Red Bull's Max Verstappen struck a major blow in the Formula One title battle by winning a wet and chaotic Brazilian Grand Prix, despite having started the race 17th on the grid.
A poor qualifying display and engine penalty meant Verstappen began Sunday's round with only three cars behind him.
But he assumed the lead of the race on lap 43 of 69 and never looked back in the treacherous conditions to claim a remarkable win that edges him ever closer to a fourth consecutive title.
It was the Dutchman's first victory in 10 races lifting him 62 points clear of Lando Norris – a fatal blow with just three rounds and 86 points to fight for in the last three races – meaning Verstappen will wrap up the title at the next race in Las Vegas on November 24 if he finishes ahead of his rival.
The Formula One circus then heads to the Middle East for the Qatar GP followed by the season-ending Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at Yas Marina on December 8.
Verstappen becomes the first driver since Kimi Raikkonen 19 years ago to win a race from as far back on the grid, taking the chequered flag an extraordinary 19.4 seconds clear of French duo Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly, who were a surprise second and third for Alpine.
George Russell was fourth, one spot ahead of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc. Norris, who started from pole position, finished only sixth on a desperately disappointing afternoon for the British driver in Sao Paulo.
“My emotions today have been a rollercoaster, with qualifying being really unlucky with that red flag, starting P17 I knew that was going to be a very tough race,” said Verstappen, who also secured the fastest lap extra point.
“We stayed out of trouble, we made the right calls and stayed calm and we were flying so all of these things together made that result possible but I mean unbelievable, to win here from so far back on the grid.”
It was also a remarkable race for Alpine who secured a stunning points bonanza that rocketed the team from ninth to sixth in the constructors' standings.
“What a day that was after the difficult season, it's really nice to be driving here and having the performance levelled out in the rain,” said Ocon. “Someone, very important to all of us, said a long time ago that in the rain the cars are almost equal. That phrase didn't age at all.
“The car was extremely difficult on the dry and it felt at ease when it started to rain. I really wanted to get some laps in the rain. I love it here in the rain. Today has brought a special race for us.”
Teammate Gasly hailed an “incredible” result for the team. “We’ve had such a tough season and we’ve struggled to score points,” he said.
“In these conditions everything was possible and no one believed it until the end, two cars on the podium, I don’t think anyone would have got that on their bingo card, it’s just fantastic.”
After a wet and wild qualifying, Lance Stroll set the tone when he spun off in his Aston Martin on the formation lap, leading to a delayed second start before which Norris led away without a green light and, along with Russell and both RB drivers, faced a post-race investigation.
The big Sunday crowd, part of an Interlagos weekend record of 291,717 waited patiently as Norris finally led a third formation lap before Russell beat him at the start.
Norris tucked into second ahead of Yuki Tsunoda on a frantic opening lap that saw Verstappen climb from 17th to 11th, passing Hamilton for 10th on lap two as light rain fell. By Lap six, Verstappen was eighth.
By Lap 11, Verstappen was sixth and clearly the fastest man on track. As heavy rain arrived, Leclerc pitted and fell to 11th, Lawson slid off and Nico Hulkenberg pitted before beaching his Haas, prompting a Virtual Safety Car on Lap 28.
The German recovered, with aid, to re-join for which he was disqualified.
Another round of pit-stops left Ocon leading ahead of Verstappen, who stayed out to gain a tactical advantage, as Norris passed Russell for fourth behind Gasly as a Safety Car was deployed again before being red-flagged on Lap 33 when Colapinto smacked the barriers at Turn 14.
“I guess everyone can just change tyres for free now,” said a glum Norris realising Verstappen had been given a cost-free pit-stop that transformed the race.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
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Company profile
Date started: Founded in May 2017 and operational since April 2018
Founders: co-founder and chief executive, Doaa Aref; Dr Rasha Rady, co-founder and chief operating officer.
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: Health-tech
Size: 22 employees
Funding: Seed funding
Investors: Flat6labs, 500 Falcons, three angel investors
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Zayed Sustainability Prize
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
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Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
The five pillars of Islam
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The BIO:
He became the first Emirati to climb Mount Everest in 2011, from the south section in Nepal
He ascended Mount Everest the next year from the more treacherous north Tibetan side
By 2015, he had completed the Explorers Grand Slam
Last year, he conquered K2, the world’s second-highest mountain located on the Pakistan-Chinese border
He carries dried camel meat, dried dates and a wheat mixture for the final summit push
His new goal is to climb 14 peaks that are more than 8,000 metres above sea level
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Brief scoreline:
Manchester United 2
Rashford 28', Martial 72'
Watford 1
Doucoure 90'
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Porsche Taycan Turbo specs
Engine: Two permanent-magnet synchronous AC motors
Transmission: two-speed
Power: 671hp
Torque: 1050Nm
Range: 450km
Price: Dh601,800
On sale: now
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Tips for used car buyers
- Choose cars with GCC specifications
- Get a service history for cars less than five years old
- Don’t go cheap on the inspection
- Check for oil leaks
- Do a Google search on the standard problems for your car model
- Do your due diligence. Get a transfer of ownership done at an official RTA centre
- Check the vehicle’s condition. You don’t want to buy a car that’s a good deal but ends up costing you Dh10,000 in repairs every month
- Validate warranty and service contracts with the relevant agency and and make sure they are valid when ownership is transferred
- If you are planning to sell the car soon, buy one with a good resale value. The two most popular cars in the UAE are black or white in colour and other colours are harder to sell
Tarek Kabrit, chief executive of Seez, and Imad Hammad, chief executive and co-founder of CarSwitch.com
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More on Quran memorisation:
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Match info
Uefa Champions League Group F
Manchester City v Hoffenheim, midnight (Wednesday, UAE)
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Major honours
ARSENAL
BARCELONA
- La Liga - 2013
- Copa del Rey - 2012
- Fifa Club World Cup - 2011
CHELSEA
- Premier League - 2015, 2017
- FA Cup - 2018
- League Cup - 2015
SPAIN
- World Cup - 2010
- European Championship - 2008, 2012
WHAT IS GRAPHENE?
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were experimenting with sticky tape and graphite, the material used as lead in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But when they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.
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