Red Bull’s Max Verstappen takes his first Sprint pole of the season during Sprint Qualifying at the 2026 F1 Singapore GP, full report below.
George Russell topped the timesheets in the weekend’s sole practice session, leading the way ahead of Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris. With Singapore hosting its first-ever Sprint weekend in 2026, drivers and teams turned their attention to Sprint Qualifying, which will determine the grid for the first Sprint Race around the Marina Bay Street Circuit.
SQ1
The first twelve minutes of the session got underway as both Cadillacs led the field out on track. After running the team’s latest upgraded package in FP1, Kimi Antonelli opted to revert to the previous specification. However, Lewis Hamilton was the first driver to set a representative benchmark, posting a 1:33.748.
Sergio Perez outbraked himself and found the barriers, bringing out double-waved yellows. Although the Mexican driver managed to make his way back into the pit lane, red flags were brought out to clear the debris scattered across the track. The red flag disrupted several drivers who had yet to set a representative lap time.
With a confirmed session resumption time, drivers wasted no time leaving their garages to queue at the end of the pit lane. Max Verstappen, who passed Hamilton at Turn 7, was to be investigated for a yellow flag infringement after the session.
Leclerc’s first effort saw him go second with a 1:34.055, while Russell slotted in behind with a 1:34.331. However, Norris soon displaced Russell from third, with the reigning World Champion posting a 1:34.257. As the clock ticked down to zero, Oscar Piastri had to string together a lap to get him out of the relegation zone. The Australian delivered a 1:34.227 that was enough for fourth.
Next to cross the line, Verstappen shot to the top with his one and only lap of the session, crossing the line with a 1:33.477. Russell, however, improved to move up to second with a 1:33.572, just 0.096s off Verstappen’s time.
Out in SQ1: Lindblad, Stroll, Albon, Perez, Bottas, Sainz
SQ2
An issue with the timing system delayed the start of SQ2, with the FIA releasing a statement saying.
“Start of SQ2 will be delayed due to an issue with timing systems, some lap times had not been registered. That is now resolved and the current timings are considered correct. We are investigating whether we can proceed with the rest of the session.”
Once the session got underway, Verstappen led the field back out on track. The four-time World Champion set the early benchmark with a 1:32.724, becoming the first driver to break into the 1:32s. Meanwhile, Antonelli found himself in second with a 1:33.037, while Russell trailed behind in third with a 1:33.387.
An impressive lap from Pierre Gasly saw the Frenchman sit in third momentarily, having crossed the line with a 1:33.336. However, both Ferraris soon lit up the timesheets, with Leclerc and Hamilton locking out the top two after setting a 1:32.457 and 1:32.562, respectively.
Meanwhile, a 1:32.572 from Norris was enough for third. As the chequered flag fell, Russell sat in tenth, leaving him on the brink of elimination. Improving on his final lap to go fourth, the Briton progressed to the final part of Qualifying safely.
Out in SQ2: Colapinto, Hülkenberg, Bearman, Bortoleto, Alonso, Ocon
SQ3
Both McLaren and Mercedes were the first drivers to head out on track. Norris laid down the benchmark, crossing the line with a 1:31.587. The reigning World Champion found over a second from his SQ2 lap. Meanwhile, Leclerc found his way back to the top with a 1:31.568, going a mere 0.019s faster than Norris.
With a purple first sector, Hamilton pushed the limits around the streets of Singapore, crossing the line with a 1:31.702 enough for third. As it stood, Leclerc, Norris, Hamilton, Piastri and Russell rounded out the top five.
Although Leclerc extended his advantage on his final lap, Verstappen narrowly edged out the Ferrari driver to secure pole position with a 1:31.156. Behind him, Russell’s final effort was enough to improve to go second with a 1:31.276. The top three were Verstappen, Russell and Leclerc.
Full F1 Sprint Qualifying results from the 2026 Singapore GP
