By: Qualifying for the Singapore GP confirmed the picture we saw at the Bahrain GP in Malaysia. A second consecutive pole position for Verstappen’s Red Bull (1’31’’373), with both Ferraris ahead of a Mercedes team that has been cut down to size. While upgrades were blamed in Kuala Lumpur, that cannot be the case here at Marina Bay.
The upgrades introduced in Malaysia sounded something of an alarm bell for the Stuttgart manufacturer, so in Singapore it chose two different routes to assess the W17’s behaviour with and without the updates. Russell’s car was assembled to the specification used in Baku, Azerbaijan, while Antonelli was able to run with the specification introduced at Sepang. Mercedes also brought a new front wing to Singapore, but as far as we understand, that technical solution has been shelved for the time being.
Red Bull and Ferrari are getting a taste for it
The fact remains that, with and without upgrades, the W17 lost out to Verstappen’s Red Bull here in Singapore, both in Sprint Qualifying and in qualifying proper. Antonelli improved on Friday, ending up 189 thousandths behind Max. A significant step forward, but not enough. In recent times, both Ferraris have also been doing a better job than Mercedes in qualifying. As a result, both Leclerc and Hamilton will start ahead of Antonelli in today’s race.
Mind the Gap
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Russell is naturally not much of a reference point, given that he knew he would be starting from last due to an engine penalty. However, judging by his performance in the Sprint, we can say that the old car may be better than the new version: shortly before his crash, George was leading the Sprint Race. There is certainly work to be done at Mercedes, and perhaps only next season will tell us where it has taken them.
That said, Red Bull deserve credit. Two consecutive poles at two very different circuits are a sign that the team is doing a good job. Ferrari, too, showed something positive in the last two qualifying sessions, in Bahrain and Singapore. It did not take pole, but the fact it has consistently managed to stay ahead of Mercedes is still worth highlighting. Ferrari’s problem, at least from what we saw in Malaysia, is that it then cannot maintain a competitive race pace. Today, on a street circuit, the start will be one of the most important moments of the race. Pace will become relevant again at the next Texas GP, scheduled in two weeks’ time.
McLaren and the rest of the field
Looking at McLaren, Norris and Piastri are close together and show better qualities in race trim than the Ferrari package, but at the moment it is the drivers themselves who are failing to maximise the potential made available to them by the Woking team. And, given the outcome of yesterday’s Sprint, that is a shame.
If we turn our attention to the rest of the field, we can see that almost every team has improved compared with Sepang, with slower circuits helping to close the gap to the leader. Major improvements for Haas, VCARB and Alpine, progress for Williams and Audi, while Aston Martin and Cadillac have slipped back. Singapore’s layout has certainly played a major role in this reshuffling of the competitive order, at least among these teams.
Cover photo by Peter Kiss / WHYOUT Images
All the news, photos, weather, session times and times from the Singapore GP 2026
