George Russell scored his first-ever win in Formula One with a dominant drive Sunday at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Mercedes snapped its victory drought and made it a 1-2 finish to boot as Russell's teammate (and honourary Brazilian) Lewis Hamilton came in second. Ferrari's Carlos Sainz rounded out the podium in third.
Here's a rundown of what you need to know from an electric weekend in Brazil.
Russell, who started P1 after coming out on top during Saturday's sprint, led all but a handful of laps and picked up the fastest lap bonus with his sensational performance.
The 24-year-old British driver got off to a great start with a jump out of the gate plus an assist from his teammate. Hamilton, who started P2, tucked in right behind Russell to cut off the charging Red Bulls and keep Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez at bay.
The finish was a statement for Mercedes, which earned its first victory of the season. While Mercedes may have been overachieving earlier in the season by capitalizing on the misfortune of others, this 1-2 result was well-earned and the result of getting closer and closer in recent races. Russell and Hamilton had a strong performance two weeks ago in Mexico but Mercedes banked on Red Bull's tires falling apart, which didn't occur.
The German manufacturer is on the right track to return to glory after seeing its record eight-year run at the top of the constructors' standings come to an end this season. Mercedes is now just 19 points back of Ferrari for second in the constructors' championship heading into next Sunday's season finale in Abu Dhabi.
Shades of 2021 returned as Hamilton and Verstappen tangled during the re-start on the seventh lap. Verstappen was deemed at fault, resulting in a five-second penalty — turning things from bad to worse for him as he also had to pit for a new front wing.
You could argue Hamilton didn't give Verstappen enough space (even though he didn't need to) but one thing that isn't debatable is disobeying team orders isn't good for business.
Although Verstappen already locked up his second straight world title last month, Perez is still fighting Ferrari's Charles Leclerc for second place in the standings. Verstappen was told if he was unable to overtake Fernando Alonso then he should let his teammate pass. Even though he had nothing to gain, Verstappen ignored the instructions and finished P6 with Perez still behind him.
"I told you already last summer," Verstappen yelled over the radio. "The guys don't ask that again to me."
Perez has been praised for being a consummate teammate and would have yielded for Verstappen if the roles were reversed (here's just one example from earlier this year at the Spanish Grand Prix).
"It shows who he really is," Perez said on his radio after being informed Verstappen wouldn't concede his position.
"After all I've done for him, it's a bit disappointing, to be honest," Perez added to Sky Sports after the race.
That wasn't the only spicy situation between teammates as Alpine's Esteban Ocon and Alonso got into a dust-up during Saturday's sprint. Team principal Otmar Szafnauer must have clonked their heads together like Moe from The Three Stooges with Alpine in a tight battle against McLaren for fourth place in the constructors' championship.
Ocon and Alonso started P16 and P17, respectively, and things worked out in the end with both drivers finishing in the top 10 but not without additional sparks flying. During the GP, Ocon was informed Alonso had a tire advantage and to let his teammate pass "nice and clean."
"Let me race at the moment, I will once the situation settle," Ocon said.
The none-too-pleased engineer replied: "Esteban, I don't want you fighting with Fernando, is that understood?"
Alpine earned a combined 14 points with Alonso finishing in P5 and Ocon in P8 and the bonus for them was McLaren leaving with a bagel on the board. Neither Daniel Ricciardo nor Lando Norris even finished the race, never mind within the top 10.
Alpine (167 points) now holds a 19-point advantage over McLaren (148 points) and that'll likely be enough to finish fourth.
Aston Martin's Lance Stroll and Sebastian Vettel also made contact during the sprint and then went head-to-back for the final points-paying position during the actual race. The Canadian driver Stroll won that battle finishing P10.
The end of the season can't come soon enough for some driver pairings.
Circling back to the battle for second in the drivers' championship, Leclerc pleaded with his team to let him pass Ferrari teammate Sainz for P3. It was worth asking — and you could practically feel Leclerc's pain when he was denied — but the team deemed it too risky. Hard to blame them there.
The Monegasque driver was lucky he was even still in the race. Leclerc nearly totaled his Ferrari after getting tagged by Lando Norris and hitting the barrier following the re-start on Lap 7. Fortunately for Leclerc, he only needed a new nose cone and was able to recover.
Leclerc and Perez are now level in second place with 290 points apiece heading into the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. At least they're not tied at the top like Verstappen and Hamilton were last year, right? (Oh, too soon?)
Or in this case to "not classified" Haas driver Kevin Magnussen, the shocking pole winner in Friday's qualifying, was unable to cash in by the time Sunday rolled along.
The Danish driver slipped to P8 during Saturday's sprint to salvage one point but didn't even manage to complete a single lap during the actual GP.
Magnussen was taken out by Ricciardo at turn eight, and Haas' social media person didn't pull any punches.
Yes, Magnussen's pole position was a lucky break in the first place as rain washed out most of the final qualifying session, however, it's that unpredictability and randomness that can help break up the monotony.
Besides, how could you not watch Magnussen's reaction after securing pole and not feel joy?
Ricciardo, who also retired as a result of the collision, has been assessed a grid penalty for his final outing with McLaren — which should be not only for being at fault for the wreck but also for ruining the weekend's feel-good story.
