Interlagos bracing for incoming storm risk overnight and into Saturday

Organizers of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix are taking precautionary steps due to forecast storms at Interlagos ahead of Saturday’s Sprint.

A cyclone off the coast of Brazil brings with it threats of thunderstorms in the state of Sao Paulo, with the National Institute of Meteorology (INMET) issuing a warning for heavy rainfall, strong winds and hail. Push notifications from Brazilian Civil Defense were received by mobile phones in the region on Friday evening, telling the public to avoid open areas and seek shelter if necessary – the warning in place from 3 p.m. local time on Friday until the end of Saturday, with the FIA being told the highest risk of the first significant storm is between 6 and 9 a.m. Saturday.

In preparation, certain areas of the circuit are being secured in order to try and mitigate the impact of the high winds, forecast to be between 40-60mph. 

No changes to the schedule have been made due to the uncertainty over the actual conditions that will impact Interlagos. The Sprint is currently set to start at 11 a.m. local time, with qualifying taking place at 3 p.m. Saturday.

Last year, heavy rain and thunderstorms led to the postponement of qualifying until early Sunday morning, and the race itself was brought forward by 90 minutes to try and avoid the worst of the weather and allow fans to get safely in and out of the circuit.