George Russell wins Singapore Grand Prix as McLaren seals constructors’ championship despite contact between drivers
George Russell of Great Britain celebrates on the podium during the F1 Grand Prix of Singapore at Marina Bay Street Circuit.
By Issy Ronald, CNN
(CNN) — George Russell led the Singapore Grand Prix from start to finish on Sunday, taking his second win of the season by coasting clear of the frantic competition for places behind him.
Among those battling for the podium were the McLaren pair of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri who secured enough points to ensure that the British team sealed this year’s constructors’ championship, even with six races remaining.
Eventually, Norris finished third and Piastri finished fourth while Red Bull’s Max Verstappen fended off their challenge to take second place.
Although the constructors’ championship is now settled, the drivers’ championship – currently led by Piastri with Norris 22 points behind his teammate – still remains very much alive.
And the ferocity of their competition was seemingly undimmed by any notion of team loyalty, as the two drivers clashed at the start of the Singapore Grand Prix.
Piastri started in third place on the grid, two places ahead of Norris who started well, passing Kimi Antonelli in fourth and slipping past Piastri too, but at the cost of clipping his teammate and damaging his own front wing.
“I mean, that wasn’t very teamlike but sure,” grumbled Piastri on the team radio.
Norris downplayed the incident in his post-race interview, saying “it was slippery, so wet in a lot of places.”
“It’s racing, I put it on the inside, had a little correction and yeah, that’s it,” he added.
Piastri too offered a more measured response afterward than his visible frustration during the race, saying he needed to watch the replay before saying anything.
“Obviously a difficult race, a difficult first lap,” he said. “I don’t think there was any intention of contact, but there was, and I need to look at the replay and see what exactly happened.”
After losing ground at the start, Piastri then suffered a five-second delay in the pits as he boxed for the first time in the race, effectively ending his hopes of challenging the leaders, including Norris.
Ahead of them, Russell steadily built a healthy lead as Verstappen grappled with his car in second place, complaining about it being difficult to drive.
Still, despite his difficulties, Verstappen remained within touching distance of Russell even as Norris crept up behind him.
And as the race entered its final 10 laps, Norris finally got close enough to put pressure on Verstappen, sensing the opportunity to overtake though the Dutch driver ultimately found enough to fend him off.
The-CNN-Wire
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