Punctures Become Key in Singapore, Sebastian Vettel On the Verge of Title?

Qualifying:

Pos	#	Driver	Constructor	Q1	Q2	Diff.
1	39	Sho Tsuboi		1:50.618	1:50.310
2	88	Robert Kubica		1:50.653	1:50.483	+0.173
3	47	Lando Norris		1:51.290	1:50.908	+0.598
4	18	Sebastian Vettel		1:51.371	1:52.246	+1.061
5	56	Einar Ármannsson		1:52.359	1:52.135	+1.825
6	20	Kevin Magnussen		1:52.263	1:52.689	+1.953
7	23	Jules Bianchi		1:52.903	1:52.275	+1.965
8	94	Pascal Wehrlein		1:53.133	1:52.828	+2.518
9	1	Victoria Desai		1:53.463	1:53.124	+2.814
10	57	Dean Stoneman		1:53.373	1:53.243	+2.933
11	7	Charles Leclerc		1:53.876	1:53.558	+3.276
12	10	Alessio Lorandi		1:53.928	1:54.105	+3.618
13	60	Ritomo Miyata		1:54.791	1:53.936	+3.626
14	63	George Russell		1:54.224	1:54.011	+3.701
15	70	Pastor Maldonado		1:54.091	1:55.078	+3.781
16	4	Robin Frijns		1:54.637	1:54.400	+4.090
17	55	Carlos Sainz, Jr.		1:54.646	1:54.476	+4.166
18	26	Robert Shwartzman		1:55.194	1:54.862	+4.552
19	29	Roger Ibe		1:54.902	1:55.286	+4.592
20	33	Max Verstappen		1:55.146	1:55.031	+4.721
21	81	Malik Zidan		1:55.532	1:55.296	+4.986
22	95	Beitske Visser		1:56.268	1:55.884	+4.618
23	80	Raven Roth		1:57.095	1:56.602	+6.292
24	98	Colton Herta		1:56.945	1:56.824	+6.541
25	11	Terry Hawkin		1:58.771	1:58.439	+8.129
26	21	Théo Pourchaire		1:58.609	1:59.068	+8.299

Report:

No mentally stable Formula One world champion will ever dignify the notion that you do not need at least a little bit of luck to secure the title. Lando Norris’s retirement shortly after taking the lead of the Singapore Grand Prix proved it once again, as he now finds himself 25 points adrift of Sebastian Vettel with 44 points still left to race for.

In the light drizzle that affected the majority of the Grand Prix, Jules Bianchi came into his own, easily dispatching the two ROOKIE cars to secure a second-place finish, his fifth runner-up spot of the season. Both Jules Bianchi and Sho Tsuboi passed Einar Ármannsson in the standings.

Two teams that were getting along very well with the Marina Bay circuit were Ferrari and Williams, the former ended up with a double-points finish, the latter were ninth and tenth, thus as good as you can be without scoring points. Shwartzman and Lorandi did themselves favours by keeping up with their better teammates for long stretches.

Outside of Lando Norris’s catastrophic DNF, Bridgestone also suffered the nightmare of two more drivers suffering race-ending punctures: Kevin Magnussen lost a point by retiring and Théo Poouchaire was also subjected to the indignity of having to park his vehicle shortly before the chequered flag.

Race:

Pos	#	Driver	Constructor	Time/Retired	Grid	Points
1	18	Sebastian Vettel		72:036.293	4	10
2	23	Jules Bianchi		+43.199	7	8
3	39	Sho Tsuboi		+65.444	1	7
4	88	Robert Kubica		+66.731	2	5
5	1	Victoria Desai		+83.359	9	4
6	56	Einar Ármannsson		+84.900	5	3
7	10	Alessio Lorandi		+96.136	12	2
8	94	Pascal Wehrlein		1 Lap	8	1
9	70	Pastor Maldonado		1 Lap	15
10	26	Robert Shwartzman		1 Lap	18
11	7	Charles Leclerc		1 Lap	11
12	95	Beitske Visser		1 Lap	22
13	81	Malik Zidan		1 Lap	21
14	33	Max Verstappen		1 Lap	20
15	63	George Russell		1 Lap	14
16	60	Ritomo Miyata		1 Lap	13
17	80	Raven Roth		1 Lap	23
18	55	Carlos Sainz, Jr.		1 Lap	17
19	57	Dean Stoneman		1 Lap	10
20	98	Colton Herta		1 Lap	24
21	11	Terry Hawkin		2 Laps	25
22	4	Robin Frijns		Motor	16
23	20	Kevin Magnussen		Puncture	6
24	21	Théo Pourchaire		Puncture	26
DNF	29	Roger Ibe		Throttle	19
DNF	47	Lando Norris		Puncture	3

Fastest Lap:

Sebastian Vettel – 1:53.050

Infinite Improbability Drive Of The Race:

Williams-Ferrari – while they were not rewarded in points, their competitiveness was nice to see.

Reject Of The Race:

Bridgestone – regardless of whether the punctures were all their fault, it is a horrible look in terms of marketing.