The one driver who had looked able to threaten Norris for raw pace saw his afternoon unravel even before Antonelli's. He spun exiting the pits and turned a 1.2-second deficit to the McLaren into 20 seconds. McLaren had started the year slowly. They had fallen behind in development of their 2026 car after diverting resources to get last year's title double over the line.
By the time stops for dry tyres were looming on lap 15, with 56 laps still to go and more rain predicted, the lead looked fragile. A rival had climbed to fifth and to less than 15 seconds behind Antonelli.
In Sao Paulo, new parts, a circuit that suited them, and Norris excelling in the wet in qualifying and the race put him back in the game.
Once the cars were on slicks, Verstappen was not a threat to Norris on pace, even when heavy rain returned in the closing laps.
On the podium, Norris jumped off the top step and tried his usual move, uncorking the champagne by bashing the bottle into the ground.
Not for the first time, the force of the jump pushed things too far, and he smashed the bottle.
Antonelli, the Mercedes driver, had built an eight-second advantage in the first 13 laps. Norris began to come back at him as the track dried.