Verstappen is untreatable and another engine failure for Alonso

Again, Max Verstappen. The four-time world champion had a sensational Saturday with his victory in the sprint race and the subsequent pole he achieved in the classification of the F1 Singapore GPwhich adds to the ‘mini pole’ he achieved a day before. He is absolutely intractable and already remembers the steamroller of 2023 and his years of greatest dominance in F1 with a car that from Baku has taken the definitive leap for the four-time king to make a difference.

Proof of this is that Max This time he can not only dominate, but also do so on a circuit where he had never won or taken pole. And there, this Saturday Verstappen achieved the 50th pole of his racing careerthis time, surpassing Leclerc by 54 thousandths and Hamilton by 69 thousandths with his first attempt at Q3. He didn’t even need to push in his second and final lap because when he started his lap he was already poleman.

The monster is back. Everyone knows it. He has not had a car at his level until this end of the championship. He fought with what he had, maximizing his results, waiting for Red Bull to react.

It even seemed like he could leave, but he renewed. He did it hopeful, confident that his team would sooner or later give him a winning car. Or at least, a car that would allow him to compete with the best, nor that it was with some disadvantage, but that it was not light years away from the rest. And it arrived.

From Bakuis at a spectacular level and was more than confirmed in Singapore, where this Sunday he will seek success with Sunday’s victory in a race in which it is very difficult to overtake.

To do this, he must learn from what happened this Saturday in the sprint. There, he just made a mistake. Or rather: the only moment in which someone did better than him was seen, when Russell surpassed him at the start of the sprint to snatch first place. But unlike Groege, Max walked away from danger on a rain-sensitive asphalt, while Russell went to the wall and gave him the victory.

After that, Max must learn: he cannot afford to lose first place at the start to the two Ferraris. Leclerc will go out to his side hungry. And also hamilton3rd, who in the sprint already gained three positions (from 6th to 3rd) in the sprint start. Verstappen is more than warned about a position race in which the brakes will suffer, but in which overtaking will be very difficult.

Whoever comes out of the first corners first will have everything to win, managing tires to go for a stop. That is if the rain does not return to change everything.

Antonelli, to minimize damage; Russell will leave behind

Kimi Antonelli still can’t find a way to be as fast as before with the innovations that Mercedes introduced in Sepang and that didn’t work either in Malaysia or on this track. At least, he was able to greatly improve the working window of his car and was able to get closer to the best (with a 4th place) and surpass the result of Russell, who has the old parts. But Mercedes will have to insist to find the potential they believe these evolutions have.

Ultimately, the fact that Mercedes’ improvements work is only of interest for the development of the British team for next year, because Kimi has the champion title in his pocket. Even more so if we take into account that Russel He will serve a penalty on the grid this Sunday for an engine change. He will start from behind, with no options on a track where it is impossible to overcome.

Kimi will start 4th after being 0.189 behind Verstappen and only 66 thousandths behind the Ferrariswith Norris in 5th place, 0.339 behind the best. And the sanction to Russell, who was 6th in classification, will give position to all those who had finished behind him. Piastri will start 6th, with Gasly 7th, Lawson in 8th place before Lindblad (9th) and Hülkenberg.

Sainz achieves Q2 goal

Carlos Sainzwith a car with which he warned that he was going to suffer in Singapore, signed a positive result by getting into Q2 and finishing 14th, 1.9 off the best in that second part of the classification, two tenths behind the worst Haas, Ocon’s. The sanction for Russell will allow him to start 13th, although with very difficult points.

Nightmare for Fernando Alonso

The Singapore Grand Prix should have been the best on the calendar for Fernando Alonso and his Aston Martin because the importance of the engine is less on this track. But the Honda engine failed again.

He already failed in the sprint race, when Fernando Alonso claimed that he lacked power when exiting the corners. He then asked the team if they wanted him to withdraw the car to give them time to change the engine before qualifying, but it finally ended. And finally, he went out to the ‘qualy’ with the same engine. And he failed again.

So, Fernando Alonso touched Q2 and was 17th. But reaching Q2 would have been a miracle. He already put 7 tenths on his teammate Stroll with the same car. He was totally on his turn, beyond the limit. That explains the blockage in turn 16 that could have cost him that Q2, but as we say, he was working miracles because of how much he attacked on the rest of the track. He missed out by just 54 thousandths of Bortoleto’s time. But even if it had happened, the day would have gone bad.

There was nothing more to scratch about that car, which on Friday already became clear that it also lacks the aerodynamic load to shine on this circuit. They must think about 2027.