Singapore Saturday: Verstappen wins wet sprint and takes 50th pole

[Steve_22]

Max Verstappen had a brilliant Saturday in Singapore, winning the sprint and then taking pole for the Grand Prix, according to Motorsport Week and PlanetF1. The sprint started wet and dried out, and Verstappen mastered the changing conditions for his first win of any kind at Marina Bay. Lewis Hamilton was second, 2.591 seconds back, and Charles Leclerc third, giving Ferrari a double podium. Kimi Antonelli, Liam Lawson, Oliver Bearman, Nico Hulkenberg, Lando Norris, Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon completed the top ten

George Russell had a nightmare. He started second, made a strong launch and passed Verstappen to lead. But he spun coming onto the main straight at the end of the first lap and hit the pit wall. Russell said it was a miscalculation, explaining he had more battery deployment than he thought, which pushed him onto the white line. He called it a silly mistake with big consequences

McLaren also had a rough sprint. Norris and Piastri collided while neither was fighting for a podium, their second clash after the 2025 Canadian Grand Prix. The stewards found both contributed and gave no penalty. Team principal Andrea Stella said two McLarens making contact like that was simply not acceptable, and that no person is bigger than the interest of the team

In qualifying, Verstappen took the 50th pole of his career by about half a tenth from Leclerc, with Hamilton third and Antonelli fourth. Leclerc said there was potential for pole but Max simply did a better job. Russell qualified sixth but was always going to start from the back because of his power unit change. PlanetF1 called the Red Bull much improved

It was a great day for Verstappen and Ferrari, and a painful one for Russell and McLaren. Russell's sprint crash also cost him ground in the title fight, with Antonelli now leading him by 89 points. The race result has its own thread. Saturday set things up brilliantly

Was this Verstappen's best day of the season? And how much blame should Norris and Piastri share for their clash?

Winners and losers from the 2026 Singapore Grand Prix Qualifyingwww.planetf1.com