Spain’s Carlos Sainz Clinches Superb Pole Position For Ferrari In Singapore Grand Prix

CARLOS SAINZ will start from pole position in the Singapore Grand Prix tomorrow, Sunday, September 17.

The Spanish driver clocked the fastest time in qualifying to place the Ferrari on the front row. George Russell was only 0.072 seconds adrift in the Mercedes, with Charles LeClerc crossing the finishing line in the other Ferrari just 0.007 seconds behind the Brit.

‘Pole in Singapore! Q3 has been very tight but we managed to confirm P1! The race will not be easy due to the degradation but it is key to prepare well. The team has worked hard and we deserve a good result’, he tweeted.

🇸🇬Pole en Singapur! La Q3 ha estado muy apretada pero conseguimos confirmar P1! La carrera no será fácil por la degradación pero es clave prepararse bien. El equipo ha trabajado a tope y merecemos un buen resultado.

👉https://t.co/1RKlj04O2I

–#CarlosSainz pic.twitter.com/BF1l0E9fhn

— Carlos Sainz (@Carlossainz55) September 16, 2023

Max Verstappen had a day to forget. The Dutchman will start his Red Bull in 11th place when the race starts due to his Red Bull being uncharacteristically way off the pace around the fast street circuit.

He is currently on a record-breaking streak of 10 consecutive wins this season. Even starting from so far back on the grid, not many people would bet against him at least gaining a podium place tomorrow, or even another victory.

His teammate Sergio Perez had an equally bad time, qualifying in 12th after the Mexican spun his car at the start of his final lap.

Sainz racked up his second consecutive pole position

‘We have a very good car in certain tracks and certain conditions and like one lap, and on this sort of track with short exits and quick changes in direction, our car seems to be very good this weekend’, Sainz told bbc.com after bagging his second pole in two races.

He was on the front row in Monza last time out, only to see Verstappen streak past him to an eventual chequered flag in Italy.

‘Like in Monza, we know our weakness is always the race pace and we always pay a price. But everyone has been doing a great job over the last couple of weekends to understand the package and understand the car and I think we are definitely making a bit of progress’, he added.

Two British drivers finished in fourth and fifth

Britain’s Lando Norris brought his McLaren home in fourth with the seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton unable to finish any higher than fifth in the Mercedes.

Kevin Magnussen pulled another excellent drive out of the bag to position the Haas car sixth on the gird, ahead of the Aston Martin of another former world champion, Fernando Alonso.

The Top 10 was rounded out by the Alpine of Esteban Ocon, Nico Hulkenberg in the second Haas, and Liam Lawson producing a stunning drive in the Alpha Tauri.

A nasty accident involving the Aston Martin of Canadian driver Lance Stroll saw the session red-flagged early on. His car slid out of control as he exited the final chicane causing it to lose grip and spin into the crash barriers after hitting the kerb, losing a wheel in the process. Stroll was quickly discharged from the medical centre after being taken for an injury check-up.