Part of the stands at Interlagos will look like a football stadium on a Copa Libertadores match day this Sunday (3), with Brazilians and Argentines singing their songs during the São Paulo F1 GP — scheduled for 2pm, broadcast by Band. The motivations of each group, however, will be clearly different.
If the home fans will be lulled by a feeling of nostalgia, awakened by the celebrations in honor of Ayrton Senna’s legacy in the year in which his death completes three decades, motorsport fans in the neighboring country will display a renewed connection with the sport: the young Franco Colapinto, 21, joined the competition in the final stretch of the season and ended a period of 23 years without Argentines in the category.
Since the confirmation that Colapinto would take over from North American Logan Sargeant at Williams at the end of August, there has been an increase in Argentine demand for tickets for the race at Interlagos. Tourism agencies that sell packages for the race estimate that 2,000 Argentines traveled to Brazil to support their compatriot. Embratur (Brazilian Agency for International Tourism Promotion) recorded a 25% increase in flights from Argentina to Brazil.
“I knew that Argentines are very passionate about the country’s sportspeople. I’m very happy about that. It’s crazy to think that this is happening to me. Two months ago, I didn’t even think about being racing in F1,” said the driver.
Argentina has a tradition in F1, especially due to the five titles won by Juan Manuel Fangio, in the now distant 1950s, but it has not had a driver in the World Championship since 2001, when Gastón Mazzacane drove just four races for the now-defunct Prost team.
Colapinto returned the country to the category and has been one of the surprises of the final leg of the championship. In his second stage, in Azerbaijan, he achieved eighth place, adding his first points. In the GPs of Singapore, the States and Mexico, he came in 11th, 10th and 12th, respectively.
Although intermediate, the positions are better than the results Sargeant was recording. In 14 races this year, the American’s best result was 11th at the British GP. In the others, it was always behind in 14th place.
Recently, Williams boss James Vowles said he had “friendly discussions” with Red Bull, who have shown interest in the Argentine. The driver himself, however, does not believe he will have a place in 2025 and hopes to have a chance in 2026. “It’s my goal, so I’m doing what I can race by race.”
His presence on the grid, ensured by Williams until the last race of this year, made Argentina once again interested in joining the F1 calendar. During the GP São Paulo weekend, Daniel Scioli, Secretary of Tourism, Environment and Sport of the Javier Milei government, traveled to Brazil to talk to Liberty Media.
Alan Adler, promoter of the Brazilian stage, believes that the owner of F1 has a “special” eye for the South American market, but sees the bloated calendar and the rules for hosting a GP as obstacles to Argentina’s interest.
“The standard today is very high. For you to receive a race, you have to meet several FIA requirements [Federação Internacional de Automobilismo]mainly to approve a circuit”, he stated.
Managing the organization of the GP São Paulo since 2021, Adler has sought innovations to keep the interest of the Brazilian public alive without being able to count on a driver from the country to attract fans. For this year’s stage, he has two bets: the creation of a “fan zone” and, as has been the case in recent years, the recovery of Brazil’s glorious past in the championship.
In the weeks leading up to the race, Senna’s face became very present in the city. His story was portrayed, for example, on a CPTM (Companhia Paulista de Trens Metropolitanos) train, which had its composition enveloped with graffiti inspired by moments in its trajectory. The train is in circulation on Line 13-Jade and on the Expresso Aeroporto section.
Ayrton’s voice is also available to fans again in an exhibition at Ibirapuera Park, where a helmet with bone conduction technology reproduces the driver’s lines. The piece will be on display until November 17th.
The most awaited tribute, however, took place this Saturday (2), when Englishman Lewis Hamilton, a declared fan of the three-time champion, drove the iconic McLaren MP4/5B in Interlagos, with which Senna won the second of his three world titles, in 1990.
After Ayrton Senna, no Brazilian was able to arouse the same idolatry. Rubens Barrichello and Felipe Massa drove cars with chances of victory and even the title, but they were far from the same success and did not win the World Championship.
Brazil has not had a starter in F1 since 2017, when Massa left the category. The closest person was Pietro Fittipaldi, grandson of two-time champion Emerson Fittipaldi, who did two races in 2020 as a Haas reserve, a position he maintains to this day. The country currently has another reserve in the category, Felipe Drugovich, at Aston Martin.
At the moment, however, it is another driver who has a greater chance of winning a place for the 2025 season. This is Gabriel Bortoleto, 20, current F2 champion and linked to McLaren. Although he has little chance of driving the orange car next year, the team has already admitted that it has no problem loaning it to a rival.
There is an open position at Sauber/Audi, as Nico Hulkenberg is the only driver confirmed for next year, and the Brazilian’s name is one of those being considered.
If he is chosen, Brazil will have more than nostalgia to celebrate in the next F1 season.
