Carlos Sainz claims back-to-back pole positions by beating George Russell and Charles Leclerc in Qualifying; Red Bull suffer double Q2 exit as Max Verstappen starts 11th and Sergio Perez 13th; Watch the Singapore GP live on Sky Sports F1 on Sunday, lights out at 1pm
Saturday 16 September 2023 20:34, UK
Carlos Sainz claimed pole position in a dramatic Singapore GP Qualifying that saw both Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez exit in Q2 on a horrible night for Red Bull.
Sainz's 1:30.984 was enough to give him back-to-back pole positions by just 0.072s ahead of George Russell in the Mercedes.
Charles Leclerc had to settle for third in the second Ferrari as less than a tenth of a second covered the top three cars.
But Red Bull suffered a horror show on Saturday night as Verstappen and Perez made early exits in Q2 to leave their hopes of extending an unprecedented 15-race winning run seemingly extinguished. Verstappen will start 11th and Perez 13th.
The RB19 has looked a shadow of its unbeatable self around the Marina Bay Street Circuit, and a moment at Turn Three for Verstappen on his final Q2 effort and a spin from Perez at the same corner saw both Red Bull drivers venting their fury over team radio and storming away from the pit lane.
Verstappen was also subject to three post-session investigations for separate blocking incidents, but escaped with two reprimands for waiting at the end of the pit lane in Q1 to build a gap and getting in the way of Yuki Tsunoda in Q2.
The stewards deemed no further action on the third case as Verstappen was deemed to have "not unnecessarily impeded" Logan Sargeant amid a gaggle of cars backing up through the final corners towards the end of Q1.
Lando Norris will start fourth in the upgraded McLaren having been a quarter of a second off Sainz's pole time, with Lewis Hamilton lining up alongside his compatriot in fifth.
Kevin Magnussen produced a very strong performance to claim sixth place for Haas ahead of Fernando Alonso's Aston Martin and Esteban Ocon's Alpine, with Nico Hulkenberg ninth in the second Haas.
And Liam Lawson made it through to Q3 for the first time - he was the driver to ultimately knock Verstappen out of qualifying - and will start 10th.
A huge crash for Lance Stroll at the final corner brought the first part of qualifying to an abrupt end. The Canadian was thankfully able to walk away from his heavily damaged Aston Martin and cleared to return to the paddock by the on-site medical team.
With the chequered flag already out and all drivers who had completed laps improving, Oscar Piastri was the unfortunate front-runner to exit Q1 with the Australian on an improved lap and two cars behind Stroll on track when he crashed.
Singapore GP Qualifying result
1) Carlos Sainz, Ferrari
2) George Russell, Mercedes
3) Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
4) Lando Norris, McLaren
5) Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
6) Kevin Magnussen, Haas
7) Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin
8) Esteban Ocon, Alpine
9) Nico Hulkenberg, Haas
10) Liam Lawson, AlphaTauri
Verstappen and Red Bull's record-breaking run of wins appears set to end on Sunday, with a miracle drive through the field required to keep their respective runs of 10 and 15 consecutive victories going.
Verstappen and Perez both unleashed a torrent of expletives over team radio after exiting in Q2 as the RB19 could not find the grip to be competitive.
A shock exit looked on the cards from the opening runs in the middle segment, with Verstappen's opening effort beaten by Magnussen while Perez could not better his team-mate's time.
After the first runs in Q2 Verstappen was sitting 10th and Perez 11th, and while the two-time world champion was still able to improve his time despite his moment at Turn Three, it was not enough as Lawson consigned him to 11th.
"I don't know if you saw that, but that was ****. Shocking, absolutely shocking experience," Verstappen fumed over the radio.
Verstappen told Sky Sports F1: "I knew it would always be tough to put it on pole. But this I didn't expect.
"It's just a shocking experience and then trying to lean on the car in the slow-speed, I was constantly sliding and no traction, just really difficult to drive."
Perez meanwhile never had a chance to improve after spinning at Turn Three and had to settle for 13th.
Red Bull had a slim chance of winning the Constructors' Championship this weekend, but that now looks over with a one-two finish on Sunday required for it to even be a possibility.
Ferrari had appeared favourites for pole after topping all three practice sessions and Sainz continued his impressive form by claiming back-to-back pole positions for the first time in his career.
He had been on provisional pole after the first runs in Q3 and improved on his second run, although an ordinary middle sector had potentially opened the door to those behind.
Leclerc still needed to cross the line but could not find enough, falling 0.079s short and while Russell had looked like he could upset the Scuderia, he had to slot in between the two red cars.
"I felt very confident all through the sessions and put it together in Q3," Sainz said.
"I just focused on not doing any mistakes on that lap. Keeping it clean in Singapore normally pays off.
"We had a very good car on certain tracks and conditions. These short apexes and quick changes of direction, our car seems to be very good this weekend."
Ferrari have now taken pole position at three consecutive Singapore GPs, although on the previous two occasions Leclerc failed to turn pole into victory as Sebastian Vettel and Sergio Perez claimed victory from third and second on the grid respectively.
