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2024 Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix Highlights

2024 Formula 1 Singapore GP

Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, leads Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, Sir Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes F1 W15, George Russell, Mercedes F1 W15, and the rest of the field at the start; 2024 Singapore Grand Prix, Formula One World Championship

 

Introduction

 

Lando Norris converted pole position into victory with a charging drive during the 2024 Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix, finishing 20 seconds clear of Max Verstappen and reducing the championship leader’s points advantage once more.

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Norris banished the memories of previous poor starts from the front of the grid to slot ahead of Verstappen at Turn 1 and control the opening laps before romping clear and spending most of the encounter in a league of his own – a couple of brushes with the walls aside.

With no answer to Norris’s raw pace, Verstappen had to settle for a distant second position, while Oscar Piastri’s rise from fifth to third – and a lowly points finish for Sergio Perez – means McLaren move further ahead of Red Bull in the constructors’ standings.

Piastri stayed out longer than anyone else in the first stint and charged his way past Mercedes pair Lewis Hamilton and George Russell with fresher tyres, something Charles Leclerc – as another late stopper – tried to repeat across the closing laps.

Leclerc overtook Hamilton with relative ease but could not quite do the same to Russell before the chequered flag dropped, leaving the Ferrari man in a Silver Arrows sandwich – teammate Carlos Sainz recovering from his qualifying crash to take seventh.

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Fernando Alonso added some more points to Aston Martin’s tally in eighth, with Nico Hulkenberg giving Haas something to celebrate in ninth, as the aforementioned Perez – having been knocked out in the second qualifying phase – completed the top 10 places.

Franco Colapinto added to his impressive drives in Italy and Azerbaijan en route to P11, just a couple of seconds away from Perez and a points reward, followed by the lead RB and Alpine cars of Yuki Tsunoda and Esteban Ocon and the second Aston Martin machine of Lance Stroll.

Kick Sauber drivers Zhou Guanyu and Valtteri Bottas crossed the line in 15th and 16th, respectively, taking advantage of a difficult race for Pierre Gasly in the other Alpine and a three-stop affair for RB’s Daniel Ricciardo, who set the fastest lap after a late move to soft tyres.

Alex Albon lost a hatful of positions at the start when he felt he was forced wide by Williams teammate Colapinto and later retired due to an overheating car, with the Haas of Kevin Magnussen joining him on the DNF list at the end of the race after picking up a puncture.

Norris punched the air in delight as the podium finishers pulled up in parc ferme, having cut Verstappen’s title lead from 59 points to 52. McLaren, meanwhile, depart Singapore with an increased 41-point advantage over Red Bull in the constructors’.

Mario Isola, Motorsport Director, Pirelli:

All in all, this was a relatively straightforward race, without a single neutralisation, the first time that this race has happened in history. The one-stop proved to be definitely the quickest, and all three compounds behaved as expected. The Medium and the Hard clearly saw the most use, but the Soft also proved its worth, as could be seen, for example, in the times set by Hamilton on full fuel load in his first 17-lap stint or with Tsunoda over 28 laps in the second part of the race, with a perfectly acceptable level of degradation.

The role of pace management and traffic must be balanced when evaluating tyre performance. These factors significantly influenced the race, particularly with the Medium compound. Depending on their pace, some drivers were able to extend their first stint well beyond the predicted window, opening up the possibility of using the Soft, as demonstrated by Tsunoda and Gasly.

After four races in five weeks, Formula 1 takes a short break ahead of the triple-header in the Americas. But for our group, the work on track continues, with four days of testing, which is only possible thanks to the vital support of the teams, in this case, Mercedes, Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren.

The day on the track:

As expected, most of the field went for the Medium at the start: 14 drivers lined up on the C4, four (Stroll, Bottas, Zhou and Magnussen) on the C3 and two on the C5 (Hamilton and Ricciardo).

The Medium proved to be very flexible in terms of stint length, allowing nearly all drivers to complete the race, making just one pit stop. Depending on track position and traffic, we saw drivers stop as early as lap 13 (Sainz), while others even got all the way to lap 38 (Piastri). In fact, Ferrari’s Spanish driver did the longest stint of all, covering no less than 49 laps on the Hard.

 

The longest stint of all was driven by Pierre Gasly (Alpine), who completed 50 laps on the Hard, only pitting on the penultimate lap to switch to Softs. As for the Medium, Alex Albon made the most use of it, doing a long 20-lap second stint on the C4.

2024 Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix Race Results

PosNoDriverCountryTeamTimePointsOverall
1.4Lando NorrisGreat BritainMclaren Racing1:40:52.57125279
2.1Max VerstappenNetherlandsRed Bull Racing+20.945s18331
3.81Oscar PiastriAustraliaMcLaren Racing+41.823s15237
4.63George RussellGreat BritainMercedes-AMG Petronas+61.040s12155
5.16Charles LeclercMonacoScuderia Ferrari+62.430s10245
6.44Lewis HamiltonGreat BritainMercedes-AMG Petronas+85.248s8174
7.55Carlos SainzSpainScuderia Ferrari+96.039s6190
8.14Fernando AlonsoSpainAston Martin F1 Team+1 lap462
9.27Nico HulkenbergGermanyHaas F1 Team+1 lap224
10.11Sergio PerezMexicoRed Bull Racing +1 lap1144
11.43Franco ColapintoArgentinaWilliams Racing+1 lap04
12.22Yuki TsunodaJapanVisa Cash App F1 Team+1 lap022
13.31Esteban OconFranceAlpine F1 Team+1 lap05
14.18Lance StrollCanadaAston Martin F1 Team+1 lap024
15.24Zhou GuanyuChinaKick Sauber F1 Team+1 lap00
16.77Valtteri BottasFinlandKick Sauber F1 Team+1 lap00
17.10Pierre GaslyFranceAlpine F1 Team+1 lap08
18.3Daniel RicciardoAustraliaVisa Cash App F1 Team+1 lap012
19.20Kevin MagnussenDenmarkHaas F1 TeamDNF07
7.23Alexander AlbonThailandWilliams RacingDNF012

2024 Constructor Standings

PosTeamPoints
1.McLaren Racing666
2.Scuderia Ferrari652
3.Red Bull Racing589
4.Mercedes-AMG Petronas468
5.Aston Martin F1 Team94
6.Alpine F1 Team65
7.Haas F1 Team58
8.Visa Cash App F1 Team46
9.Williams Racing17
10.Kick Sauber F1 Team4

Here are the team-by-team highlights:

 

McLaren Racing

 

Hear from McLaren Formula 1 drivers Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, and Team Principal Andrea Stella after the 2024 Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix.

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Lando gets a clean start from the pole and retains P1. Oscar loses a place off the start but quickly returns the spot from Hülkenberg. Lando extends his lead over Verstappen while Hamilton pits which shuffles Oscar up to P4. Russell pits on Lap 28, which promotes Oscar again. Verstappen pits one lap before Lando, both switching to the Hard compound. Oscar runs in P2 behind Lando when he decides to pit and comes out behind Hamilton in P5. Oscar gets past Hamilton quickly and Russell a few laps later. The Chequered Flag falls with Lando P1, Verstappen P2 and Oscar P3.

Lando Norris

Another win! I’m so happy today; the team gave an amazing performance. The car was mega, so I could push. We were fast throughout the whole race, and at the end, I could focus to see it out. It was still a very tough race with a few too many close calls. It was very easy to lock up a tyre – which I did a couple of times, but I was pushing because I wanted to have the biggest lead possible. It’s nice to have Oscar on the podium, too. He drove well, and we got a lot of points, so it was a good way to thank the team for their hard work.

Oscar Piastri

It was a good race and a good recovery from Qualifying yesterday, so to get back to the podium is a great result. We had a really quick car underneath us and a good strategy to get past the two Mercedes. It was a bit close to George in Turn 1, but once I got into third place, I had a massive gap to try and close up, so I didn’t want to take many risks. The car’s been exceptional all weekend and got some great points for the team. Thanks to the team for their hard work. Time for a short break now, and we’ll come back fighting in Austin.

Andrea Stella

It was a fantastic evening here in Singapore, with a dominant victory for Lando and Oscar, who managed to recover a couple of positions and finished in P3. Achieving back-to-back victories is another milestone for us. The car was strong all weekend, making us optimistic for the rest of the season. We extend our lead in the Constructors’ Championship, and Lando reduces the gap to Max in the race for the Drivers’ Championship.

I would like to take this opportunity once again to thank everyone at McLaren and Mercedes HPP for the incredible job they’ve done to deliver such a fast car. I’d also like to thank our partners and our fans for being with us on this journey. We will take time to celebrate our achievements today before switching our focus tomorrow to the upcoming triple-header.

 

Red Bull Racing

Max Verstappen dug in for a gutsy second place at the 2024 Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix behind McLaren winner Lando Norris to keep a healthy 2024 FIA Formula One World Championship lead of 52 points over him.

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The Dutchman started behind his British rival and held firm over the course of the 62 laps at Marina Bay to bank 18 title points with Mexican teammate Sergio Pérez just inside the points thanks to 10th place.

Max Verstappen, Driver, Red Bull Racing

Coming in second today was a good result for us. I think my start was quite decent, but there wasn’t a lot of grip on that side, so it was difficult to have a go into turn one. The degradation was also quite high for me in the first stint. During the race, we didn’t have the pace to fight for first, unfortunately, so I managed the tyres and drove my own race. We know that this, of course, is not our strongest track, but there is still a bit of work to do as we didn’t have the pace that we would have liked. However, I think the damage limitation was done. Of course, we always want more, so we will go back and analyse what we can do better; we have a few weeks to try and find more performance and better balance in the car when we restart in Austin so we can fight for a win again and not lose points. Ultimately, today, we made a step forward. If you had told me last week that we would be P2, I would be happy with this, so I feel like this has been very positive for us.

Sergio Pérez, Driver, Red Bull Racing:

Tonight’s result was a shame I think, we had a great start, but we lost an opportunity to undercut some cars, like we saw Carlos and Ferrari do. It was really unfortunate, after passing three cars at the start, it then became a tricky race. It was frustrating, and I think we missed out a bit on the strategy side. I struggled quite a lot with the car bouncing and the balance, it was just not settling down, I had a real issue with it. It became impossible to overtake Franco and Niko. We understand where the issues are; there is a fix, but this was a very difficult track for us. It is now time to look forward for the rest of the season, the upcoming tracks should be better for us and we are looking at a package which should help us.

CHRISTIAN HORNER, CEO and Team Principal

First off, congratulations to McLaren and Lando. They were clearly the best car on track today. The gap to Lando was significant in the first part of the race, and on the hard tyre, we looked in better shape, but the gap was too big, and this track is historically very hard to overtake. Max drove a strong race today, and P2 was what we had. If you consider where we were a few weeks ago, the progress is visible, and we have the better part of a month to put our heads down and make some progress before we head to Austin. There will be a lot of late nights in Milton Keynes. As a Team, we wanted to avoid a repeat of last year in Singapore, and the effort that went into preparing for this race resulted in giving the drivers a better car and more confidence in the direction of development. Checo unfortunately struggled to overtake during the race; he didn’t feel like he had traction in key parts of the track, and P10 is what he could manage today. The McLaren is the benchmark car at the moment, and we have a bit to catch up to at the moment, but we have the people, the ability, and the drive to do just that. We are still in the fight and now have a few weeks to work on things before we go again.

 

Scuderia Ferrari

 

The Scuderia Ferrari HP team and its drivers ran another perfectly executed race in Singapore. Charles managed to make up four places to finish fifth, and Carlos Sainz, taking part in his 200th Grand Prix, finished five places higher than he started, seventh after dropping down to 12th off the line.

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Leclerc, in particular, once he had pitted for tyres and with a clear track ahead of him, was able to lap at the same pace as the leaders Lando Norris and Max Verstappen, suggesting that if qualifying had gone better, he could have fought for the win. With 18 points scored today, the team is third in the Constructors’ classification, the same place Charles occupies in the Drivers’ standings, while Carlos is still fifth.

Carlos Sainz #55

It was a challenging race. We took a risk by pitting very early but made it work to the end, gaining some positions. We knew our pace was solid, and I enjoyed some excellent overtakes on track. Today was about damage limitation, but we left Singapore with a sense of disappointment.

Now, there is a gap to reset and come back stronger for the last races of the season. There are still a lot of points in play, and we need to maximise every weekend.

Charles Leclerc #16

We maximised our potential today, and our race execution was perfect. The first stint was a bit frustrating and lengthy for me; it required a lot of patience and staying steady behind slower cars ahead. On the second stint, things looked better, and we had a perfect pace in clean air.

I pushed quite a bit, and towards the end of the race, when it was time to overtake George (Russell), my rear tyres were not in the best shape, and we didn’t manage to gain that position, but we did a good job anyway. Overall, it wasn’t the most satisfying weekend for us, but as a team, we can be proud of turning things around and bringing home this P5 today.

Frédéric Vasseur – Team Principal

I’m happy with how we performed today, but less so on Saturday. We had a good strategy and race management and ran a solid race on both sides of the garage.

Carlos had a problematic start, after which he showed good pace, and in the closing stages, Charles matched Norris for pace, and Russell was pretty close in front at the end. We could not expect more than this fifth place from where we started.

We now have a three-week gap to the next race, and I expect all the teams, including ourselves, will bring something new to Austin. It’s the first part of a triple-header, and I hope that, as usual, some of these three tracks will suit some teams better than others.

 

Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team

 

George Russell finished fourth, and Lewis Hamilton sixth in the 2024 Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix. Taking a position on the second row, Lewis lined up on the Soft tyre in P3 with George on the Medium compound in P4.

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With the track position so valuable in Singapore, the team opted for the Soft compound start to try and make opening lap gains. That proved the wrong decision, though, with Lewis limited on the red-walled compound by overheating in his opening stint and ultimately having to stop early.
That enabled George and the McLaren of Oscar Piastri to overcut once everyone switched to the Hard compound.

Piastri’s pace saw him come through to take P3 whilst the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc was able to put his pace and tyre advantage to use first to pass Lewis, then harry George in the closing stages.
However, George could resist the Monegasque and hold on to P4, whilst Lewis came home P6 on an evening when the team had the fourth quickest car.

George Russell

After a very difficult Friday, we would have likely taken P4 in the Grand Prix. Our pace in Qualifying, however, made us believe we could achieve more. Today was no doubt a difficult race for us, both challenging in terms of our pace but also physically. The McLarens were very impressive and in another league to us, whilst Max (Verstappen) had the legs on us. We were able to hold off the Ferrari of Charles (Leclerc) in the closing stages, so it was very much an evening of damage limitation. Given the pace of the car, that was the very best we could have achieved.

We have a lot of work to do in the coming weeks to understand why we’ve struggled to challenge at the front in the past few races. We haven’t been as competitive since the summer break, and that is frustrating. We will work hard to get on top of it, though, and hopefully, the updates we bring to the next race in Austin will help us take a step closer to the front.

Lewis Hamilton

It is hard to describe the range of emotions you feel when we have a difficult race like that. This year continues to be a testing one for everyone, but we are all pushing as hard as we can. We don’t always get things right, and that was the case today with our strategy. We all head into the weekend and every decision we take with the right intentions, and sometimes, it doesn’t work out. It can be frustrating, but we are all in this together.

We have lost some form to the leaders in the past few races and are working hard to figure out why. We will do what we do best, though, and that is to come together as a team, analyse and refocus ahead of Austin. We will head there with energy, drive, and determination. It’s another opportunity to show what we can do when we get things right and to take a step forward with the car hopefully.

Toto Wolff, Team Principal & CEO

That was a really painful evening for us. Our strategy decisions in the race were determined by our experiences in the past, where track position was crucial. We thought that the Soft tyre would give Lewis an advantage at the start, but that turned out to be the wrong decision. With our challenges managing the rear surfaces, we went backwards. Overtaking proved possible, contrary to previous races here, where it has been more professional, and in hindsight, we should have started him on the Medium.

It doesn’t hide the fact, though, that we were too slow today. We are struggling at the moment with tracks that are hot and demanding traction, like here and Baku, but that is no excuse. It is difficult for us to accept, but we must do and find a way to improve. We now look ahead to Austin, where we will have an update coming, and we hope that will move us forward.

 

Aston Martin F1 Team

 

The team picked up four points under the famous floodlights at the 2024 Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix.

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Aston Martin’s mechanics worked hard on a precautionary brake change for Lance ahead of the Grand Prix.

Due to the humid nature of the street circuit, it was pivotal to keep the cars as cool as possible. Starting from the seventh, Fernando opted for the Medium compound. Meanwhile, Lance began from P17 on the Hard tyre.

Pitting at the end of Lap 25, Fernando switched to Hards. A lap later, Lance came in for Mediums. Fernando crossed the line in eighth, securing four critical points, and Lance concluded the street race in P14.

Fernando Alonso

It was a very physical race today, but we executed everything well and scored some good points. We tried the undercut strategy by stopping a few laps before the others, and it worked quite well for us. In truth, it has been a difficult car to drive all weekend, and we have done very well in finishing only a few seconds behind a Ferrari. We have a lot of work to do back at Silverstone in the next few weeks to improve our Austin performance.

Lance Stroll

It’s been a very difficult weekend here in Singapore. On my laps to the grid, I felt some strange vibrations, so the team worked quickly to replace a set of brakes as a precaution. It was a huge effort from the mechanics out there, so a big thanks to them for getting that sorted so quickly in this heat.

We knew it was going to be a tough race, and we suffered from issues similar to yesterday: grip and balance. Austin is a very different circuit, so we hope it suits our car better.

Mike Krack, Team Principal:

Tonight we saw an impressive test of human performance with the drivers completing 62 laps of racing under the lights in Singapore with high humidity, temperatures of over 30C and no rest bite.

Lance’s crew worked swiftly on a precautionary brake issue that we saw on the laps to the grid. They showed incredible teamwork to change the front brakes, and Lance was able to complete the race without any issues. Lance did well but unusually we didn’t see a safety car in Singapore which may have opened some opportunities.

Fernando’s four points are another hard-won reward for an impressive Qualifying and race of endurance. Some decent points from the double-header here and in Baku. We now have a mini break to regroup and find more performance ahead of the last six Grands Prix starting in Austin.

I would like to thank everyone in the garage who has worked in these extreme conditions this week.

 

Visa Cash App F1 Team

 

Daniel Ricciardo may have finished 18th behind Visa Cash App RB teammate Yuki Tsunoda in 12th. However, the Australian was named F1 Driver Of The Day after clocking the fastest lap of the race.

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Daniel Ricciardo

It was a tough race. After qualifying out of position yesterday, we knew we had to try something with our strategy. We went aggressive at the start on the soft tyre and looked for an opportunity. It was a difficult race to overtake; not many people were carving through the field. Ultimately, we weren’t quite quick enough, with Yuki also finishing outside of the points. We were in a position to go for the fastest lap at the end, and it was nice to secure this. It also felt really special to be voted Driver of the Day by my fans today.

Yuki Tsunoda

I was very frustrated with the start of the race, as unfortunately, I got past by some cars and I lost important positions. We went as long as we could with the first stint, and it was pretty tough going until Lap 33 with medium tyres. In that situation, we were just waiting for a Safety Car, which maybe could have been a good opportunity for us, but it didn’t happen as it was a clean race. Then we changed to fresher tyres, putting on the softs. That last run was pretty good, and I felt better than the one on mediums, but the bad start was our main problem today, which deprived us of scoring points.

Laurent Mekies – Team Principal

This was a better performance overall than in recent races, but not good enough for points. We did, however, look competitive right from Friday with both Daniel and Yuki. Yuki then produced a strong qualifying score for Q3, which was a very encouraging result. Lining up eighth on the grid, we were hoping for points. Unfortunately, Yuki dropped three places off the line and from then on, it was always going to be very difficult to pass. Our starts have not been good enough this season, and this is something we are working very hard to improve. In a tight field like ours, it means the difference between points or not. On the positive side Yuki produced a solid final stint on the soft tyre, it was a daring call to put him on that soft compound for so many laps, but it worked and gave us a good pace advantage, even if that was not enough to get back into the points. Starting from further back, we really needed a Safety Car opportunity for Daniel to get back into the fight for points. Dan was on an aggressive strategy starting on Softs and has put in some very good laps through the race, but had effectively no chance to get back into the good positions from so far back. He never gave up and fought all race long. Given this may have been Daniel’s last race, we wanted to give him the chance to savour it and go out with the fastest lap. We now have a few weeks to prepare our last push for the final part of the championship and the 2 incoming triple headers. Competition is tighter than ever, and we will give it our very best shout.

 

Haas F1 Team

 

MoneyGram Haas F1 Team finished with Nico Hulkenberg ninth and Kevin Magnussen 19th at the 2024 Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix, Round 18 of the 2024 FIA Formula 1 World Championship, held Sunday at the Marina Bay Street Circuit.

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Hulkenberg took the start from sixth place on Pirelli P Zero Yellow medium tyres and maintained position after battling against McLaren’s Oscar Piastri through the opening sector. The German came in on lap 29 for White hard tyres and ceded positions to the recovering Scuderia Ferrari drivers and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso. Hulkenberg took the checkered flag in ninth position to add two valuable points to the MoneyGram Haas F1 Team’s 2024 tally, marking the third successive race in the points for the team.

Magnussen started from 14th on the grid on hard tyres and maintained position through the opening stint, pitting on lap 28 to take on a set of medium rubber. Magnussen sustained a left-rear puncture after lightly brushing the wall at turn 5 on lap 50 and had to complete almost a full lap before pitting. The Dane re-emerged on Red soft tyres but, two laps down, pulled into the pits on lap 58 to retire the car, officially classifying in 19th place.

Nico Hulkenberg
I’m happy to get points. There are a few things to look into and review from our side, but otherwise a clean race. It wasn’t very eventful but it was very stressful keeping the Red Bull behind for the whole of the second stint, it was tough to bring it home. We managed to do so, and I’m happy. This is a bit of redemption for last week. We’ve been there or thereabouts many times this season, and it’s not the first time we’ve pulled it off. We put ourselves in a good position yesterday with quali, another key point. I had a clean start and a clean race, and it’s important that we got those points.

Kevin Magnussen

I got a puncture – sometimes you hit a rough spot, and it cuts the tyre. We weren’t quick on the hard tyre; we tried to do the opposite strategy, going long and hoping for a safe car in the middle window, which didn’t happen. We had to cut it short on the hard compound, and then I got the puncture at the end. We’ve had a good pace at recent races, and we’re in a good spot with the car. We have an upgrade coming in Austin, and we have every race to look forward to for the rest of the season.

Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal

It was great to come away with two points, and now scoring points in three consecutive races is very good. The consistency is there, and Nico drove very well today; his second stint had pressure the entire time from a Red Bull, and he didn’t make any mistakes and brought the car home in P9. That’s two more points and only three away from RB with six races to go. We also opened up another two-point gap to Williams, so the mission was accomplished.

 

Williams Racing

 

Franco Colapinto finished in P11 after Alex Albon was forced into an early retirement, as the team came tantalisingly close to a points finish at the 2024 Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix.

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Alex Albon

It’s unfortunate to finish today how we did when I believe we had a car that could’ve scored points this weekend. Ultimately, a cooling issue with the power unit ended our race, however after a difficult start being forced a little wide, it would’ve been difficult to come back from there. Sometimes, you have a car that isn’t capable of scoring points, so when you do, it’s very satisfying, but this weekend was the opposite; we had a super quick car, and we should’ve been in the points, so it’s frustrating. We will review everything and see how we can improve for the remaining races.

Franco Colapinto

It’s a pity we didn’t finish in the top 10 after being there at the beginning of the race. I think it was possible to stay on the points and keep [Checo] Pérez behind, as it was a difficult track to overtake. However, we didn’t defend as well as we could have and by stopping a lap too late, we lost a place. It is what it is; we win and lose together as a team. Tyre management was good throughout the race, but I was struggling a bit physically, which was more of a limiting factor. Overall, P11 was still a decent result, and it was a very positive race to build on what I’ve learned so far.

Sven Smeets, Sporting Director:

We were hoping for more today as we had a strong car, so it’s a shame to come away without points. After Franco’s single pitstop, we lost P10 to [Checo] Pérez. Franco stayed close to him and [Nico] Hülkenberg but was unable to make a pass into the points. Nevertheless, Franco had a solid weekend in extremely tough conditions, only at his third grand prix, and we are pleased with his performance. In terms of Alex’s race, it’s always disappointing when you have to retire a car; we experienced some cooling issues but need to assess this in the coming days. It’s clear that we have brought the performance to the car with the upgrades over the past few races, but we didn’t get it all right as a team this weekend to score points for the third time in a row. We will now use this small break in the calendar to regroup ahead of the next triple-header, as there is still a lot to play for.

 

Alpine Racing

 

Esteban started from P15 on New Mediums and finished P13: Pit Stop on Lap 29 for New Hards. Fastest Lap: 1min 37.964secs. Pierre started from P18 on New Mediums and finished P17: Pit Stop on Lap 37 for New Softs. Fastest Lap: 1min 36.927secs.

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Esteban Ocon

We had a good start in today’s race, gaining a few positions off the line, but we did not have the pace to be a points contender, and we could not keep up with the train of cars ahead. We maximised what we had, but we couldn’t move further ahead without any big opportunities to capitalise. We have a good break ahead of us, and I’m sure we are all looking forward to some recovery before a busy final few months of the season. We must continue to work hard, aim to extract more from the package and be able to optimise everything we have in our hands.

Pierre Gasly

A challenging and frustrating race for us. We are just not quick or competitive enough at the moment. The lack of pace forced us to try different strategies to improve our end result. We stayed out long on the Mediums on the first stint and lost a lot of time to cars we were racing at the start. The plan was to disrupt some cars behind to benefit Esteban and get something from the race. The reality is that we were in ninth place three races ago [in Zandvoort], and in the last three races, we were far away from the top ten. We must find some performance, and much work is ahead of us to improve our current performance.
I look forward to a short break before Austin, where we all must be determined for a return to form.

Oliver Oakes – Team Principal

It was a tough day on track and a repeat of what we saw in Qualifying, which follows the trend from the previous couple of races. We had expected to perform better on this circuit configuration but did not have the pace. This is the reality of where we are currently. There’s a lot of work behind the scenes to bring more performance to the car in the coming races. With four weeks until Austin, we need a final push to the end of the season.

 

Kick Sauber F1 Team

 

Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber fought hard under the lights of the 2024 Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix, with Zhou Guanyu crossing the line in 15th place, ahead of teammate Valtteri Bottas in 16th. During a race without any interruptions and no yellow flags, a rarity at the Marina Bay circuit, the team displayed a better turn of race pace. Teamwork was key, with Zhou providing DRS to Valtteri, enabling him to defend against Pierre Gasly in the final stint. With a mini break before Austin, the team will now return home, determined to work hard and extract more performance from the car as we continue to push forward.

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Valtteri Bottas

As expected, today was a tough race. Early on, I had issues with my front brakes overheating, which led to some front locking and eventually cost me time. We worked as a team to stay with the cars ahead in the opening stages, but we just couldn’t quite manage it. On the plus side, we had a clean start, which later allowed us to stay ahead of a few competitors, but the race pace was still not what we needed, and we didn’t get any help from safety cars today. Now, it’s important we use these three weeks to find some performance and, hopefully, bring a strong upgrade to Austin to reset and finish the season on a high.

Zhou Guanyu

I think today was a more positive race, compared to recent outings, as we showed that we can fight better with our competitors on high fuel. We need to work on our one-lap pace to start from a higher position, but overall, it was a good race without mistakes. Today, we executed our plan well as a team and not only was my race clean, but I also played my part in the team strategy by helping Valtteri. I did exactly what Carlos [Sainz] did last year, consistently keeping Valtteri in my DRS zone to help him stay ahead of Pierre [Gasly], which was very important and helped us bring home the cars in 15th and 16th. The team gave me clear instructions, and I followed them in the most efficient way possible, doing everything I could to support the team. Hopefully, we can continue to make progress and make another step forward after the break.

Alessandro Alunni Bravi, Team Representative

We completed a difficult weekend on a positive note, finishing P15 and P16 with Zhou and Valtteri. This shows that we improved on our starting position, unlike in the previous race and, on merit, finished ahead of one Alpine and one Racing Bull. Today, I especially want to praise Zhou for being a true team player. After his pit stop, we asked him to give Valtteri DRS from lap 40 onwards, and he helped his teammate stay ahead of Pierre Gasly by managing his pace while keeping in the necessary window. Both Zhou and Valtteri followed our instructions on tyre management, and we ended up with a positive result, particularly for the teamwork we demonstrated. This race shows that, while we still have a lot of work ahead, we are not out of the fight. We are here, maximising everything we have on track together with our drivers, our technical partners, and our remote garage, who supported our trackside engineers brilliantly today. We’ve made a step forward compared to the past, and we will continue to push.

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