A tight fight in Q3 thanks to an untimely crash by Carlos Sainz saw Lando Norris beat Max Verstappen during qualifying for Sunday’s Singapore Grand Prix as the McLaren driver notched his fifth pole of the season. Norris’s only lap of the session blitzed the field as he went two tenths quicker than the championship leader in the final seconds qualifying as Lewis Hamilton came from seemingly no-where to claim third for the start of the race in an all-Mercedes second row lock out.

HIGHLIGHTS: Watch the qualifying action from Singapore as Norris claims thrilling pole while Sainz crashes out

Q1 Results:

The first round of qualifying under the lights at the Marina Bay Circuit started timidly as drivers tested the track surface on soft compound tires during their installation and out-laps. Not wanting to take away too much performance, the first few laps were exploratory before drivers unleashed the first round of hot laps. Ferrari and McLaren immediately got down to business as Mercedes and Red Bull remained in the garage as Norris laid down the initial benchmark time  nearly two tenths quicker than rival Charles LeClerc.

As all drivers set their laps, it was clear that Norris and Verstappen were clearly the pace setters, the pair only separated by a tenth of a second as teams readied their cars for the second run of the session.

The slicker than normal conditions proved tricky for some, with Hamilton complaining of rear-end sliding as he was only able to post the 11th best time, as Pierre Gasly, Franco Colapinto, and both Sauber’s, and Lance Stroll all sat in the drop-zone prior to the final runs.

With the clock running out, Norris further improved his time over Verstappen as Hamilton also improved to 4th, just behind Oscar Piastri as Perez and Sainz ended up fifth and sixth.

In what may very well be his final appearance in Formula 1, Daniel Ricciardo failed to pass on to Q2 and finished an agonizing 16th on the day as Kevin Magnussen dropped the RB driver out of the top 15.

Drivers out in Q1:

• 16th: Daniel Ricciardo (RB)
• 17th: Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
• 18th: Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
• 19th: Valtteri Bottas (Kick Sauber)
• 20th: Zhou Guanyu (Kick Sauber)

Q2 Results:

Norris and the Mercedes pair started hot at the beginning of Q2, with Norris setting the pace early before Lewis Hamilton broke into the 1:29s lap territory for the first time during the session. In contrast to the previous practice sessions, the Mercedes suddenly seemed to come alive in Hamilton’s hands even with complaints coming in from teammate Russell.

Further down the field, it was another disappointing qualifying for Sergio Perez. Unable to find any pace, the Mexican driver one again found himself out in Q2 as he lost out to both William’s drivers for 13th on the grid.

Drivers out in Q2:

• 11th: Alex Albon (Williams)
• 12th: Franco Colapinto (Williams)
• 13th: Sergio Perez (Red Bull)
• 14th: Kevin Magnussen (Haas)
• 15th: Esteban Ocon (Alpine)

Q3 Results:

Oscar Piastri was quick to make his mark on the initial runs in Q3 before everything ground to a halt as Max Verstappen and Lando Norris were just finishing their first hot laps. Exiting the final corner, Carlos Sainz lost control and spun his Ferrari into the barriers before the start/finish line. Sainz immediately came over the radio in confusion, trying to rationalize what happened as he couldn’t place the error that caused the crash.

With red flags flying, teams ducked back into the garages while clean up started, leaving teams with only 8 minutes in the session to set a run time, essentially limiting everyone bar Piastri to a single hot lap to end the session, as Verstappen’s time was deleted and Norris never crossed the finish line to end his initial lap.

As the clock wound down, a flurry of purple sectors lit up the timing board as Norris clocked a 1:29.525s lap, two tenths quicker than Verstappen and three tenths up on the Mercedes duo. Despite the radio complaints in Q2, Hamilton and Russell managed to lock out the second row behind Norris and Verstappen, leaving Oscar Piastri and Nico Hulkenberg on the 3rd row ahead of Alonso and Yuki Tsunoda.

In a shock turn on the weekend, Charles LeClerc would start ninth ahead of Sainz after having his Q3 lap deleted for exceeding track limits, marking the team’s worst qualifying effort since the British Grand Prix.

The grid is set, now all that’s left is lights out on Sunday for the Singapore Gran Prix. Tune in live at 20:00 local time for the hottest race of the year under the floodlights of Marina Bay.

Free Practice 1 Results: CLICK HERE

Free Practice 2 Results: CLICK HERE

Free Practice 3 Results: CLICK HERE

FORMULA 1 SINGAPORE AIRLINES SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX  Schedule

Qualifying Results: