F1: Liam Lawson denied point by Sergio Perez in Brazilian Grand Prix sprint race, rain wipes out qualifying

The Liam Lawson and Sergio Perez rivalry on the track continued in Brazil this morning with the Mexican denying the Racing Bulls driver a Formula One point late in the sprint race.

Perez, who could be replaced by Lawson at Red Bull next year, passed Lawson with four laps remaining to take eighth spot.

However, the rest of Sunday (NZT) was washed out, as persistent rain over Interlagos meant qualifying was postponed until Monday - just hours before the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Lawson started the race in eighth and held that spot until the 20th lap when a surging Perez, who started in 13, made his move. The virtual safety car was needed shortly afterwards when Nico Hulkenberg went off the track which denied Lawson the chance of a shot to regain eighth place.

It is yet another chapter in the Lawson-Perez rivalry after the Red Bull driver called Lawson an ‘idiot’ during last week’s Mexican Grand Prix which was followed by the Kiwi pulling the finger after a passing move, which he later apologised for.

Oscar Piastri handed victory to McLaren teammate Lando Norris following team orders. With Max Verstappen finishing third, Norris cut into the Red Bull driver’s lead atop the championship standings to 45 points with the main race tomorrow morning.

“Not proud about it but we work well as a team together so I thank Oscar,” Norris said.

“We’ve done a great job as a team today and it was the result that we wanted, Oscar deserved it, but we are doing what we have to do. I thank him and the team and we had great pace so I’m looking forward to qualifying and the race tomorrow.”

Verstappen remains top of the championship with 368 points, while Norris is second with 323 points.

A maximum of 26 points (25 for first place and a bonus point for fastest lap) will be on offer in the Brazilian Grand Prix, which begins at 6am on Monday.