Autosport has reported:

Max Verstappen secured pole position for the Singapore Grand Prix by 0.054 seconds over Charles Leclerc, while Lewis Hamilton finished a further 0.069 seconds behind the Ferrari driver. Leclerc said Verstappen “just did a better job,” after acknowledging that he had made “some mistakes” during qualifying. The lap data showed the Red Bull gaining speed on the straights while Leclerc recovered time in slower corners, with Verstappen’s smoother passage through the final chicane deciding the close contest.

Hamilton had been fastest in both the first and second qualifying segments, but a front-wing adjustment before the final session left him dissatisfied with the car’s balance. He believed there was more pace available and tried to anticipate how the track would evolve. The extra front wing made the car too sharp at the front, and Hamilton lost time through oversteer at the opening corners and again at the chicane near the end of the lap.

Leclerc’s route through qualifying was less consistent than Verstappen’s. He was faster than the Red Bull only in Q1, and only after taking a second attempt; Verstappen made one push lap and it was sufficient. Leclerc tried a third lap, but it became untidy and he abandoned it late in the session. His progression through the remaining sessions included errors that he later acknowledged.

Verstappen improved more steadily across qualifying. That pattern suggested he was building confidence and responding well to the changing track, despite having had only one practice session before the sprint programme began. His lap was not entirely clean, but he kept finding small gains while the Ferrari drivers faced more difficulty with their setups or execution.

A comparison of Leclerc’s fastest Q3 lap with Verstappen’s showed the Red Bull carrying a higher top speed on every straight. That could point to more engine power or less aerodynamic drag. Red Bull’s internal-combustion engine, developed with Ford, is understood to be the most powerful in Formula 1, although the lap traces alone do not establish the cause of the speed difference. Ferrari is known for its strength in slow corners, and its small-compressor turbo design is suited to delivering strong acceleration out of them.

At the start of the lap, Verstappen held a modest top-speed advantage of about 6 km/h, but he lifted and braked earlier for Turn 1. Leclerc carried more speed to the apex and had gained roughly a tenth of a second by Turn 2, then extended that advantage to two tenths by the exit of Turn 3. The onboard footage showed Leclerc turning in more aggressively through that section.

The drivers’ throttle traces were similar after Turn 3, yet the Red Bull reached speeds up to 18 km/h higher on the run to Turn 5. Leclerc again committed later to the corner and stayed on the throttle longer, limiting the time he lost. Verstappen still held a smaller straight-line advantage, around 4 km/h, a difference that could fall within the range explained by drag or downforce.

Before Turn 7, Verstappen lifted earlier than Leclerc, which suggested he may have been using more lift-and-coast. Through Turns 8, 9 and 10, Leclerc was substantially faster in the corners, while Verstappen regained ground on the straights. A closer reading of the speed traces suggested Verstappen traded some entry speed for stronger acceleration at corner exit, allowing him to drive the car without approaching the barriers as closely.

The onboard view supported that reading. Verstappen straightened the car earlier and began accelerating while Leclerc was still slowing toward the minimum speed of the corner. That approach helped offset Ferrari’s advantage in the slower turns, even though the Red Bull did not appear to match the Ferrari’s cornering pace there.

At Turn 13, the light left-hander before Anderson Bridge, Verstappen had his untidiest moment. The rear stepped out and he used a brief flick of opposite lock, missing the apex and running wide. He recovered quickly, got the car pointing straight before Leclerc did, and carried more speed toward Turn 14 and the end of the sector.

Leclerc was later to lift at Turn 14 and carried more speed through the corner. Verstappen accelerated fractionally better on exit, but by then Leclerc held an advantage of about a tenth of a second. On the back straight, the Red Bull again had a slight speed edge, while Leclerc remained marginally ahead at the entry to the right-left chicane formed by Turns 16 and 17.

Leclerc lifted less sharply and used slightly more kerb at the first apex. Between the two corners, however, he stayed at half throttle while Verstappen lifted almost completely. That left the Ferrari with a brief understeer moment. Verstappen came out with a better angle and a cleaner route to full throttle, reversing the time gap and keeping the advantage to the finish line.

The small difference in how the drivers negotiated the final chicane settled the pole fight. Across the lap, the cars showed different strengths: Leclerc made time through slow corners, while Verstappen repeatedly recovered it on the straights and through earlier acceleration at exits. Red Bull’s speed advantage may have reflected power, drag, deployment or a combination, but the final sequence demonstrated how Verstappen converted the car’s traction and stability into a decisive gain.

“I think the whole weekend already we’ve had a strong car,” Verstappen said after qualifying. “So I knew it was going to be a tight battle, and I think you could see that throughout qualifying. I think the car has been in the right window the whole weekend, so it was more just fine-tuning and tweaking tiny little bits.”

Red Bull appeared to have brought the RB21 into a range Verstappen could work with. Some weaknesses remained, including less slow-corner performance and less theoretical low-speed acceleration than Ferrari, but stability and traction on corner exits helped reduce their effect. Verstappen’s ability to find and use small opportunities was also evident in the final chicane, where a slight difference in driving style turned a close lap into pole position.