Max Verstappen wins Singapore sprint after George Russell crashes out

Max Verstappen won the Singapore Grand Prix sprint at Marina Bay on 10 October 2026 after George Russell crashed out of the lead. Lewis Hamilton finished second and Charles Leclerc third, according to separate reports by BBC Sport and Cadena SER. The result also affected the championship picture: BBC Sport reported that Kimi Antonelli’s fourth place, combined with Russell’s retirement, extended Antonelli’s lead to 89 points.

How Russell lost the lead in Singapore

A tropical downpour delayed the start by 30 minutes, BBC Sport reported. Rain had fallen unevenly around the street circuit: the first sector, particularly Turns Two and Three, had standing water, while the second sector remained dry. The field completed two laps behind a safety car to check conditions before taking a standing start. The mixed surface made the opening phase especially difficult for drivers judging how much grip was available from one part of the lap to another.

Russell beat Verstappen away from the start and took the lead into the first corner. At the final corner of the opening lap, he ran wide, lost control and spun into the inside wall before his Mercedes bounced back towards the outside of the track. The other cars avoided him, but Russell’s race was over. Both BBC Sport and Cadena SER reported that his retirement returned the lead to Verstappen; their descriptions differ on whether the crash belonged to the end of lap one or the start of lap two.

Russell took responsibility for the mistake in comments reported by BBC Sport. He said he had misjudged the power delivered by the battery, gone wider than expected and touched the white line. ‘Rule number one in the wet is don't touch the white line,’ he said, calling it a ‘very silly mistake.’ The explanation gives a specific account of how the leader lost control amid the changing conditions.

How Verstappen held off Hamilton

Leclerc completed the podium for Ferrari behind his team-mate Hamilton. Cadena SER likewise listed Verstappen, Hamilton and Leclerc as the top three. BBC Sport described the win as Verstappen’s second Formula 1 victory in seven days and his first in Singapore. Those details add context to the result, while the immediate change in this sprint came from Russell losing a lead he had taken at the start.

Why Antonelli gained ground

The finishing order behind the podium changed late in the race. Leclerc had been under pressure from the McLaren drivers, Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, while Mercedes driver Antonelli closed on the group. BBC Sport reported that Antonelli had struggled with oversteer early on before improving his pace. With passing difficult around the circuit, the cars remained in that order until the closing stages.

On the final lap, Norris tried to pass his McLaren team-mate Piastri at Turn Five after getting a better exit from Turn Three. The cars touched and spun. Piastri hit the barriers and retired on the spot; Norris continued but dropped to eighth, BBC Sport reported. Cadena SER separately reported the contact and said it allowed Antonelli to finish fourth. The incident therefore changed the points positions even though neither McLaren driver was fighting Verstappen for the lead.

BBC Sport said Russell’s retirement and Antonelli’s fourth place extended Antonelli’s championship lead to 89 points. That margin is the BBC’s reported figure; the available reports do not include a separate championship classification to check it against. The result still shows why the two Mercedes outcomes mattered together: Russell scored no sprint finish after leading, while his team-mate moved up to fourth.

What remains unresolved after the sprint

BBC Sport reported that the stewards would investigate the Norris–Piastri collision after the race. Its report did not provide a subsequent ruling, so the incident’s disciplinary outcome remains unconfirmed here. The established finishing order in the available reports has Verstappen first, Hamilton second, Leclerc third and Antonelli fourth, with Norris eighth and Piastri retired.

The delayed sprint also shifted the qualifying timetable. BBC Sport reported that grand prix qualifying was due to start 30 minutes later than originally scheduled, at 14:30 BST. That was the next session on the Singapore Grand Prix programme as reported after the sprint; the available material does not establish its eventual result.