What to expect from the 2023 F1 Brazilian Grand Prix

Sprint season finale

The sprint format has split opinions ever since it made its Formula 1 debut in 2021, with the number of weekends doubling to six for the current campaign.

Sao Paulo will host the final sprint event of the season this weekend, with just one practice session in play before the drivers jump into qualifying.

Few will forget last year’s dramatic qualifying session in Brazil that saw Kevin Magnussen take a shock pole position for Haas.

True, the weather on the day helped the Dane secure the top spot at the end of the session - but the forecast currently suggests that qualifying this time around could be wet once again and offer similar opportunities.

Constructors’ fight

The fight in the Constructors’ Championship took a dramatic turn in Mexico when Daniel Ricciardo scored seventh place for AlphaTauri.

It allowed the Red Bull sister squad to jump from last place to eighth in the Constructors’ Championship - a move worth tens of millions for the end-of-year payouts.

The battle between AlphaTauri, Alfa Romeo and Haas is hot and each of the backmarkers will be pushing to ensure they don't finish bottom of the pile.

Further up the field, there is a simiarly exciting battle going on as Ferrari go in the hunt of second place

Mercedes rests just 22 points ahead of Ferrari who will be aiming to close in on the position and salvage something from a season that has been filled with disappointments.

Mercedes to end win drought?

Christian Horner is expecting Mercedes to be competitive this weekend in Brazil as the Brackley-based squad has slowly found its feet at recent events.

Last year, Brazil was the scene of Mercedes' spectator win with George Russell, who managed to fend off team-mate Lewis Hamilton for the victory.

Hamilton previously outlined that Mexico and Brazil would likely be Mercedes' best chance to win this year as he expects Red Bull will sail away in Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi.

Mercedes will be gunning to take a long-awaited victory and not suffer its first win-less campaign since 2011, both for pride and the help it would give it against Ferrari in the standings.