Verstappen wins Singapore as Antonelli nears Formula One title

Max Verstappen won the Singapore Grand Prix at Marina Bay on 11 October, leading from pole position to finish ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, while Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli took third and moved closer to securing the drivers’ championship.¹²

Verstappen completes Marina Bay double

Verstappen’s Red Bull had also won the final sprint race of the season at Marina Bay after taking pole for both events, according to The Guardian. The grand prix victory was his first at the Singapore circuit and his second successive win of the season, the newspaper reported. BBC Sport said Verstappen’s result lifted him from sixth to fourth in the drivers’ standings.¹²

Leclerc followed his second place in the sprint with another runner-up finish in the grand prix. Antonelli completed the podium and increased his advantage over Mercedes team-mate George Russell to 102 points, putting him within one race of the title, according to the two reports.¹²

Strategy shapes Ferrari result

Lewis Hamilton finished sixth after remaining on worn tyres, while Oscar Piastri moved ahead of him for fifth after making an additional stop because of a slow puncture, BBC Sport reported. The Guardian said Hamilton did not pit under a virtual safety car although Ferrari was prepared for him, and that Lando Norris’s attack on Hamilton allowed Antonelli to pass through into third.¹²

Hamilton later accepted responsibility for the strategic call. “Sorry, boys. He apologised to the team, saying the tactical decision had been his mistake. Norris finished fourth and Piastri fifth after the two McLaren drivers had collided in the sprint, according to BBC Sport.¹²

Recovery drives and championship positions

Russell recovered from 19th on the grid to ninth after crashing out of the sprint. Liam Lawson, driving for Racing Bulls, was fifth in the sprint, started ninth for the grand prix and finished seventh; Nico Hulkenberg was seventh in the sprint and eighth in the grand prix, BBC Sport reported. Isack Hadjar started from the pit lane and scored one point.¹

Mercedes led the constructors’ standings on 578 points, with Ferrari second on 444, according to The Guardian. Antonelli led Russell by 102 points, while Hamilton was 111 points behind Antonelli. According to the report, Antonelli would clinch the championship in Austin by winning if Russell finishes no better than ninth and Hamilton no higher than fifth.²

BBC Sport’s weekend ratings gave Verstappen 10 out of 10, Leclerc nine, Antonelli and Lawson 8.5, Hulkenberg and Hadjar eight, Hamilton and Bearman 7.5, Piastri, Russell and Gasly seven, Norris 6.5, Ocon six and Sainz 5.5. These were the BBC’s assessments rather than official results.¹