What happens if F1 abandons Sunday qualifying for the Brazilian GP?

Michelle Foster 03 Nov 2024 7:39 AM

A yellow weather warning remains in place for Interlagos

Heavy showers are forecast for Sunday morning’s qualifying for the Brazilian Grand Prix with a yellow weather warning in place until 10 AM, and qualifying is scheduled for 7:30 AM local time.

The storm will pass late in the morning but showers are still expected for the Grand Prix, which has been pushed forward to 12:30 PM.

Interlagos under a yellow weather warning until 10 AM

Not a single lap was completed in Saturday’s qualifying as a storm hit the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace circuit bringing a deluge of rain and standing water on the track.

After two hours the FIA made the decision to postpone qualifying on safety grounds, and two hours later announced Sunday’s new start time.

The FIA statement read: “Following the conditions in São Paulo today the decision was taken not to proceed with qualifying due to poor visibility, standing water on the track and fading light.

“Therefore the decision has been taken, after consultation with the stewards, to schedule qualifying for 07:30 local time on Sunday morning ahead of the Grand Prix at 12:30 local.”

However, it’s uncertain as to whether qualifying will go ahead with a storm forecast through to 10 AM.

Various weather forecasts range from 100 per cent chance of heavy rain to 84 while one optimistically claims there’s just a 50 per cent chance of rain.

More on the FIA and F1’s governance

👉 FIA explained: What does it stand for and how does it govern F1?

👉 Explained: How the FIA develops potential new F1 rules and regulations

What happens if F1 abandons Sunday qualifying?

There is some confusion as to how the grid for the Grand Prix will be classified should qualifying be called off as there’s no set regulation in the 2024 F1 rulebook.

Should Q1 go ahead, the grid could be based on that but if qualifying is abandoned before anyone sets a time then the stewards could use FP1’s timesheet or even Sprint qualifying’s.

The stewards could use Article 39.4b of the Sporting Regulations, which relates to any driver that “failed to set a time in Q1 or SQ1, or if all their laps were deleted”, to set the grid. That states that drivers “who are unclassified because of conditions (i) or (ii) will be allocated the top positions in accordance with the order they were classified in P3 (or, in the case a Sprint Session is scheduled, P1).”

Or they could use Article 42.3, which reads: “Classified drivers who have received 15 or less cumulative grid penalties will be allocated a temporary grid position equal to their qualifying session or sprint qualifying session classification plus the sum of their grid penalties.”

The good news is the race should go ahead as planned, now with a 12:30 PM start, as the chance of rain falls to just 34 per cent and it should be light rain at best.