Lando Norris secured a pole position under the lights of Singapore to lead a pack for Sunday’s 2024 Singapore GP. Norris’ lap of 1:29.525 was 2-tenths quicker than Max Verstappen whose weekend seems to fare well into recovery.
Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell were 3rd and 4th, while Azerbaijan GP winner Oscar Piastri only managed to go 5th.
Singapore GP Qualifying was marked with a red flag caused by Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz who lost control of his SF-24 ahead of his Q3 lap.
Pole position was decided on the one final lap since teams decided to wait until the last moment not to waste tires for more than one lap.
Singapore GP: Qualifying session 1
Qualifying for the Singapore GP started with expectations of a tight showdown between McLarens and Ferraris for the pole.
The initial lap supported the hypothesis. Leclerc’s flying lap was not enough to keep a hold off Norris, who took an early Q1 lead with Monegasque being ‘sandwiched’ by the McLaren duo. Departing Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz rounded the Top 4.
Halfway into Q1 Verstappen breaks McLaren-Ferrari duopoly jumping into third place.
Russell’s Saturday struggles continued with reports of W15’s rear part of a car sliding a lot through tight Singaporean corners.
Williams’ surprising form continued with Albon taking a very short lead until Norris regained his first place. Ultimately both Williams drivers ended up in the first third of the session in 7th and 9th respectively.
Track evolution shaped up the grid in the last seconds of Q1 but Norris was intact. Verstappen, Piastri, Hamilton, and Perez closed the top 5.
There was a potential for the surprise exit of Carlos Sainz who lurked around the 15th position when the clock ticked down, however Spaniard clinched a lap time that saved him up to 6th.
Sauber drivers were joined by Daniel Ricciardo, Lance Stroll, and Pierre Gasly as the first victims of the qualifying.
Singapore GP: Qualifying session 2
The second qualifying session was all about Verstappen’s resurgence after almost a session-ending situation.
Max Verstappen’s scary save from the crash in the last corner of his flying lap opened the Q2 for the Singapore GP. Dutchman’s wheelspin whilst accelerating in the middle of the corner caused him to potentially damage a floor after kerb-riding.
Dutchman’s lap was enough for the provisional pole but was quickly deleted for track limits.
Lando Norris also had a moment in the second sector with a medium slide. Williams’ Alex Albon contributed with a message that seems that everyone has: issues with tyres.
In terms of team pace at Marina Bay, Hamilton, and Russell surprisingly took 1st and 3rd place respectively as the Q2 draws to a close. This was until Red Bull’s Verstappen delivered an ‘under-pressure’ lap that put him 2 and a half seconds in front of the 7-time World Champion.
Q2 was finalized with Piastri on top and with surprise knock-outs of both Williams and Perez. Returning Magnussen and Ocon also ended up staying in Q2.
Singapore GP: Qualifying session 3
Carlos Sainz’s shunt in the last corner caused a red-flag status of the session. Spaniard was in preparation for the flying lap when the ‘snap of oversteer or cold tires’ sent Sainz into the barriers.
Verstappen’s fastest lap was once more deleted albeit Dutchman’s claims that he ‘lifted two times off the throttle’.
Teams have decided to give their drivers one last lap for the pole position to preserve supersoft tires.
Piastri barely improved on his Q3 time but was dispatched by his teammate by over 4 and a half seconds.
Verstappen took second place with Mercedes drivers behind him while Leclerc’s lap time got deleted due to track limits violations.