Sparks fly as Max shines in Singapore

Published on 20 September 2015 by Stefan Meens

After a dramatic start to the Singapore Grand Prix, in which his car stalled, Max Verstappen fought his way back to P8. Despite being a lap down after the first lap, the Dutchman used his tremendous race pace and overtaking skills to make the most of two safety cars to finish in the points. At the front, Sebastian Vettel claimed his third win for Ferrari ahead of Red Bull Racing's Daniel Ricciardo and team mate Kimi Raikkonen.

Max: “I'm so pleased with this result, especially after being a lap down at the start. My speed was there all race long. I had some great fights and I really enjoyed this race.”

As the race gets under way, Max is unable to pull away from his grid slot. The marshals push the STR10 back into the pits. There, the Scuderia Toro Rosso mechanics are able to get car going again and upon rejoining the race, Max is a lap down. Nevertheless, he is making the most of the free track ahead of him by clocking times that match the top six.

The six drivers in questions, Vettel, Ricciardo, Raikkonen, Daniil Kvyat, Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, retained their starting positions with the German Ferrari driver pulling a three second gap in the opening lap.

The stint that follows is a quiet one until Nico Hulkenberg and Felipe Massa crash at the first corner. The Brazilian, upon exiting the pit lane, runs into the inside of the German, launching the Force India driver into the tyres. Initially the virtual safety car is called into action, followed by the actual safety car a few laps later.

The caution means Max is able to unlap himself. Despite this touch of luck, the Dutchman still finds himself at the back of the field, 39 seconds behind Will Stevens in the Manor. The gap to his team mate Carlos Sainz, who dropped back to P18 due to a gear box issue, is still over 25 seconds.

Nevertheless, Max is keen to make the most of the Singapore Grand Prix and in lap 23 he sets the fastest lap of the race, closing up onto the back of the Manors a lap later. After clearing Alexander Rossi and Will Stevens, Max works his way up into P8, aided by DNFs of Massa, Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton.

In lap 36, the TV cameras catch a man strolling along the track, prompting another safety car. At the same time, Max heads into the pits for a set of the faster super soft Pirellis in an attempt to score points in the final part of the race.

The team's strategy works. After the safety car, both Toro Rosso's are on the brink of points and both drivers put in a stellar shift working their way up the order. Max passes Felipe Nasr with a daring move around the outside of the Sauber, before passing Pastor Maldonado for a place in the top nine. The next man up the road is the Lotus' driver's team mate, Romain Grosjean. Max patiently sets up a move several corners before actually planting his STR10 next the Frenchman's car. The 17-year-old takes P8 and sets his sights on Sergio Perez.

Sainz is also able to clear Nasr's Sauber and both Lotus, joining Max in the chase for seventh place. The Toro Rosso duo close the gap to the Mexican but in the remaining ten laps, Perez keeps the thread at bay.

A couple of laps before the end, Max is asked by his race engineer to swap places with Carlos but the Dutchman resolutely answers his team with a “no”. “My race pace was good during the whole race. I pulled away from everyone in the midfield and I was gaining on the guys ahead. I didn't see a reason to let Sainz pass. If it was the other way around, he wouldn’t have let me pas either”, explains Max.

It means he finishes his first Singapore Grand Prix in eighth, claiming four vital world championship points, bringing his total to 30 this season and P11 in the standings.

At the front, Sebastian Vettel remained unrivalled throughout the whole race with his old team mate Ricciardo finishing second, followed by Raikkonen. Nico Rosberg was the highest Mercededs powered driver in fourth, ahead of Valtteri Bottas.

Marina Bay Street Circuit - Singapore Grand Prix - Sunday 20 September 2015

RESULTS SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX 
 P  Driver                   Team          Time 
 1  Sebastian Vettel   GER   Ferrari       2:01:22.118 
 2  Daniel Ricciardo   AUS   Red Bull      +1.478s 
 3  Kimi Raikkonen     FIN   Ferrari       +17.154s 
 4  Nico Rosberg       GER   Mercedes      +24.720s 
 5  Valtteri Bottas    FIN   Williams      +34.204s 
 6  Daniil Kvyat       RUS   Red Bull      +35.508s 
 7  Sergio Perez       MEX   Force India   +50.836s 
 8  Max Verstappen     NED   Toro Rosso    +51.450s 
 9  Carlos Sainz       ESP   Toro Rosso    +52.860s 
10  Felipe Nasr        BRA   Sauber        +90.045s 
11  Marcus Ericsson    SWE   Sauber        +97.507s 
12  Pastor Maldonado   VEN   Lotus         +97.718s 
13  Romain Grosjean    FRA   Lotus         DNF 
14  Alexander Rossi    USA   Marussia      +2 laps 
15  Will Stevens       GBR   Marussia      +2 laps 
NC  Jenson Button      GBR   McLaren       DNF 
NC  Fernando Alonso    ESP   McLaren       DNF 
NC  Lewis Hamilton     GBR   Mercedes      DNF 
NC  Felipe Massa       BRA   Williams      DNF 
NC  Nico Hulkenberg    GER   Force India   DNF