Max Verstappen won the last Sprint of 2026 in Singapore by 2.591 seconds from Lewis Hamilton, on a wet-then-drying track where nine of 22 cars failed to finish. George Russell threw away the lead at the end of lap one, and McLaren lost Oscar Piastri when Lando Norris hit him on the final lap.
How the Sprint unfolded
Rain before the start. A downpour hit the grid about 15 minutes before the 17:00 local start, leaving standing water at Turns 2 and 3. The start was delayed by half an hour. After two formation laps, every car started on intermediates on a track that was wet in places and dry in others.
Carlos Sainz started from the pit lane. The stewards ordered it before the race after Williams changed his suspension set-up under parc fermé without approval (Doc 37).
Russell leads, then crashes (lap 1). George Russell beat Verstappen off the line and led into Turn 1. Hamilton jumped from sixth to third. At the end of the opening lap, Russell lost the rear on the kerb and slippery white line at the exit of the final corner and spun into the wall beside the pit lane. The Mercedes was heavily damaged at front and rear. With his 40-place grid drop already confirmed for Sunday (Doc 20), it was the worst possible start to his Saturday.
More damage behind. Sergio Pérez touched the right rear of Lance Stroll’s Aston Martin at Turn 16 and spun him into the tyre barrier. Stroll was out on the spot, and Pérez also retired. Isack Hadjar reported his engine braking was failing and was told to stop immediately.
Safety car, laps 2–6. Russell’s car sat in a dangerous spot near the pit entry and needed a crane. Under the safety car, Arvid Lindblad spun 180 degrees, drove the wrong way until he could turn, and rejoined last. Franco Colapinto parked with a technical problem.
Restart (lap 6). Verstappen kept the lead. Behind him, Albon ran into the back of Bortoleto’s Audi at Turn 16, and Bottas was caught up in the same incident. All three pitted for repairs. Bortoleto and Bottas retired in the pit lane, and Williams called Albon in to retire on lap 15. Oliver Bearman took eighth from Pierre Gasly after a long wheel-to-wheel fight. Gasly then lost two more places and said Nico Hülkenberg pushed him wide.
Tyres decided the order. The intermediates were overheating on a mostly dry track. Verstappen eased away from Hamilton, from about a second to five seconds by lap 16. Charles Leclerc said his fronts were destroyed and was losing about two seconds a lap, so the McLarens and Kimi Antonelli caught him.
Final lap (lap 20). Running fourth and fifth, Norris dived down the inside of Piastri. He was never fully alongside at the apex, hit Piastri’s left rear and both spun. Piastri was out; Norris recovered to eighth. Verstappen won by 2.591 seconds, and Leclerc kept third.
Result
Thirteen of 22 cars finished the 20 laps; Ferrari scored 13 points and McLaren just one. Gaps are taken from GPblog’s full results; the FIA has since published its provisional classification (Doc 45).
| Pos | Driver | Team | Grid | Gap | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1 | 20 laps | 8 |
| 2 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | 6 | +2.591s | 7 |
| 3 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 3 | +16.871s | 6 |
| 4 | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | 7 | +17.238s | 5 |
| 5 | Liam Lawson | Racing Bulls | 8 | +20.632s | 4 |
| 6 | Oliver Bearman | Haas | 13 | +24.321s | 3 |
| 7 | Nico Hülkenberg | Audi | 12 | +27.525s | 2 |
| 8 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 5 | +28.272s | 1 |
| 9 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 10 | +36.220s | 0 |
| 10 | Esteban Ocon | Haas | 16 | +37.640s | 0 |
| 11 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 15 | +50.464s | 0 |
| 12 | Carlos Sainz | Williams | Pit lane | +52.467s | 0 |
| 13 | Arvid Lindblad | Racing Bulls | 17 | +55.792s | 0 |
| DNF | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 4 | Collision with Norris, lap 20 | 0 |
| DNF | Alex Albon | Williams | 19 | Damage after hitting Bortoleto, retired lap 15 | 0 |
| DNF | Gabriel Bortoleto | Audi | 14 | Hit by Albon, retired in pits | 0 |
| DNF | Valtteri Bottas | Cadillac | 21 | Caught up in Albon–Bortoleto clash, retired in pits | 0 |
| DNF | Franco Colapinto | Alpine | 11 | Technical, stopped at Turn 14 under SC | 0 |
| DNF | Isack Hadjar | Red Bull | 9 | Power unit, under SC | 0 |
| DNF | George Russell | Mercedes | 2 | Crash, lap 1 | 0 |
| DNF | Sergio Pérez | Cadillac | 20 | Collision with Stroll, lap 1 | 0 |
| DNF | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 18 | Hit by Pérez, lap 1 | 0 |
Biggest gainers: Bearman (+7), Hamilton (+4), Ocon (+6) and Sainz, who climbed ten places from the pit lane. Retirement reasons and laps come from live coverage, not the official classification.
Official FIA decisions
The stewards have summoned eight drivers over five Sprint incidents, including Norris and Piastri, with hearings from 18:45 to 19:45 local time (12:45–13:45 Belgrade). Hamilton was noted for a yellow-flag infringement but faces no further action. The only penalty so far is Sainz’s pit-lane start, issued before the race. Documents checked at 13:00 Belgrade time.
| Doc | Decision | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| 46–47 | Norris and Piastri summoned | Alleged causing a collision, lap 20. Hearing 19:45 local (13:45 Belgrade). |
| 50–51 | Albon and Bortoleto summoned | Alleged causing a collision at Turn 16. Hearing 19:30 local (13:30 Belgrade). |
| 44 | Lindblad summoned | Alleged driving in the opposite direction at Turn 5. Hearing 19:15 local (13:15 Belgrade). |
| 42–43 | Pérez and Stroll summoned | Alleged causing a collision at Turn 16. Hearing 19:00 local (13:00 Belgrade). |
| 40 | Bearman summoned | Alleged failure to respect the minimum time between safety car lines (driving unnecessarily slowly). Hearing 18:45 local (12:45 Belgrade). |
| — | Hamilton: noted, no further action | Passed Russell under yellow flags after the lap-one crash. Reported by GPblog at 12:07 Belgrade; no FIA document yet. |
| 45 | Provisional Sprint classification | Published 12:44 Belgrade. |
| 37 | Sainz: pit-lane start | Suspension set-up changed under parc fermé without approval (Art. B3.5.3 and B3.5.4), after the Technical Delegate’s report (Doc 36). |
| 38 | Approved parc fermé changes | Hadjar (car 6) received a previously used ICE and turbocharger plus a new fuel collector. Smaller parts changed for Norris, Verstappen, Sainz, Lindblad, Alonso, Hülkenberg and Pérez. |
| 20 | Russell: 40-place grid drop | Still applies to Sunday’s Grand Prix. |
What to watch:
- Norris on Piastri. Norris went for a gap on the inside but was never ahead at the apex. Because he finished, a time penalty would cost him his single point; a grid drop for Sunday is also possible.
- Pérez on Stroll and Albon on Bortoleto. All four cars retired, so any penalty for the drivers found at fault would most likely be a grid drop for Sunday or penalty points.
- Lindblad. Driving the wrong way after his spin under the safety car is a safety issue; the stewards will want to know whether he had another option.
- Gasly vs Hülkenberg. Motorsport.com reports the stewards took no further action; no FIA document confirms it yet.
- Russell’s car. Heavy damage at front and rear means Mercedes may need new parts. Any extra power-unit elements would add little, since he already starts from the back.
- Hadjar’s power unit. He failed on a previously used engine fitted under parc fermé (Doc 38), and Doc 10 already showed him on his 7th ICE. Watch for a new PU notice before qualifying.
Key points and our view
Verstappen did everything right except the start. “The start was horrendous again,” he said after the race, adding that he cares more about winning on Sunday than in the Sprint. He inherited the lead, then managed dying intermediates better than anyone. After a yellow-flag breach that went unpunished on Friday (Doc 29), a clean, dominant win is the best answer he could give, but Red Bull’s launch problem could cost him far more over a full race distance.
Norris owes Piastri, and now has to explain himself to the stewards. On the last lap, fourth and fifth, with Leclerc’s tyres already gone, there was nothing to gain that justified the risk. Norris was never ahead at the apex and hit his team-mate’s rear wheel. Instead of scoring nine points, McLaren left with one. If the stewards apply the usual standard for a move that causes a collision, a penalty is hard to argue against.
Pérez should expect the same scrutiny. Touching a rear wheel on lap one in the wet and spinning a car into the barrier is the textbook case for a penalty. Because he also retired, it would likely come as a grid drop for Sunday.
Russell’s weekend went from paradox to nightmare. He was fastest in FP1, on the front row on Friday and leading after one lap, then threw it all into the wall. With a 40-place drop for Sunday, the Sprint was his main chance to score big this weekend, and it is gone.
Ferrari’s double podium hides a warning. Hamilton’s charge from sixth to second was the drive of the day. Leclerc, though, was losing two seconds a lap at the end, and tyre wear in Sunday’s heat could hurt him again.
Red Bull’s engine bill keeps growing. Isack Hadjar‘s failure came on a recycled engine fitted just before the race. With seven ICEs already used, another penalty for him looks likely before the season ends.
Biggest winners down the order: Bearman, from 13th to sixth for three points, Lawson in fifth for Racing Bulls, and Hülkenberg holding seventh after his fight with Gasly. Sainz’s charge from the pit lane to twelfth is a small reward for Williams after Friday’s worst result.
More on Formula Daily
- Lights, Heat and a Saturday Scrap: Singapore’s First-Ever F1 Sprint
- Hot Laps, Hotter Nights: The Singapore GP Is Here
- Verstappen Wins Rain-Wrecked Sepang Thriller As Antonelli Hits Pit-Entry Bollard
- “Get Out Of The Way, You Idiot”: Why Sainz Has No Right To Complain This Time
- All Singapore GP coverage
- 2026 F1 standings
