George Russell stunned the title contenders to snatch a surprise pole position for Mercedes at the Singapore Grand Prix. Russell’s first pole since June was secured by a margin of 0.182 seconds over Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
Championship leader Oscar Piastri (McLaren) qualified third, ahead of Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli, with his title rival and teammate Lando Norris in fifth.
Verstappen, who failed to improve on his final lap, blamed Norris for driving slowly in front of him, saying, “Without that I think it would have been close for pole.” Norris shrugged off the accusation: “They always complain… It’s Red Bull.”
In a major setback, both Williams cars of Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz were disqualified from qualifying after their rear wings were found to be illegal, exceeding the permitted gap when DRS was open. They are expected to start the race from the pit lane.
