SAO PAULO -- Qualifying for Sunday's Brazilian Grand Prix has been postponed until Sunday morning due to heavy rain at the Interlagos circuit in Sao Paulo.
A thunderstorm hit the circuit less than an hour before the scheduled start time at 3 p.m., with persistent rain thereafter.
After confirming the session would be delayed, the FIA conducted track inspections at 15-minute intervals before confirming the postponement at 4:45 p.m. local time.
"The decision was taken due to the lack of visibility caused by the level of rain we have experienced in the past few hours," an FIA statement said. "There is a lot of standing water on parts of the circuit which renders conditions unsafe.
"As much as we would all like to see competition on track, the safety of drivers, team members, volunteers, officials and spectators is our main priority.
"A decision on a start time for qualifying tomorrow morning will be taken as soon as possible."
F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali added: "Now the FIA is making the final check on what will be the right timing to organise the qualifying and follow up a plan to complete the day, because as you know it is a great event and we need to make sure we can maximize everything in all the conditions that can be acceptable, of course."
The last time a qualifying session was delayed until the day of the race was at the 2019 Japanese Grand Prix when Typhoon Hagibis made landfall on qualifying day.
Saturday's sprint race took place in dry conditions on Saturday morning, with Lando Norris securing victory after teammate Oscar Piastri was instructed by McLaren to give up the lead.
Sunday's Brazilian Grand Prix is set to be a key moment in the title battle between Max Verstappen and Norris, with the Red Bull driver leading the McLaren driver by 44 points after Saturday's sprint race.
Verstappen will take a five-place grid penalty from wherever he qualifies for Sunday's race after his Red Bull was fitted another engine beyond his quota for the season on Friday.