Lando Norris of Great Britain drives the McLaren MCL38 Mercedes on track during qualifying ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Singapore at Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore on September 21, 2024. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
McLaren’s Lando Norris beat Red Bull’s Max Verstappen to pole position for the Singapore Grand Prix on Saturday (September 21, 2024) after a dramatic qualifying session was red-flagged due to Carlos Sainz’s crash.
Norris’s lap of 1 minute 30.002 seconds was 0.155 seconds faster than Verstappen. Lewis Hamilton finished third, ahead of Mercedes teammate George Russell.
“It was good enough for pole and I’m happy with that, especially here in Singapore,” said Norris, who is aiming to reduce his 59-point deficit to Verstappen in the Drivers’ Championship.
“It’s a good feeling. I felt good all weekend, I was full of confidence, maybe not so much in the qualifiers, but we got the job done,” the Englishman said.
But it was a disastrous Q3 for Ferrari pair Charles Leclerc and Sainz, winners in Singapore 12 months ago, who will start ninth and 10th on the grid.
Sainz’s car’s rear broke at the final turn, causing him to crash into the barrier and stop with eight minutes remaining in Q3, leaving most drivers with only one chance at a qualifying lap.
Leclerc then had his only lap time deducted for violating track limits at turn two.
Verstappen was only 15th fastest in practice on Friday, so the Dutchman was pleased to be at the top of the grid alongside his main rival.
“If you look at where we came from yesterday, I’m happy to be on the front row,” Verstappen said.
“It’s a bit hard to say what will happen tomorrow, a lot can happen in Singapore, but at least we have a chance to do this.”
Hamilton also struggled in practice but delivered a solid lap when it mattered.
“Qualifying has been a disaster for me all year and I’m working hard to get myself back there,” said seven times world champion Hamilton.
“Suddenly the car was active in qualifying for the first time in a long time. “I hope we will be in a good position to overtake tomorrow.”
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri was fifth fastest and Haas’ Nico Hulkenberg will start the race alongside him on the third row.
Fernando Alonso was seventh in the Aston Martin, while Yuki Tsunoda was eighth in the RB.
Verstappen’s teammate Sergio Perez couldn’t make it to the shootout for pole position and will start from 13th on the grid.
Along with Perez, the other drivers who failed to make it out of Q2 were the Williams pair of Alex Albon and Franco Colapinto, Kevin Magnussen at Haas and Esteban Ocon (Alpine).
Daniel Ricciardo – who is rumoured to be driving for RB for the final time in F1 – was in the final five, having been eliminated in Q1.
Failing to make it to Q2 were Lance Stroll’s Aston Martin, Pierre Gasly and Valtteri Bottas in the Alpine and the Sauber pair of Zhou Guanyu.
Published – September 22, 2024 10:46 am IST