Camara rues errors after difficult Interlagos qualifying debut

Rafael Camara called his first Formula 1 qualifying appearance a mixed result after two incidents in the rain at Interlagos, though he emerged 13th fastest and is set to start his home São Paulo Grand Prix from P11 following penalties for drivers ahead.

The Brazilian rookie spun and struck the wall during Q1, then went into the barrier in Q2, bringing out the red flags. Heavy rain and standing water made the session difficult across the field, and Camara said he struggled to manage the conditions through the final corner.

Camara wants a clean race after Q2 crash

Camara said the lock-up at the final corner left him unable to make the turn, and acknowledged that his mistakes were disappointing for both himself and the team. Even so, he viewed the session as having positives despite the incidents.

He is in the car this weekend after Esteban Ocon’s abrupt departure. Camara had already signed for Haas for next season, and his unexpected opportunity has now brought an F1 qualifying debut at his home event. F1LivePulse previously covered how he prepared for his Haas debut in São Paulo.

His priority for race day is avoiding another crash. Camara plans to review the data with the engineers and prepare for the range of situations the race could present, aiming to give himself the best chance of completing a clean event.

Bearman puts Haas sixth on the grid

Camara’s team-mate Oliver Bearman will start from sixth after a strong qualifying performance in the changing conditions. He also had an off-track moment, but found a better rhythm on the wet tyres and benefited from grid penalties ahead.

Bearman said the team had improved its approach to deciding when to push and when to manage the tyres, drawing on his previous experience at the circuit. He felt there was more potential available, but reported a lack of grip in Q3 as the rain intensified and the tyres failed to reach the right operating window.

The contrast gives Haas a strong starting position overall, with Bearman sixth and Camara promoted to 11th. For Camara, the challenge now is to turn a disrupted first qualifying into a composed race debut. His place in the team’s longer-term plans was confirmed in F1LivePulse’s report on Camara’s upcoming Haas F1 debut.