Max Verstappen can become Formula 1 world champion for the second time on Sunday. A lot has to come together for this. It doesn't work in qualifying. The Red Bull driver did not get past P8 on a drying track. Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc drives on pole. The German pilots fail in Q2.
Ferrari star Charles Leclerc starts the Singapore Grand Prix from first place. In the Formula 1 qualifier, the Monegasque came out on top in 1:49.412 minutes, 0.022 seconds ahead of Sergio Perez in the Red Bull.
Third-placed record world champion Lewis Hamilton was also close to his first pole position of the season, just 0.054 seconds behind. World champion Max Verstappen surprisingly only came in eighth place in the second Red Bull. The Dutchman was 1.983 seconds behind Leclerc, who was second in the World Championship, and surprisingly stopped his last fast lap.
Four-time Formula 1 World Champion Sebastian Vettel and his German compatriot Mick Schumacher retired in Q2. Vettel in the Aston Martin in 14th place and Schumacher in the Haas racing car in 13th place missed the final section of the hunt for times on the narrow street circuit under floodlights and were eliminated in the second knockout round. Vettel is the record winner in Singapore with a total of five successes. On Sunday, the 35-year-old Hesse contests the last race on one of his favorite tracks shortly before the end of his career.
If Verstappen wins the race on Sunday (2 p.m. / Sky and in the live ticker on ntv.de), he can complete his successful title defense early on and become world champion for the second time. However, he has to keep his main competitor Leclerc and his stable rival Sergio Perez at a distance. Before the 17th of 22 rounds of the season, Verstappen leads Leclerc with 116 points. After the Grand Prix, he would need a 138-point lead to triumph. Otherwise, the decision will be postponed to next week in Japan.
