Max Verstappen takes Singapore GP sprint pole but at risk of penalty

Max Verstappen claimed pole position for the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix sprint race but is at risk of picking up a penalty for an alleged yellow flag infringement. 

Four-time F1 world champion Verstappen stormed to pole by 0.120 seconds over George Russell in the ‘downgraded’ Mercedes but the Red Bull driver faces an investigation for overtaking Lewis Hamilton under yellow flags in the first part of sprint qualifying. 

Charles Leclerc was on provisional pole but ended up third-fastest for Ferrari and 0.243s off the pace. 

Leclerc beat the McLarens of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, while Lewis Hamilton was only sixth and over half a second off the pace after running out of sequence compared to his rivals and completing just one push lap in SQ3. 

F1 Singapore Grand Prix: Full sprint qualifying results

F1 championship leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli struggled to a time only good enough for seventh in Mercedes’ upgraded W17. The Silver Arrows are carrying out a back-to-back comparison in Singapore to better understand whether its latest updates have worked. 

Liam Lawson was eighth for Racing Bulls, ahead of Isack Hadjar and Pierre Gasly in the Red Bull and Alpine respectively. 

The start of SQ2 was delayed due to a timing glitch but when it got underway Franco Colapinto narrowly missed out on a spot in the top-10 to his Alpine team-mate. 

Nico Hulkenberg ended up 12th, ahead of the Haas of Ollie Bearman and Audi team-mate Gabriel Bortoleto who was 14th. 

Fernando Alonso reached SQ2 as he put his Aston Martin 15th, ahead of outgoing Haas driver Esteban Ocon, who was slowest in the second part of sprint qualifying. 

F1 rookie Arvid Lindblad was eliminated with a time only good enough for 17th in his Racing Bulls, ahead of the Aston Martin of Lance Stroll. 

Williams struggled for pace in sprint qualifying, with Alex Albon dropping out in SQ1 in 19th, while team-mate Carlos Sainz was slowest of all in 22nd. 

The two Cadillacs of Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas took 20th and 21st. Perez outpaced Bottas despite damaging his car with a crash which caused a brief red flag. 

Saturday’s sprint race, which will be contested over 21 laps of the Marina Bay Street Circuit, gets underway at 10:00 UK time, before regular qualifying takes place at 14:00. 

It will be the first time Singapore has held a sprint race.