday morning, but as I write this, the session has once again been postponed. (I hope at least we can attend the race!) In Formula 1, a qualifying session must finish at least 4 hours before a race start. Since the race is scheduled at a fixed time this afternoon, qualifying may well be canceled.
What happens if qualifying is canceled?
If, unfortunately, a Formula 1 qualifying session were to be canceled after being postponed on Sunday, the starting grid for the race would still need to be determined Therefore, even though don’t think this has ever happened in F1, the FlA could use the timing sheets from Free Practice 1 to determine the drivers’ starting order. This would result in a wild top 5, with Norris and Russell (P1 and P2) joined by Ollie Bearman, who is replacing Kevin Magnussen, in P3! Alex Albon would start in 5th place. This would be an incredible start for them! For Max Verstappen, it would be a disaster, as his time from Free Practice 1 would only put him in 15th place. Fortunately for him, if the race turns out to be wet, he would have many opportunities to gradually climb back up and earn points.
This article explores the possibilities available to Formula 1 if a qualifying session were to be postponed or canceled and the wild impact on the starting grid for the Brazilian Grand Prix 2024 for the drivers.
