Mercedes
Russell led off the line in Singapore and was rarely troubled as he recorded his second win of the season. He built a good lead in the first stint, lost a few seconds in the second stint as he struggled to get the hard tyres to work. But Verstappen could never get close enough to apply any pressure and he was able to lift off and coast to the finish for his first win in Singapore. Antonelli did not have such a good getaway, dropping behind Norris and Leclerc. But undeterred, he drove a faultless race from there and pulled off a rare overtake on Leclerc to climb back to fifth at the flag.
George Russell, 1st
“I’m really pleased with our victory this evening. This track has not always been my best friend over the years, maybe from my own doing. We didn’t start the weekend in the best way either but come Q3 yesterday I felt really good in the car and that carried on into today. It was such a long race, so I was very glad to see the chequered flag, but we ultimately had it all under control.
“The goal for us is to finish second in the Constructor’s Championship this year. This result helps us in that quest, but we still have six races to go. We will need to be at our best if we are to achieve that but hopefully we can carry this form into the double header of Austin and Mexico City. Congratulations to McLaren on their Constructor’s title and to Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains too.”
Kimi Antonelli, 5th
“I struggled with some wheelspin in the second phase of my start and that cost me into turn one. I lost two positions, and my race was a fightback from there. It was a tough race physically but I’m happy with how I managed to battle back. The pace was good, and I was able to gain a position back with a good move on Leclerc. We could have achieved more tonight but P5 is still OK.
“Congratulations to George on a great win and a brilliant drive. That is a great result for the team and really helps us out in the Constructor’s. Congratulations to McLaren too and everyone at Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains on another Mercedes powered title.”
Toto Wolff, Head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport
“That was an amazing drive from George this evening. He controlled the race from lights out to the chequered flag to take a brilliant win. The pace he and the car had was surprising but strong and that was the winning formula today. It was also great to have PETRONAS represent our team on the podium with Tengku Muhammad Taufik receiving the trophy. They are a brilliant title partner, and it is sweet to win at what is the closest race on the calendar to Malaysia.
“Kimi’s race meanwhile was compromised by losing two places at the start, but he had good pace and battled back hard. His move on Leclerc at turn 16 was incredible; it took everyone by surprise and ensured both our cars finished ahead of Ferrari which is important for second in the Constructor’s Championship. On that note, congratulations to McLaren as they secured the Constructor’s crown this evening. They have been the best team this year, so it is well deserved. Congratulations also go to our team-mates at Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains who secured a 10th Mercedes powered Constructor’s title in the past 12 years.”
Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director
“That was a great result for the team and congratulations to George on another win. We didn’t really know what to expect in terms of pace going into the race; we didn’t have any good long run data but it was really encouraging to see George able to pull a decent gap in stint one and keep the tyres in a decent temperature window.
“Kimi lost a couple of places at the start; one of those was on the initial getaway and then another around the first corners where he was struggling for grip on the inside. He drove a very impressive race to finish ahead of both Ferraris though and was able to show good pace once he was in free air.
“It was fun to be fighting at the front again, but we’ve got a lot of hard work ahead if we want to keep second place in this championship. It will be a tough fight with Ferrari and Red Bull, but we will be pushing to the chequered flag in Abu Dhabi. Finally, congratulations to McLaren on their Constructor’s Championship and Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains for powering their success.”
