BEIJING, SEPT 23 – McLaren’s Lando Norris snatched seven more points from Max Verstappen and took the lead in the 2024 Formula 1 championship with a dominating pole-to-podium victory in the Singapore Grand Prix yesterday.
Starting from pole position, Norris held off the threat from Red Bull’s Verstappen at the first corner and never relented as he continued to dominate, shrugging off some anxious moments as he collided with the barriers.
“It was an amazing race. There were too many bitter moments in the middle of the race but I think otherwise it was well controlled,” said Norris who crossed the finish line more than 20 seconds ahead of Verstappen.
“The car is mega. I can push it, we seem to fly through the race and at the end can only relax. So it was a good race, still tough, I was also a bit out of breath but fun,” he added.
Behind Norris, Verstappen finished second in a good damage-limit weekend for Red Bull, who struggled in Singapore last year. While Norris’ teammate, Oscar Piastri completed the podium position.
George Russell finished fourth for Mercedes, holding off a late challenge from Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, with Lewis Hamilton and Leclerc’s team-mate Carlos Sainz sixth and seventh respectively.
Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso finished eighth ahead of Nico Hulkenberg’s Haas, and Verstappen’s team-mate Sergio Perez completed the top ten.
For the first time in the history of the Singapore Grand Prix, there were no yellow flags or safety car involvement as drivers largely managed to avoid any major collisions with the barriers, despite Haas’ Kevin Magnussen’s machine having a puncture on lap 51.
In the drivers’ championship, Verstappen still leads with 331 points, but Norris has trailed on 279 points, with Leclerc third on 245 points.
With six Grand Prix and three Sprint races remaining in 2024, it remains to be seen whether Norris will be able to overhaul Verstappen’s points tally before the season finale in Abu Dhabi on December 8.
Meanwhile in the constructors’ championship, McLaren have extended their lead by 516 points. Red Bull remained second with 475, and Ferrari third with 441 points.
F1 is now off for four weeks before resuming with the United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin on October 20. – Xinhua
