Max Verstappen secured pole position for the Singapore Grand Prix after winning the sprint earlier on Saturday. Charles Leclerc qualified second for Ferrari, with teammate Lewis Hamilton third and championship leader Kimi Antonelli fourth for Mercedes. Lando Norris was fifth for McLaren.
George Russell set the sixth-fastest time, but penalties for using an engine beyond the permitted allocation will send him to the back of Sunday’s grid. His weekend had already been damaged in the sprint, when he passed Verstappen at the first corner before losing control on the white lines in the final corner of the opening lap and hitting the barriers. Russell accepted responsibility for the mistake, while Mercedes repaired the car in time for qualifying.
Verstappen controlled the sprint after Hamilton made a strong start from sixth to move into third. Overtaking was difficult, and drivers managed their tyres through a largely processional race. Late drama came when Norris collided with McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri on the final lap, ending Piastri’s race and dropping Norris to eighth.
The Singapore street circuit hosted a sprint for the first time as Formula One experiments with the format at tracks where races can become processional. Hamilton said a dry sprint would have been among the most boring races to watch, while Leclerc said sprint races did not add anything to city-circuit weekends such as Singapore or Monaco.