F1 Singapore Grand Prix: Verstappen takes pole in the sprint race. Leclerc third; Kimi Antonelli struggles with the upgrades

Max Verstappen continues his hot streak: after winning the Bahrain Grand Prix at Sepang, the Red Bull driver secured pole position in the sprint qualifying session for the Singapore Grand Prix. The Dutch driver clocked a time of 1’31”156 on the street circuit, ahead of George Russell, who was driving the Mercedes W17 without any updates. The four-time world champion is under investigation for an overtaking maneuver under yellow flags and faces a penalty; if penalized, the English driver will start from pole position in Saturday’s sprint race.

Third place went to Charles Leclerc of Ferrari, followed by the two McLarens driven by Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, and the other Ferrari driven by Lewis Hamilton. Kimi Antonelli finished a distant seventh, continuing to struggle with the W17’s updates: he was nearly six-tenths of a second behind his teammate Russell. Lawson, Hadjar, and Gasly also made the top 10.

“We’re always very close here in Singapore, and every lap we’re right on the limit,” said Max Verstappen. “Definitely when we put on the soft tires, the car came to life. I didn’t expect this result, so I’m happy to be in first place. This track really highlights our issues, but we’ve tried to work around them. Driving here is like being at the gym—it’s very hot, and you have to cool off as much as possible between sessions.”

Starting grid (top 10)
Verstappen
Russell
Leclerc
Piastri
Norris
Hamilton
Antonelli
Lawson
Hadjar
Gasly