Qualifying Report – Singapore Grand Prix 2023

singapore-grand-prix-2023

Qualifying Report Singapore Grand Prix 2023

The Singapore Grand Prix always brings us an exciting weekend and today, it was no exception with the 2023 Singapore Qualifying Session which sees Carlos Sainz on pole!

It’s a track that brings us great racing year after year – close racing and with the need for each driver to be incredibly careful (and skilled) when it comes to making their way around this street-circuit.

Similar to Monaco, one mistake and it’s all over!

It definitely won’t be an easy race and with the likelihood of a safety car (statistically there is a safety car during the Singapore Grand Prix) – it looks like we have a great race on our hands tomorrow.

With Carlos Sainz starting on pole, let’s take a look and see what the teams and drivers had to say, following on from the Qualifying session today. 

Ferrari – Qualifying Report Singapore 2023

Carlos Sainz, 1st: “It feels great to get pole position here on the streets of Singapore!”

“Yesterday we already saw we were competitive and I think we’ve done a good job building up to qualifying.”

“Q3 was super tight but we managed to pull off good clean laps and grab that P1!”

“The race won’t be easy due to the degradation but it is key to stay focused today and prepare well for tomorrow.”

“The team has been working flat out and we deserve a good result. We’ll definitely go for it!”

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Charles Leclerc, 3rd: “We’ve looked quite strong all weekend and it’s positive to see such good performance today.”

“Usually, we’ve been strong in Singapore, so we know that we shouldn’t get carried away.”

“We’ve learned a few things at the last race and will try to take step forward using those learnings for the rest of the season.

“In Q3, I made a small error in turn 17, so it wasn’t enough for pole, but we have great starting positions as a team and will work on putting some pressure on George (Russell) between us.”

Mercedes – Qualifying Singapore 2023

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George Russell, 2nd: “I’ve been really happy with this weekend as a whole. I’ve felt confident in the car and the team did a great job with the tyre strategy.”

“We are on an offset strategy compared to everybody else, so we have an extra set of Medium tyres tomorrow which nobody around us has. So, to get to Q3, and then the front row, with just four sets of tyres and a strategic advantage, that’s an exciting place to be.”

“It was a challenging session in the car – sitting in the garage, it’s like being in a sauna, and you just need to keep your composure and stay cool.”

“The same will be true tomorrow: traditionally this has been a one-stop race, but the new circuit layout has possibly changed that.”

“I think it’s going to be close between a one- and a two-stop, and with that extra Medium tyre available, we can put pressure on Ferrari and try and force an error to get the upper hand.”

“That’s what we’re looking for.”

Lewis Hamilton, 5th:“The car was feeling incredible yesterday and we had hoped that with some tweaks, we’d be able to challenge the Ferraris.”

“We made some pretty big changes overnight, and it just came away from me again, and we didn’t have the speed today.”

“It’s obviously disappointing, especially because we clearly had a great package here and George was able to get on the front row. But tomorrow is a new day – and there is a lot to fight for.”

“I hope George gets a great start tomorrow and puts some pressure on Ferraris; it would be great for him to get the win.”

“On my side, I will be pushing to the maximum to go forward and see how the race unfolds in front.”

Aston Martin – Qualifying Singapore 2023

Fernando Alonso, 7th: “I’m glad to see that Lance is okay. My Q3 lap was good.”

“I told the team on the radio that it would have been difficult to improve that lap time even if I’d driven round all night!”

“We seemed to struggle a little in FP3: we didn’t look very competitive, so we changed a couple of things on the car and improved it for qualifying – but probably not quite enough.”

“It will be a long, interesting race for everybody tomorrow.”

“We need to maximise every opportunity, but we must be realistic: there are plenty of fast cars in front of us, and we aren’t starting out of position.”

“I will try and gain some places tomorrow, but it will be a tough race.”

Lance Stroll, 20th: “I’m okay. I’m frustrated as we have a big job – in the garage and on the race track – ahead of us. I was struggling for grip throughout the qualifying session.”

“We had a bad out-lap with traffic ahead of my final push and we got stopped for the weighbridge.”

“I started a couple of seconds behind Pierre [Gasly], so it didn’t play out the way we’d planned.”

“When I saw my lap wasn’t improving, I pushed really hard in the last corner to try and make up that extra time, and that’s when it went wrong.”

“Let’s see what we can salvage tomorrow in the race.”

Red Bull Racing – Qualifying Singapore 2023

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Max Verstappen, 11th: “It hasn’t been a great weekend for us so far, qualifying was hectic.”

“I couldn’t break late and hard because I would bottom out, I’ve also been struggling with the low speed corners, we just had no rear support.”

“It is of course very hard to pass in Singapore on the street circuit so I’m not expecting a lot tomorrow.”

“We’ve had so many successful weekends this year, we can be proud of what we have achieved so far.”

“It’s more important that we understand where we are going wrong this weekend.”

Sergio Perez, 13th: “I had a complete disaster, I am really disappointed with the result, it was not really what we were expecting, it really hurts.”

“We made a lot of changes to the car this weekend but nothing really worked, we need to understand it.”

“We started really well with a nice balance in FP1 but then FP2 was very difficult and since then it has been tough because we have been making a few changes here and there but nothing seems to transform the balance.”

“It has been tricky out there with the amount of sliding we have been doing and the balance is changing corner to corner.”

“It made it worse that I couldn’t get my final attempt in Q2.”

“The thing we are struggling the most with is ride and it made what happened there even worse.”

“I had a massive under delivery from the engine, it kicked really hard and I ended up losing the car.”

“It was a shame and today is a massive shame. Singapore is a street circuit and it is very hard to pass here, if we are able to score some points tomorrow I would be pleased.”

Lots more on the way!

The Formula 1 Girl 🙂

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