Verstappen Takes Singapore Pole as Ferrari Settle for Second and Third

Singapore Grand Prix qualifying — Max Verstappen secured pole position for the Singapore Grand Prix, setting a best time of 1m31.373s in Q3. The Red Bull driver had already taken sprint pole earlier in the weekend, and his second pole in two days came after a qualifying session that saw Ferrari challenge hard but fall just short.

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Ferrari Close but Not Close Enough

Charles Leclerc finished second, just 0.054s behind Verstappen. Lewis Hamilton, who had led both Q1 and Q2, qualified third. Leclerc improved on his final Q3 run to take second away from his Ferrari teammate, while neither Verstappen nor Hamilton improved on their final attempts. Kimi Antonelli was fourth with a 1m31.562s lap, and Lando Norris qualified fifth. George Russell took sixth, Oscar Piastri seventh, Pierre Gasly eighth, Liam Lawson ninth and Arvid Lindblad tenth.

Q3: Early Pace Holds for Verstappen

Verstappen set the fastest time early in Q3 and held on as others pushed. Leclerc’s late improvement was the key change at the front, while Piastri was the only top team driver to improve in Q3, though he remained seventh. Gasly was the best of the rest with a 1m32.225s lap, 0.144s ahead of Lawson in ninth. Lindblad was 0.556s slower than Gasly in tenth.

Q1 and Q2: Hadjar Trouble, Hamilton Leads

Q1 was disrupted early when Isack Hadjar stopped on track with engine and gear issues. He reported the engine was off and that he was losing gears, but managed to restart and return to the pits. He ultimately failed to set a time. Hamilton led Q1, while Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll were eliminated. Esteban Ocon locked up and grazed the wall at Turn 13, and Stroll had a similar incident at Turn 7. Franco Colapinto clipped the wall at Turn 17 and qualified 16th, 1.2s down on his teammate. Norris set the early Q1 pace, and the Mercedes cars were over half a second adrift.

In Q2, Hamilton continued to lead with a 1m31.529s lap, ahead of Verstappen’s 1m31.639s. Verstappen complained of insanely bad gear shifts. Gasly improved by six tenths to reach Q3, while Nico Hulkenberg missed out by two tenths.

Grid Penalties Shake Up the Order

George Russell will start from the back of the grid due to an engine penalty, and Hadjar will also start from the back after his Q1 failure. Their penalties mean the provisional qualifying order will not fully translate to the starting grid.