Max Verstappen finishes second in Singapore Grand Prix; George Russell wins race
Max Verstappen finished second in the Singapore Grand Prix on Sunday. The Dutch Red Bull driver did not come near troubling the race winner George Russell, but did well to hold off Lando Norris of McLaren to stay in second.
Verstappen gained six points on the championship leader, Oscar Piastri, and three points on Norris, who is in second. With six races remaining, the Dutchman still faces a tall task, trailing by 63 and 41 points respectively as he chases a fifth straight world title for Red Bull.
Russell set the tone early with a terrific start to the race. The British driver created a significant gap on Verstappen quickly. It is his second race win of the season after he also won the Canadian Grand Prix in June.
Norris had climbed to third after a somewhat aggressive move on his teammate Oscar Piastri. The Australian driver was not happy with Norris’ antics, criticizing the move to his team on the radio.
Verstappen’s struggles with his car were prevalent all throughout the race. It began in the 11th lap. His team asked him about the issues regarding the downshift, the process of shifting to a lower gear while slowing down. Verstappen replied, “No change, it’s still shit.”
The 28-year-old struggled with his car for most of the race. He showed his frustration several times during the race. “It’s so shit to drive!” He said after locking up.
The issues continued in the closing stages of the race. Verstappen was given two track limits, penalties for going beyond the white lines that define the edge of the circuit, and lost all mechanical grip.
Despite this, he was able to hold off Norris and finish in second. “Yeah, that was not easy, mate. I’ll debrief after the race, but it was not straight at all.” Despite the issues, he praised the team’s effort and said he was pleased they held on to second place.
The next race on the F1 calendar is the U.S. Grand Prix on October 19.
