Max starting from P2 in Singapore: “A shame, we couldn’t put it on pole”
Published on 16 September 2017 by Mike Motilall
Max Verstappen will be starting the Singapore Grand Prix from the front row. During a blood churning qualifying, the flying Red Bull Racing-youngster was not able to prevent Sebastian Vettel from taking the pole. On the challenging street circuit in Singapore, Daniel Ricciardo came in third in the second Red Bull.
After qualifying, Max was interviewed on the straight in front of the main grand stand: “A shame, we couldn’t put it on pole. My final lap was not great, we were quite close so I am happy with that.” Looking ahead at the race, Max continues: “During the race it will be difficult to pass him, so we’ll have to see in the first lap what we can do.”
Behind Max, his team mate Ricciardo will be starting third. During the race in Hungary, the two drivers unfortunately made contact with each other in the second corner. “That race happened, so we don’t think about that. We are now in Singapore with great starting positions”, says Max.
Later on, in front of Ziggo Sport’s camera, we hear from Max why the final lap eventually didn’t come together: “We built up the weekend well, Q1 and Q2 all went well. In Q3 we upped the ante a bit more, but it wasn’t enough to keep Vettel behind of us. We mainly lost out in the first sector, that was a bit of a shame.”
“Also the last sector in my flying lap was not perfect, after which we added some more front wing. That was ultimately better in the last sector, but I made a small mistake in turn nine and then you’re done.”
Before qualifying, it is clear that Marcus Ericsson’s crash will have repercussions for the Swede. As a result of that, the team is forced to change his gearbox which will earn him a five-place grid penalty.
At the start of Q1, it is Pascal Wehrlein who is the first to get out on track. Many drivers follow suit and everyone is on a set of the ultra-soft compound tyres. Kimi Raikkonen is the first to get a time on the clock. Meanwhile, Max has also left the pits and his first flying lap earns him P1. Moments later, Daniel Ricciardo betters that time and takes over the number one spot from the Dutchman.
By now, Felipe Massa has run into the wall. His Williams is damaged. “I have a puncture”, he reports on the radio. Drop outs are: Wehrlein, Lance Stroll, Massa, Romain Grosjean and Ericsson. Max betters his time and retakes the lead. Ricciardo does the same but fails to beat Max’ time.
The top eight remain in the pits, as the rest of the field fights it out who will be dropping out. When the flag drops, Kevin Magnussen, Massa, Stroll, Wehrlein and Ericsson don’t make the cut. Quali is over for them.
Both Mercedes and both Ferrari’s get things going at the start of Q2. Not much later, both Red Bulls follow suit. Everyone is still on the ultra-soft compound tyre. Raikkonen once again is the first to get a timed lap, which Vettel betters not much later. Max is going purple in sector two by then. At the end of his lap, it’s once again P1 for the youngster. Ricciardo is unable to better that and is third after his first run.
One by one, the drivers are heading out on track. Surprisingly enough, no one stays in. When the flag eventually drops, it’s curtain time for Jolyon Palmer, Sergio Perez, Daniil Kvyat, Esteban Ocon and Grosjean. Max has, by now, been able to take a bit off of his time and finishes Q2 in P1. Ricciardo comes in second in 0,053 of a second.
The big question in Q3 is whether both Red Bulls will be able to withstand the pressure put on by the competition. Both McLarens and Carlos Sainz are the first to get things going, while the rest just sit and wait. Alonso gets a timed lap and when everyone has done theirs, the order is as follows: Vettel, Max, Ricciardo, Raikkonen, Hamilton and Bottas.
Everything will now depend on the second run. Nico Hülkenberg is the first to bite the bullet. Max follows Vettel, but is in front of Ricciardo. In the first sector, Max is down on his personal best time, while Vettel is going purple. Max is unable to better his time and the rest is also not able to improve their positions. Max remains in P2.
Singapore Grand Prix - Marina Bay Circuit - Saturday 16 September
QUALIFYING RESULTS 01 5 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:43.336 1:40.529 1:39.491 19 02 33 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer 1:42.010 1:40.332 1:39.814 18 03 3 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer 1:42.063 1:40.385 1:39.840 18 04 7 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 1:43.328 1:40.525 1:40.069 18 05 44 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:42.455 1:40.577 1:40.126 17 06 77 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:43.137 1:41.409 1:40.810 16 07 27 Nico Hulkenberg Renault 1:42.586 1:41.277 1:41.013 18 08 14 Fernando Alonso McLaren Honda 1:42.086 1:41.442 1:41.179 20 09 2 Stoffel Vandoorne McLaren Honda 1:42.222 1:41.227 1:41.398 19 10 55 Carlos Sainz Toro Rosso 1:42.176 1:41.826 1:42.056 20 11 30 Jolyon Palmer Renault 1:42.472 1:42.107 12 12 11 Sergio Perez Force India Mercedes 1:43.594 1:42.246 8 13 26 Daniil Kvyat Toro Rosso 1:42.544 1:42.338 14 14 31 Esteban Ocon Force India Mercedes 1:43.626 1:42.760 11 15 8 Romain Grosjean Haas Ferrari 1:43.627 1:43.883 13 16 20 Kevin Magnussen Haas Ferrari 1:43.756 8 17 19 Felipe Massa Williams Mercedes 1:44.014 6 18 18 Lance Stroll Williams Mercedes 1:44.728 9 19 94 Pascal Wehrlein Sauber Ferrari 1:45.059 9 20 9 Marcus Ericsson Sauber Ferrari 1:45.570 6
