Verstappen on first Singapore win: "It took a while"

On the tenth attempt, it finally worked out.

After his Sprint victory and pole position, Max Verstappen also secured the win in the Singapore Grand Prix (to the race report >>>). It's his first triumph at the night spectacle: "It took a while," says the Dutchman in a post-race interview.

Verstappen always on the podium since Zandvoort retirement

Verstappen adds: "We had the speed exactly when we needed it. On the soft and medium tyres, even though we, like everyone else, had difficulties on the medium tyres."

Since his retirement at his home race in Zandvoort, the 29-year-old has always finished on the podium and has won the last two Grand Prix.

"The last races have been very positive for us. It's great and we have a lot of motivation in the team to achieve even more results. It's a really great group of people, I enjoy working with them and hopefully, we can have even more fun at the end of the year."

Antonelli could secure World Championship title already in Austin

While Charles Leclerc finishes second, Kimi Antonelli still fought his way onto the podium. The championship leader "naturally benefited greatly from the duel between Lando and Lewis" and then overtook both. "To then take third place home is a super result for the team."

The Italian thus extends his lead in the Drivers' World Championship to 102 points. The 20-year-old seemed somewhat surprised when Jenson Button pointed out that he could already secure the title at the next race in Austin (USA).

"Can I really?" Antonelli asks. However, the Mercedes driver doesn't want to dwell on it: "Let's not worry about that. I'll make sure I have a good weekend and get the job done."

Russell: "Last weeks were tough"

Teammate George Russell, who started the race from 19th position due to an engine change, still fought his way up to ninth, but continues to lose ground as a result and due to his retirement in the Sprint.

Russell gutted after crash: "We would have won the Sprint" >>>

"I really enjoyed the first laps with a few good overtakes. It was very challenging towards the end. Overall, the last few weeks as a team have been tough since Baku," says the Brit in an ORF interview.

Russell, unlike his teammate, is still running with the old aero package. According to him, they now need to continue working on the update, which has "its own characteristics", and "find a setup that works for us. It will be difficult, but I believe we can do it."