Genoa – With a tactically extraordinary match Carlos Sainz won the Formula 1 Singapore GP at the end of a very tight race, with the first three drivers arriving together under the checkered flag. The Ferrari driver preceded the McLaren of Lando Norris and the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton, making a sensational comeback in the final laps together with his teammate George Russell, who ended up in the barriers on the last lap. Fourth place for the other red of Charles Leclerc. This is the first victory of the season for Ferrari, which ends Red Bull’s unbeaten streak in 2023.
The race
The two Ferraris had an excellent start, with Sainz holding on to first place while Leclerc, the only one using soft tires at the start, outwitted Russell by immediately chasing his teammate. Meanwhile Hamilton, who started fifth, climbs to third place but after crossing the chicane, he is forced to hand back the positions to his two compatriots Russell and Norris. The Red Bulls, however, remain stuck in the traffic in the middle of the group: Verstappen manages to overtake three cars in six laps, climbing to eighth position, Perez remains thirteenth. The first twist of the race comes on lap 20, when Sargeant hits the wall and forces the Safety Car to come in to allow the debris to be cleared from the track. Everyone stops (except the Red Bulls) for the first pit stop, Sainz maintains the lead without problems, while Leclerc is unlucky and due to traffic in the pit lane loses two positions to Russell and Norris. An error after the restart also cost the Monegasque from Ferrari an overtaking by Hamilton, which forced him to slip to fifth place. Verstappen and Perez try to extend the stint with the hard tire chosen at the start, above all with the hope that another Safety Car may come in, but once they reach lap 40 they stop, returning to 15th and 17th position respectively. Three laps later Ocon’s Alpine crashes, but this time the race direction opts for a Virtual Safety Car: the surprise move is made by Mercedes, which recalls both drivers to fit new medium tyres. The two Britons have to rebuild their race, but they have too much more grip and speed than those in front: both chase Leclerc and eat up more than 13 seconds from him in a handful of laps, chasing Norris and Sainz and coming close to him for the last few laps. breath-taking rides. At this point the Spaniard from Ferrari implements an extraordinary tactic, because he slows down just enough to grant Norris DRS and allow him to defend himself from the attacks of the two Mercedes, while safeguarding his leadership in the meantime. On the last lap Russell hits the wall and throws away the podium, giving third place to Hamilton
Pilots’ comments
«An incredible feeling, an incredible weekend. Thanks to the effort of the Ferrari team. We did everything we had to do, to perfection” says the Spanish driver of the Maranello car. «We had to try to manage tire degradation, then the safety car arrived earlier than expected, I had to try to keep the others behind. It went well”. Sainz managed to keep the pressure on well: «I managed it well, we brought the car to the finish line. I am happy”. Lando Norris then thanks his former teammate Sainz: «He controlled his race well, but he helped me a lot. I thank him. A stressful race but in the end we reaped the rewards.” Third place is Hamilton, who gets on the podium: «We had a different weekend, we brought a different option to the tyres. It was a two-stop race, our tires were overheated. In the end it was an exceptional weekend. We must be happy with what we did.”
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