Lewis Hamilton Wins The Singapore Grand Prix – REPORT AND DRIVER INTERVIEWS
Race Weekend: 2018 Singapore Grand Prix
Traditionally, the Singapore Grand Prix was a track which was more suited to the likes of Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Ferrari however this weekend, it was the Mercedes-AMG Petronas team which powered their way through with a stunning pole position lap by Lewis Hamilton in yesterday’s qualifying session.
Despite the win, Mercedes still don’t have the stronger car. They know that, we know that and of course, Ferrari knows that too but it seems that they’re performing much better as a team. They take advantage of every situation and seem like they’re a lot calmer, thinking strategies through and making use of both drivers to benefit themselves.
Now with a 40-point lead in the driver championship, Lewis Hamilton has switched things round when comparing to the start of the season and with this weekend at the Singapore Grand Prix, it seems to be getting to Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari.
In order to keep the championship battle going until the end of the season, Ferrari need to step up (as a team) and take advantage of the fact they have a stronger car.
Let’s take a look at what the drivers and team members had to say following the Singapore Grand Prix – towards the end of the post, you’ll also be able to see some photos from the weekend too.
MERCEDES – SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX – DRIVER INTERVIEWS
LEWIS HAMILTON
Lewis Hamilton: “I’m so excited! I came here knowing that Singapore is a hard one for us. But I’m always optimistic, thinking that if we’re really diligent and do our work, we can create some chances.:
“Then, Friday was already a good day for us. Saturday didn’t start off well but then all of the sudden that special lap came in. Knowing that we would start on pole, I knew that it was a great opportunity for us to capitalise on.”
“I had a great start and from then I was able to manage it. When I hit the traffic, I was just mindful not to take any risks – when you start to get closer to another car, you start losing grip and start sliding around more, so there’s a higher chance of mistakes.”
“If you’re lucky you catch the cars at the right point and they let you by so you don’t lose any time, but today I always caught them at an unfortunate point.”
“So when Max was right behind, I had to go on the defensive, and I thought to myself “Bro, you’re not getting by – not today!”
“It was physically such a demanding race, so I’m relieved that it’s over now – it felt like such a long night, but I’m super grateful for the result.”
VALTTERI BOTTAS
Valtteri Bottas: “There was not a whole lot happening in the race. I was hoping for more variables to come into play and shake the race up a little.”
“There was only one Safety Car in the very beginning, but it came out too early to trigger any pit stops. It’s very difficult to follow and overtake on this track, so once the Safety Car was back in, it was a fairly uneventful race.”
“The first stint on the HyperSoft tyres was very straightforward. We knew that the second stint on the Soft tyres would be more difficult because it was so long and towards the end the tyres were pretty much gone.”
“I can’t be happy with P4, but a better result today was made very difficult by the qualifying result yesterday. However, we still got a good result for the team, which is great because everyone has been working so hard to improve the car and the set-up for Singapore.”
TOTO WOLFF
Toto Wolff: “Singapore has been our bogey track for several years, so it is a special feeling to come here and win this race on pace. The entire team has worked so hard to understand the car and take steps forward, especially since our defeat in Spa, and this result is an indication that our work is paying off.”
“We prepared well for this weekend, came here determined to make a step and we delivered. It was a weekend of many parts: a stardust lap from Lewis in qualifying, a chess game of tyre management this evening, and some nervous moments with traffic and backmarkers during the race – but in the end, we outscored our rivals for both championships and delivered a really satisfying result.”
“There will be many discussions about backmarkers, who had a big influence on both drivers’ races; I think this is a topic for the drivers to discuss among themselves, but perhaps there is a way to optimise those blue flag rules on street circuits like this.”
“From our side, we can be pleased with a very solid weekend. We have leads in both championships but they change nothing in the mind-set of this team.”
“We have six weekends to go and we know how quickly the situation can swing back against us. We will take it weekend by weekend, feet on the ground and determined to maximise our potential every time.”
FERRARI – SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX – DRIVER INTERVIEWS
SEBASTIAN VETTEL
Sebastian Vettel: “It’s never easy to come and win even if, obviously, that was our target.”
“Yesterday the qualifying didn’t go the way we wanted and we couldn’t extract the best out of ourselves. Today, starting from third position, we had to try something different, but it didn’t work out and we finished where we started.”
“We were running second after a good start which allowed me to get past Max, I was happy and confident when I got the call to box, I knew I needed a mega out lap to try and challenge for the lead but it didn’t work.”
“I lost time behind another car and the brakes got a little too hot, it was close but we got the worse of it. I fully support the team’s decision because, as I am sitting in the car, I can’t be aware of everything that goes on, so I rely on them.”
“Our target was not to finish third, but today we just did not have enough speed.”
KIMI RAIKKONEN
Kimi Raikkonen: “Not much happened today in the race; the car was behaving well and we had a fair speed, but most of the time we were stuck behind somebody and taking care of the tyres.”
“On this track it’s impossible to overtake, unless the guy in front makes a massive mistake. I could see Bottas struggling with his front right tire and locking it sometimes, I could get closer to him but not enough to pass.”
“Through the middle part of the track it was even difficult to follow him because we were losing downforce. In the first stint we stayed out longer hoping for a Safety Car, but it did not happen.”
“The qualifying here is the key and obviously, when you start behind, your race ends up being a bit boring, getting stuck behind other cars. There was no way we could use our speed.”
“Obviously we wanted more, we did what we could, but this is what we have got today.”
MAURIZIO ARRIVABENE
Maurizio Arrivabene: “Today’s winner deserved the victory. After Sebastian overtook Verstappen, we went for an aggressive strategy, trying for the undercut on the Ultrasoft tyres.”
“Unfortunately, during the one lap that would prove to be crucial, we found ourselves behind another car and so we were unable to run at a fast enough pace.”
“Despite today’s result, not all is lost. Now, calmly and with determination, we will tackle the remaining six races, fighting all the way to the end!”
RED BULL RACING – SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX – DRIVER INTERVIEWS
MAX VERSTAPPEN
Max Verstappen: “It was a shame to lose a position to Sebastian so early on but there was not a lot I could do as we were both flat out. I should have been able to hold the line but I just couldn’t match his speed.”
“My only real chance to win was at the start, unfortunately it was a bit all over the place and I knew my chance had gone. Luckily the team had me on a great strategy and therefore managed to get me back into second place with a brilliant pit stop.”
“When I got close to Lewis due to back markers I never really thought the pass would be possible. It’s hard to overtake here so I didn’t want to take the risk.”
“It was also slightly unfair how he had been held up by drivers not getting out of the way. I had a few driveability issues again behind the Safety Car and pulling away from the pit stop was dreadful, but in the end we managed it well and got the result we wanted.”
“After the way the car has felt at certain points this weekend, qualifying on the front row and taking second place today is an amazing result.”
DANIEL RICCIARDO
Daniel Ricciardo: “In the end, the race was a bit as we expected but we hoped for some sort of ultimate strategy. We tried something different by going long on the Hypersoft and we had good pace but a street circuit is only really great if you are on pole, otherwise it’s not only hard to overtake but even to follow.”
“Qualifying is so important here and the race was really lost yesterday. I could catch Kimi, I would stay close to him for a couple of laps and then I would have to back-off.”
“I had the pace to get back on his gearbox but I was never quite close enough to make a move. I really had to hope for a mistake or that Kimi and Valtteri would start tangling and I could capitalise. I got close at Turn 13 on the last lap, but it wasn’t close enough.”
“Street circuits are my favourite tracks to drive but they can also be frustrating. In Monaco I listened to Lewis in seventh place complaining about following closely and now I understand what he was complaining about.”
“I think everyone was in the same boat. I would have loved to fight for something more today but I couldn’t.”
“Last night we spent quite a few hours here trying to figure it all out and I hope in Russia everything will fall into place. We’ll keep fighting, try to get better and maybe we can get a win at a circuit where we don’t expect it.”
“Now I’ll jump into the ice bath and cool down.”
MCLAREN- SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX – DRIVER INTERVIEWS
FERNANDO ALONSO
Fernando Alonso: “I’m really happy with seventh position. Normally something happens in front of us, but today all six cars ahead finished the race, so P7, behind the top six cars, is a small win for us.”
“We executed the race to perfection with a good strategy, we maximised the tyre advantage starting on the purple tyre and then switching to the yellows and scored good points for the team, in the end.”
“At some point in the race we were also the fastest car on track, and on such a demanding circuit this makes me even happier. It was no boring race for me, as we still needed to open some gaps in case of a Safety Car, and we didn’t know when people behind us would stop. So, even though we were alone, it was about controlling the gaps.”
“We knew coming here that the characteristics of this track would suit our package. I think it’s going to be up and down for the remainder of the season, as at some races we’re expecting to be competitive and at some others not so much.”
“The target will be scoring points on Sundays and helping the team in the Constructors’ Championship.”
STOFFEL VANDOORNE
Stoffel Vandoorne: “I think it was a decent race today considering not a lot of action happened during the race and there were no Safety Cars after the start.”
“There was just that one incident on the first lap, but we couldn’t really benefit from that.We were quick and actually had good pace when it mattered in that first stint, especially when the pit window opened.”
“We decided to go long on the first stint, and that’s how we recovered a few places. The tyres didn’t feel so great by the time we pitted, but we more or less had the pace to maintain that same rhythm.”
“The others were getting blue flags so they were losing a lot of time, and that’s what mattered. It’s always been known that we’re better on a Sunday than a Saturday, but on street circuits like Singapore it’s all about qualifying.”
“It’s a shame not to score any points.”
SAUBER – SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX – DRIVER INTERVIEWS
CHARLES LECLERC
Charles Leclerc: “What a race – it was quite close to being perfect. We had strong lap times, and the balance of the car felt good from the beginning to the end.”
“We made a great recovery this weekend, after having a weaker race pace on Friday. With our strategy, we were able to fight our way to the front of the midfield and finish in the points again.”
“Achieving this after the past few weekends feels good and shows our potential. I look forward to the next one!”
MARCUS ERICSSON
Marcus Ericsson: “It was a pretty good race today. The pace was good and there were no mistakes made. Despite that, it is a bit frustrating to have finished in P11, so close to the points.”
“We gave a strong performance, but could not fight for P10 anymore after coming back out onto the track behind the leading cars following our pitstop.”
“Nevertheless, we did a good job as a team and will fight back in Sochi.”
PHOTOS FROM THE PADDOCK – SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX
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