SINGAPORE.- Max Verstappen confirmed that he is once again in a position to fight for victories in Formula 1 by taking pole position this Friday for the Singapore Grand Prix sprint race, less than a week after achieving his first victory of the season at the Sepang circuit in Malaysia.
However, the Dutchman could lose the first starting position, as the stewards investigate an alleged overtaking of Lewis Hamilton under a yellow flag during the first round of qualifying (Q1).
The Red Bull driver recorded a time of 1:31.156 on the Marina Bay street circuit, enough to beat the British George Russell of Mercedes by 120 thousandths of a second, who had led the only free practice session.
“Everything is always very tight here in Singapore, so you push as hard as you think possible, touching the walls in some places,” said Verstappen.
The four-time world champion acknowledged that the car’s performance improved with the soft tires during the last phase of qualifying.
“When we put the soft tires on for Q3, I noticed that the car was a little livelier, but I wasn’t expecting this,” he admitted.
Verstappen will now look to convert pole into a victory at a circuit where he has not yet managed to win. The high temperatures and humidity of Singapore make this event one of the most demanding physical challenges on the calendar.
Russell, attentive to a possible sanction
The investigation into Verstappen could modify the starting grid. If the stewards determine that the Dutchman committed an infraction, Russell would be one of the main beneficiaries and could inherit first position.
The Briton will face the main race on Sunday from the back of the grid due to a penalty for changing the engine, a penalty that does not apply to the sprint test.
Russell highlighted the importance of getting a good starting position in Marina Bay, an urban layout where overtaking is especially difficult.
“The driver who starts from pole has a big advantage,” said the Briton.
Behind the first two finishers were the Monegasque Charles Leclerc, with Ferrari, and the Australian Oscar Piastri, from McLaren, who will occupy the second row of the grid for Saturday’s sprint race, scheduled for 21 laps.
Antonelli suffers and Colapinto will start 11th
The Italian Kimi Antonelli, leader of the championship with an advantage of 84 points over his teammate Russell, did not have the expected classification and will start from seventh position.
The Mercedes driver was behind the British Lando Norris, from McLaren, and Lewis Hamilton, from Ferrari, who will occupy the third row.
“There is still a lot to understand about the car’s configuration. The car is very unpredictable and it is very difficult to complete a lap,” acknowledged Antonelli.
“I think it’s going to be a very complicated weekend, I don’t see where we can get seven tenths per lap from,” he added.
The New Zealander Liam Lawson, of Racing Bulls, and the Frenchmen Isack Hadjar, of Red Bull, and Pierre Gasly, of Alpine, completed the top ten positions.
The Argentine Franco Colapinto was less than a tenth of a second away from advancing to Q3 and will start from eleventh position, just behind his teammate Gasly.
For his part, the Brazilian Gabriel Bortoleto, from Audi, will start from fourteenth place, ahead of the Spanish Fernando Alonso, from Aston Martin.
The Mexican Sergio Pérez will start from the penultimate position with Cadillac, after surpassing in Q1 only his Finnish teammate Valtteri Bottas and the Spanish Carlos Sainz, who finished last with Williams.
The sprint race of the Singapore Grand Prix will be held this Saturday on the demanding Marina Bay track, while the possible sanction for Verstappen keeps the dispute open for the first starting position.
