1 daySão Paulo GP

São Paulo, last stop on the American triple-header

Maranello 30 ottobre 2024

Formula 1’s three week triple-header in the Americas comes to an end this weekend. After the United States and Mexico, the teams have now headed south east, travelling to Brazil for the Sao Paulo Grand Prix after which there will be just three more rounds this season. This weekend’s race takes place at the Interlagos track, officially known as the Carlos Pace circuit, located in a suburb of the Sao Paulo megalopolis, capital of the eponymous state.

The circuit. Interlagos hosted the first edition of this South American race as a round of the world championship in 1973, the Brazilian Grand Prix, the title by which it was known until it was named after the capital city as from 2021. Interlagos has hosted the majority of the championship races on Brazilian soil, although from 1981 to 1989, it was held on the now abandoned Jacarepagua track on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro. The track is one of the favourites among the drivers. The lap begins on a high speed curving straight which leads onto the downhill turn 1, the famous Senna esses, named after the legendary Sao Paulo native, who died thirty years ago in Imola. Next comes the flat out Curva do Sol, leading on to the Reta Oposta, a straight with a DRS zone leading to turn 4, the Descida do Lago, where overtaking is possible and the drivers are subjected to exceptionally high gravitational forces. The track then climbs slightly going into sector 2, the twistiest part of the track, with a sequence running from turn 6, Ferradura, to 11, Mergulho, after which comes the third, very fast sector. The final metres of the lap consist of just one corner, Juncao, leading onto Subida do Boxes and Arquibancadas the finish line, where once again the DRS can be used.

Weather. It can rain quite a lot in November in Sao Paulo and the forecast for the weekend is not looking great. Having said that, the weather at Interlagos can be very changeable, partly because the track is located at a moderate 700 metres above sea level and in the past we have seen very wet sessions followed by bright sunshine, with a track temperature of 40 degrees.

Tyres. The short lap means there are no fewer than 71 laps to be completed in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix and if it is dry, then usually it’s a two-stopper, especially as the layout means overtaking is more than feasible. If it rains, or in mixed conditions there’s always the risk of losing count of the number of pit stops…

Programme. After a weekend run to the normal format in Mexico, with the exception of the extended FP2 tyre test, Sao Paulo hosts another Sprint weekend. Therefore, the only free practice session starts at 11.30 local (15.30 CET) on Friday, followed by Sprint Qualifying at 15.30 (19.30 CET). Saturday starts off with the fifth Sprint race of the season at 11.00 (15.00 CET) followed by qualifying at 15.00 (19.00 CET). The Sao Paulo Grand Prix gets underway at 14.00 (18.CET) on Sunday.

Now we come to the final race of this American triple-header in which, so far, we have made good use of the potential of our package. Interlagos is another Sprint weekend, which requires a great physical and mental effort from the team. With this format, the work of everyone back in Maranello takes on even greater importance and even before we set out for Austin, preparation was already underway in the simulator and it’s been ongoing over the past three weeks, as has work in the remote garage, analysing all the data acquired on-track after each race. The goal of this large group of people split between Maranello and the track is to ensure that Charles and Carlos have a good baseline from which to start the weekend in terms of car balance and set-up, so that they can focus on their driving. The weather often plays its part here in Interlagos, so everyone must be fully focussed, ready to make the most of any opportunity. At the moment, team morale is high, we are in the fight and we have to continue working like this. Only later will we pause to look at the points situation.

Fred Vasseur

Team Principal Scuderia Ferrari HP

FERRARI STATS

GP contested 1094

Seasons in F1 75

Debut Monaco 1950 (A. Ascari 2nd; R. Sommer 4th; L. Villoresi ret.)

Wins 248 (22.67%)

Pole positions 253 (23.13%)

Fastest laps 263 (24.04%)

Podiums 825 (25.14%)

FERRARI STATS GRANDS PRIX RUN IN BRAZIL

GP contested 50

Debut 1973 Brazilian GP (A. Merzario 4th; J. Ickx 5th)

Wins 11 (22%)

Pole positions 7 (14%)

Fastest laps 8 (16%)

Podiums 32 (21.33%)

THREE QUESTIONS TO... RAFAEL CAMARA

2024 European Formula Regional champion

Scuderia Ferrari Driver Academy driver

1. You won the European Formula Regional championship with one race in hand, in what was an almost perfect season. How did it come about?

I think the key to this season, apart from the fantastic way it started, was consistency, with my performance almost always at a high level. I did a much better job of managing myself compared to last year and I’m happy because I worked a lot on that. In 2023, I was quick, but some weekends I lost concentration and I didn’t manage to get the results of which I was capable. This year, I worked a lot on myself to maintain a constant level of concentration.

2. In Formula 1, there is more and more talk about the importance of the environment created within the team. For a driver, how important is the relationship with the team and in particular with the mechanics and engineers?

I’d say it’s vital, because the mechanics and engineers are very closely tied to the driver, foreseeing his needs and often even his thoughts. This past season, I think they were of fundamental importance because they put me in a position where I could give 100% and extract everything out of the car and out of myself. If you have a calm environment, then the driver feels it and I think this is the spirit that also exists within the Scuderia in Formula 1.

3. What are the characteristics of the Interlagos track?

Interlagos is a great track, although I’ve never actually raced there as I’ve been racing in Europe for many years. It runs anticlockwise with very demanding banked corners and the track is a bit narrower than most others. That means it’s not an easy track to get to grips with, but when you gain confidence to push, it’s brilliant. The weather at this time of year can play a decisive role, because the character of the track changes completely when it’s wet.

Profile

Rafael Camara

Nationality: Brazilian

Born on 05/05/2005

In Recife (Brazil)

FACTS AND FIGURES, SÃO PAULO GRAND PRIX

3.5. The length in kilometres of the road nicknamed Minhocão, officially “Via Elevada Presidente João Goulart”. The road is much disliked by drivers for its twisty nature and by those in the buildings it runs past because of the noise. The Minhocão is a mythical creature which resemble a giant earthworm. The stretch of motorway flyover is closed to car traffic between 8 at night and 7 in the morning on holidays and all day on Saturday on Sunday, when it is only open to pedestrians and cyclists. Local planners have long campaigned to have the road demolished to promote urban renewal, but over time, it has become something of a meeting place, famous for the giant graffiti painted on the surrounding buildings.

30. The percentage of Brazilians who regularly engage in some form of physical activity, many of them taking part in a sport. According to the Brazilian Ministry for Sport, the most popular is football, with 30 million players, followed by volleyball, table tennis and swimming. Beach tennis and skateboarding are going through a ramp up in popularity and are expected to grow still more in the coming years. Apart from actual sports, Brazil is second only to the USA on the list of countries with the most gyms, with about 40,000.

200. The number of helipads in Sao Paulo, the majority on the roofs of buildings, with over 500 registered helicopters. There are at least 700 flights per day in the city, a world record. This means of transport is used mainly by bosses of major companies to avoid the very busy traffic on the streets below.

720. The number of pizzas baked per minute in Sao Paulo. The city boasts the largest Italian community in the country with over 6000 pizzerias, which produce more than a million pizzas per day, many more than in Italy, the home of the pizza. The pizzas generate around 4 billion Reals (over 700 million US dollars) per year.

1925. The first year that the International Saint Silvester Race was run. The running race is held every year in Sao Paulo on 31 December over a distance of 15 kilometres. Entries open on 1 October with a maximum of 15,000 competitors and the entry list fills up on the very same day. As from 1989, the Saint Silvester race doubled in size when a women’s event was added. There’s also a shorter version for kids known as the “São Silvestrinha.”