Max Verstappen made history by claiming pole position for Saturday’s Formula 1 Sprint at Marina Bay, the first Sprint race Singapore has ever hosted. He edged George Russell by 0.120 seconds on a weekend when he will start his 250th Grand Prix.

The 29-year-old Red Bull driver had never started from pole at Marina Bay. His best lap of 1 minute 31.156 seconds came in the dying moments of a thrilling Sprint Qualifying session, with Charles Leclerc third-fastest for Ferrari.

Singapore Sprint Qualifying Results: Verstappen Beats Russell and Leclerc

Verstappen switched from Pirelli’s Medium tires to the Soft compound for the final segment of qualifying. His lap averaged 194.580 km/h and left him 0.120s clear of Russell’s Mercedes.

“It’s always close here in Singapore,” Verstappen said. He also described the cockpit as “just like a sauna,” calling the conditions part of what makes the venue unique.

McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris qualified fourth and fifth, ahead of multiple Singapore winner Lewis Hamilton in the second Ferrari. Liam Lawson’s Racing Bulls will start eighth, and the top eight finishers in the Sprint score points.

Isack Hadjar finished ninth despite his Red Bull’s tendency to bottom out. Alpine’s Pierre Gasly rounded out the top 10 after surviving a slight brush against the wall in the pit lane.

The pole is Verstappen’s first Sprint pole of 2026, but a shadow hangs over it. Stewards said they would investigate him for overtaking Hamilton during the yellow-flag period and the subsequent red flag, triggered by Sergio Perez’s Cadillac shedding debris early in the session.

Russell Penalty and Antonelli Struggles Cloud Mercedes Singapore Weekend

Russell will start Sunday’s Grand Prix from the back because of engine-related penalties. He still pushed Verstappen to within 0.120s and has won three of the five previous Sprints this season.

“We’ve been competitive all day,” Russell said. Asked about Mercedes’ recent upgrades, he added, “The sport is driven by the stopwatch and so far, the stopwatch hasn’t been great.”

Kimi Antonelli, who finished almost half a second slower than Russell, had a tougher night as Mercedes switched his front wings between sessions in search of pace. “The car is very unpredictable, it’s very difficult to put a lap together,” the 20-year-old Italian said.

A telemetry glitch after SQ1 wrongly listed some drivers’ times and positions, and the restart left more than half the field scrambling to post fast laps. Arvid Lindblad, the only rookie in this year’s Singapore field, ended up 17th.

Earlier, Russell topped the sole practice session before Sprint Qualifying with a 1:32.274 on Soft tires. That was 1.158s slower than the best time in the same session in 2025.

Verstappen is set to lead the field into Saturday’s 21-lap Sprint, pending the stewards’ review. Sunday’s Grand Prix will mark his 250th start.