Max Verstappen takes Singapore GP sprint pole by 0.120s from George Russell; leader Antonelli only seventh

Max Verstappen will start Saturday's Singapore Grand Prix sprint from pole position after edging George Russell by 0.120 seconds in Friday night's sprint qualifying at the Marina Bay Street Circuit. The Red Bull driver, fresh from winning the relocated Bahrain Grand Prix at Sepang last weekend, set a 1:31.156 in the final segment, his first sprint pole of the 2026 season. Championship leader Kimi Antonelli could manage only seventh.

The top ten

Charles Leclerc held provisional pole after the first runs in SQ3 but was pushed back to third, 0.243s off Verstappen. The McLarens lined up together on the second row, with Oscar Piastri fourth (+0.298s) and Lando Norris fifth (+0.431s). Lewis Hamilton was sixth for Ferrari, 0.546s down after reporting a couple of big snaps on his laps in SQ2.

Antonelli finished 0.693s off pole in seventh. Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) was eighth, ahead of Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) and Pierre Gasly (Alpine). Both Hadjar and Gasly had their SQ3 laps deleted for exceeding track limits, which left them on the fifth row.

A tale of two Mercedes

The most striking story of the session was the gap between the two Mercedes drivers. Russell ran the team's older-specification front wing, while Antonelli used the new version. Russell had already topped the weekend's only practice session earlier on Friday with a 1:32.274 on soft tyres, 0.198s clear of Leclerc.

Antonelli, who leads Russell by 84 points, admitted afterwards that he had found the upgraded car difficult and unpredictable to drive. Russell's front-row start applies to the sprint only. His power unit penalty, confirmed by Mercedes earlier in the week after his late retirement at Sepang, sends him to the back of the grid for Sunday's Grand Prix; that story was covered in our earlier report, and this piece focuses on Friday's on-track result.

Russell nearly did not make SQ3 at all. He locked up into Turn 13 on his second SQ2 attempt, fell out of the top ten, and needed a last-gasp lap to recover to fourth in that segment.

Red flag, yellow flags and a timing glitch

SQ1 was interrupted by a red flag when Sergio Perez hit the barrier at Turn 5 in his Cadillac, damaging his front wing and scattering debris on the racing line. A timing systems problem then delayed the start of SQ2 by around a quarter of an hour, and the FIA later admitted that a race control error had affected the cars' Overtake Mode power after the red flag.

Verstappen was investigated after replays showed him passing Hamilton's Ferrari under yellow flags in SQ1. The stewards found he had breached the rules but accepted that the pass was an unfortunate result of the big difference in speed between the two cars while Verstappen was on a fast lap, so no penalty was given and he kept pole.

Eliminated in SQ1 were Arvid Lindblad, Lance Stroll, Alex Albon, Valtteri Bottas, Perez and Carlos Sainz, who was slowest. Franco Colapinto, Nico Hulkenberg, Oliver Bearman, Gabriel Bortoleto, Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon fell in SQ2.

What comes next

The 21-lap sprint is scheduled for 5pm on Saturday, 10 October, with Grand Prix qualifying at 9pm. Singapore and Malaysia share the same time zone, so those are also the Malaysian start times. Sunday's 62-lap race begins at 8pm. Points in the sprint go to the top eight, from eight for the winner down to one.

Key takeaways

• Verstappen took sprint pole with a 1:31.156, 0.120s ahead of Russell.
• Leclerc was third, with Piastri and Norris sharing the second row.
• Championship leader Antonelli qualified seventh in the upgraded Mercedes.
• Hadjar and Gasly lost their SQ3 laps for track limits.
• Verstappen escaped a penalty for passing under yellow flags in SQ1.

FAQ

When is the Singapore sprint in Malaysian time? The sprint is scheduled for 5pm on Saturday, 10 October. Malaysia and Singapore share the same time zone.

Does Russell's grid penalty affect the sprint? No. His power unit penalty applies to Sunday's Grand Prix, so he starts the sprint from second.

Why did Verstappen keep pole despite the yellow flag investigation? The stewards accepted that the pass on Hamilton came from the large speed difference while Verstappen was on a fast lap, and gave no penalty.

Sources: Formula1.com, Autosport, Sky Sports, The Race, PlanetF1, Crash.net