Singapore GP - Qualifying

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Singapore Airlines Singapore GP

Qualifying

September 21, 2024

Lando Norris secured a pole position at the Singapore Grand Prix, setting the stage for an intense battle with his championship rival, Max Verstappen. The McLaren driver's impressive performance on the qualifying session saw him edge out Verstappen by a mere 0.203 seconds, highlighting the fierce competition between the two drivers.

With Norris and Verstappen locking out the front row of the grid, fans can expect an electrifying start to the race as the two contenders go head-to-head for crucial points in the drivers' standings. Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton's third-place start adds another layer of excitement to the mix, promising a thrilling fight for victory.

As Norris aims to close the 59-point gap to Verstappen in the championship race, the pressure is on for both drivers to deliver a flawless performance on race day. With only seven races left in the season, every point matters, and Norris' recent form, where he has steadily chipped away at Verstappen's lead, sets the stage for a gripping showdown in Singapore.

Norris expressed satisfaction with his performance on the track. "It was tough, especially to the end of qualifying, I was finding it difficult to progress and to gain a lot of lap time and all the guys around seemed to get quicker and quicker so it put me under more pressure with it being just one lap at the end, but it was good enough for pole and I'm happy with that, especially with it being Singapore."

He said: "I had faith and I could just do what I've been doing all weekend ... It's tricky, the car is moving around, it's bumpy, it's easy to brake one metre too late ... so you pay the price for overdriving and overpushing and I kept it cool and I did what I had to do."

Afterwards, Verstappen stated: "I think the whole of qualifying actually went quite well. We managed to improve the car run after run. I'm happy to be on the front row, if you look at where we came from yesterday, Q3 was tough. Your lap gets cancelled with the double yellow, then everyone only has one run to do the lap, you don't want to overdo it, so you want to stay within the limit. I'll take second, I'm happy with that."

George Russell is set to begin the race in fourth place in the second Mercedes, with Oscar Piastri ahead of him. Piastri, who emerged victorious in the previous race in Azerbaijan, faced challenges in keeping up with Norris' pace during qualifying in Singapore.

Hamilton, Russell's teammate at Mercedes, expressed that his top qualifying result this season was a second-place finish at the British Grand Prix: "Qualifying has a been a disaster for me all year long and I've just been working and working just to get myself back up there and all of a sudden the car came alive in qualifying for the first time in a long time."

Nico Hulkenberg delivered an impressive performance in Saturday's qualifying session, securing sixth place on the grid for Haas. He outpaced Fernando Alonso's Aston Martin in seventh and RB's Yuki Tsunoda in eighth.

Charles Leclerc, who initially clinched ninth place, saw his Q3 lap time invalidated for exceeding track limits at Turn 2. This time would have placed him in seventh position.

Carlos Sainz, a year after his pole position at the same track, encountered a mishap in the final corner while gearing up for his first flying lap. Losing control of his car at Turn 18 and 19, he collided with the barriers, preventing him from setting a time in Q3 and settling for tenth on the grid.

Starting from the 11th position on the grid is Alexander Albon, closely followed by his new Williams teammate Franco Colapinto in 12th place, just 0.007 seconds behind. Albon expressed his frustration over team radio after both Williams drivers struggled to maximize their tire performance.

Sergio Perez of Red Bull will begin the race from 13th place after a disappointing qualifying session. Despite showing improvement in Azerbaijan, Perez's crash in the previous race and underwhelming performance in Singapore will increase the pressure on him.

Haas' Kevin Magnussen, who missed the last race due to a ban, will start 14th, with Esteban Ocon of Alpine in 15th position.

Daniel Ricciardo narrowly missed out on advancing to Q2 by 0.127 seconds, fueling speculation that this might be his final race weekend with RB.

Despite a strong showing in practice, Ricciardo fell short by just one second in Q1, failing to progress to Q2 in a highly competitive field. RB reserve driver Liam Lawson is rumored to be a potential replacement for him next season, possibly even stepping in for the next race in Austin to prepare for 2025.

Lance Stroll of Aston Martin will start 17th, followed by Pierre Gasly of Alpine, Valtteri Bottas, and Zhou Guanyu of Sauber, forming the final row on the grid.

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Singapore GP 2024 Qualifying Result

Disqualified from Q1

16. Yuki Tsunoda, RB (1:31.085)

17. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin (1:31.094)

18. Franco Colapinto, Williams (1:31.312)

19. Valtteri Bottas, Sauber (1:31.572)

20. Zhou Guanyu, Sauber (1:32.054)

Disqualified from Q2

11. Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin (1:30.474)

12. Daniel Ricciardo, RB (1:30.481)

13. Kevin Magnussen, Haas (1:30.579)

14. Pierre Gasly, Alpine (1:30.653)

15. Esteban Ocon, Alpine (1:30.769)

Top 10 Qualifying from Singapore GP 2024

1. Lando Norris, McLaren (1:29.525)

2. Oscar Piastri, McLaren (1:29.728)

3. George Russell, Mercedes (1:29.841)

4. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari (1:29.867)

5. Carlos Sainz, Ferrari (1:29.953)

6. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes (1:30.115)

7. Max Verstappen, Red Bull (1:30.214)

8. Sergio Pérez, Red Bull (1:30.354)

9. Alexander Albon, Williams (1:29.747)

10. Nico Hülkenberg, Haas (1:30.108)