Verstappen breaks Singapore duck in wild sprint after Russell crashes out of the lead
SINGAPORE, Oct 10 — Dark clouds and a gloomy haze hung over the Marina Bay Street Circuit today, setting an unlike...
Singapore's Marina Bay Street Circuit transformed into a rain-soaked setting for the inaugural Formula One Sprint race, with a three-term rain delay before the scheduled 5pm start. Mercedes’ George Russell seized the lead from Red Bull’s pole-sitter Max Verstappen but lost control at the final corner of the first lap, crashing into the wall.
Verstappen took over the lead and maintained it, crossing the finish line 2.5 seconds ahead of Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton. This marked Verstappen's first Sprint victory of the season, and Hamilton's second-place finish was his best of the day. Charles Leclerc, racing for Ferrari, finished third, 16.8 seconds behind the winner. The Dutch driver's achievement was his first in a Sprint race, despite never having won the grand prix at this circuit.
A final lap incident saw McLaren's Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris collide, promoting championship leader Kimi Antolinelli to fourth. The race, reduced to 20 laps, ended with Russell out of the points and Mercedes forced to repair his damaged car before the next grand prix. Russell will be starting from the back of the grid after a penalty for a power unit issue.
Written by urgent.news from Malay Mail's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
Also reported by 2 other outlets
- Singapore F1 sprint underway after rain delay freemalaysiatoday.com
- Singapore cops arrest driver after lorry overturns and crashes into height limit sign in Bukit Timah malaymail.com
