Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were left frustrated following qualifying for the Sao Paulo Grand Prix after both were caught out by the rapidly changing conditions.
Max Verstappen proved fastest in a session that saw a dramatic increase in wind when dark clouds developed the circuit as Qualifying 3 began.
Thunder and lightning arrived soon after officials red flagged qualifying with four minutes remaining.
Times in Qualifying 3 were slower than they’d been just minutes earlier, with Verstappen sealing pole with a best lap 0.6s down on what he’d managed at the end of Qualifying 2.
Norris had been fastest in Qualifying 2 with a 1:10.021s, but was only able to deliver a 1:11.987s in Qualifying 3.
“Honest, the car was amazing,” Norris said of his qualifying session.
“Easily probably quick enough to be quickest today and on pole, so pretty gutted it had to end the way we did.
“I don’t know what to feel about it.
“The car was amazing, it came alive a lot in qualifying and easily good enough to be quickest, as I say.
“Delivering that lap and putting it together in Q3 and everything is a different job.
“Disappointed,” he added.
“Another disappointing [qualifying], not a lot we could have done.”
It was a similar case across the McLaren garage where the rapidly deteriorating conditions caught out Piastri.
The Australian was among the last on track at the start of Qualifying 3 and slid off the road at Juncao as the weather turned.
“Just lost a lot of grip,” he said of his off-track excursion.
“I don’t know if it was already raining or whatever but I was struggling a lot already on the lap – I think everyone was.
“Just went in how I thought I did the last lap and slid straight off.
“Shame. The pace of the car was looking good.”
Piastri ended the session without a time to his name and will line up for Sunday’s Sao Paulo GP 10th as a result.
Both McLaren drivers will have another opportunity to qualify on Saturday in Brazil with the Sprint Shootout to set the grid for the F1 Sprint later in the day.
