Verstappen takes dominant win in Sao Paulo sprint to extend championship lead

Red Bull's Max Verstappen won Saturday's sprint race at the Brazilian Grand Prix as a late-race safety car denied George Russell a chance to challenge for victory.

Verstappen made a good start from second on the grid to pass polesitter Russell around the outside of Turn 1 but was unable to pull away from the Mercedes driver in the early stages.

Russell stayed within DRS range of Verstappen for the first few laps but was unable to find a way past. Verstappen eventually managed to pull out a small gap, but Russell closed back up in the closing stages.

With two laps to go, the safety car was deployed after Nicholas Latifi crashed at Turn 10. This gave Russell a chance to close up on Verstappen, but the race was red-flagged before the restart could take place.

Verstappen's victory extends his championship lead over Ferrari's Charles Leclerc to 21 points. Russell remains third in the standings, 19 points behind Leclerc.

Verstappen's win was his sixth of the season and the 33rd of his career. It was also Red Bull's first win in Brazil since 2013.

Russell's second place was his best result of the season and his first podium finish for Mercedes. It was also the first time a Mercedes driver had finished on the podium in Brazil since 2016.

Leclerc finished third for Ferrari, ahead of teammate Carlos Sainz. Alpine's Fernando Alonso finished fifth, ahead of McLaren's Lando Norris.

The Brazilian Grand Prix will take place on Sunday, November 13.