Singapore GP: Race - Re-Cap & Results

SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX - RACE

    Nico Rosberg took a well deserved victory at Singapore in what may be the most exciting race of the season. It’s rare in Formula One that there’s much of a battle at the front of the field, let alone one that lasts until the very last lap, but a mixed up strategy in the night race made for a battle that kept fans and team personnel alike on the edge of their seats.

    There’s always a safety car at Singapore. This one came right at the beginning of the race, after a collision between Nico Hulkenberg and Carlos Sainz.

    Fourth place started Max Verstappen had a slow start, falling back through the pack. Sainz, starting directly behind him, tried to avoid his ex-team mate, but tangled with Hulkenberg.

    The Toro Rosso driver was able to keep going, but was forced to pit a few laps after the green flags returned when the meatball flags were brought out for some damage to the front of his car.

    Verstappen’s slow start promoted Raikkonen to fourth but the Finn wasn’t going to stay there for long. Raikkonen caught up with Hamilton and was in DRS range within twenty six laps, but it took another seven or so laps to make the move.

    When he did, it was a clean overtake for the Ferrari driver. Hamilton locked up his front right tyre at turn seven, allowing Raikkonen to get closer. At turn ten, the Finn dived down the inside to pass Hamilton.

    Further back, there was a battle for the bottom spaces of the top ten. It was a battle of Red Bull past and (possibly) future, as Sebastian Vettel tried to get past Sainz. Vettel started from the very back of the grid, but was on a charge.

    Esteban Gutierrez was following behind Vettel, hoping to follow the Ferrari through when Vettel inevitably got past the Toro Rosso driver. The trio came three abreast for a number of corners, but Vettel eventually got through. Sainz defended heavily, managing to keep Gutierrez behind him.

    Back at the front of the pack, the leading four pitted and, despite Hamilton hoping the team could do something different to get him back ahead of Raikkonen, there was no change of order. The gaps between the top four rose and fell like a spring, but there was no movement.

    Mercedes told Hamilton to switch to plan B. The race was reignited.

    “We need to pull Raikkonen in,” Hamilton was told. The Brit responded by setting the fastest lap of the race at that point, a Singapore race lap record.

    Raikkonen was told to keep squeezing Ricciardo, who was happily running in second, whilst Hamilton caught up with him. With less than two seconds between Hamilton and Raikkonen, the Mercedes driver dived into the pit, losing time but no positions.

    Ferrari panicked. When Raikkonen asked his engineer if they were going to respond, the answer he got was “we’ll let you know”. They did, pitting Raikkonen to put faster tyres on his Ferrari, but he left the pits behind Mercedes. Plan B had worked.

    Ricciardo decided now was a good time for him to pit too. It was a free stop with Hamilton so far behind him. Mercedes almost fell for the same trick they’d pulled on Ferrari, telling Rosberg to pit, only ordering him to abort that moments later.

    Ricciardo was catching him though, taking three seconds out of Rosberg’s lead in the first lap out of the pits. The Australian was told he would catch Rosberg with four laps to go and, as the clock ticked down, Rosberg’s lead grew smaller and smaller.

   There weren’t enough laps though. With the backmarker traffic and Rosberg finding extra pace from his car, the race ended with Ricciardo right under the Mercedes rear wing.

    It was another win for Rosberg that puts him back in the lead of the championship.

    Elsewhere, Vettel recovered all the way to fifth and was followed over the line by a recovering Verstappen.

 RESULTS:

1. Nico Rosberg / Mercedes-Mercedes / Germany / + 25 Points
2. Daniel Ricciardo / Red Bull-TAG-HEUER / Australia / + 18 Points
3. Lewis Hamilton / Mercedes-Mercedes / Great Britain / + 15 Points
4. Kimi Raikkonen / Ferrari-Ferrari / Finland / + 12 Points
5. Sebastian Vettel / Ferrari-Ferrari / Germany / + 10 Points
6. Max Verstappen / Red Bull-TAG-HEUER / Netherlands / + 8 Points
7. Fernando Alonso / McLaren-Honda / Spain / + 6 Points
8. Sergio Perez / Force India-Mercedes / Mexico / + 4 Points
9. Daniil Kvyat / Toro Rosso-Ferrari / Russia / + 2 Points
10. Kevin Magnussen / Renault-Renault / Denmark / + 1 Point
11. Esteban Gutierrez / Haas-Ferrari / Mexico
12. Felipe Massa / Williams-Mercedes / Brazil
13. Felipe Nasr / Sauber-Ferrari / Brazil
14. Carlos Sainz / Toro Rosso-Ferrari / Spain
15. Jolyon Palmer / Renault-Renault / Great Britain
16. Pascal Wehrlein / Manor-Mercedes / Germany
17. Marcus Ericsson / Sauber-Ferrari / Sweden
18. Esteban Ocon / Manor-Mercedes / France

RETIRED - Jenson Button / McLaren-Honda / Great Britain
RETIRED - Valtteri Bottas / Williams-Mercedes / Finland /
RETIRED - Nico Hulkenberg / Force India-Mercedes / Germany / Collision

DNS - Romain Grosjean / Haas-Ferrari / France

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Article Written By: Bethonie Waring
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