Singapore – The Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore played host to the 15th round of the 2023 Formula One season, delivering a race filled with twists and turns. In an unexpected turn of events, Carlos Sainz secured victory, putting an end to Red Bull Racing’s dominating streak this season. Sainz, starting from pole position, held his ground against fierce competition from McLaren’s Lando Norris and the Mercedes duo of George Russell and Lewis Hamilton in the closing laps.
The race had its share of pre-race drama as Lance Stroll, involved in a massive collision during qualifying, was unable to participate in the race, leaving an empty slot on the grid. Additionally, Zhou Guanyu began the race from the pits. Sainz made an excellent start, maintaining his lead at the front of the pack. Ferrari continued to impress with a 1-2 position as Charles Leclerc managed to overtake George Russell early in the race.
“Overtaking isn’t going to happen on track; these guys are driving so far off the pace,” remarked Lewis Hamilton over the radio, reflecting the challenging nature of the Marina Bay Street Circuit.
The race took a dramatic turn on Lap 19 when Logan Sargeant’s crash triggered Yellow flags, followed by the deployment of the Safety Car. This incident prompted numerous drivers to make pit stops, bringing Max Verstappen closer to Sainz, although the Red Bull driver had not yet made a pit stop.
The final standings for the 2023 Singapore Grand Prix were as follows:
- Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)
- Lando Norris (McLaren)
- Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
- Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
- Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
- Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
- Oscar Piastri (Aston Martin)
- Sergio Perez (Red Bull)
- Liam Lawson (AlphaTauri)
- Kevin Magnussen (Haas)
Lap 44 saw Esteban Ocon stopping his Alpine due to smoke emanating from the car. Ocon, who was celebrating his birthday, was running in sixth place behind his teammate Fernando Alonso, who had a +5-second penalty. The retirement of the Alpine triggered the deployment of the Virtual Safety Car (VSC). During the VSC period, several drivers opted for soft tires, including Mercedes, in search of fresher rubber.
Fernando Alonso’s race took a turn for the worse as he spun on Lap 47, bringing out the Yellow flag for a brief period. Meanwhile, both Mercedes cars, equipped with new Medium tires, began to gain pace, eyeing a podium finish or even a race win.
In a dramatic twist on the final lap, George Russell, who had been tailing Lando Norris closely, crashed into the barriers at Turn 10, bringing his race to an abrupt end and elevating his teammate Lewis Hamilton to the podium.
Ultimately, Carlos Sainz emerged victorious, securing his first win of the season, with Lando Norris in second place, closely followed by Lewis Hamilton in third. While Max Verstappen’s record of 10 consecutive wins came to an end, the Dutch driver managed to secure valuable points despite starting the race from 11th position. His teammate, Sergio Perez, also had a solid performance, finishing in 8th place.