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Last weekend in Baku, Oscar Piastri from McLaren was better than Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, claiming his second career victory. His teammate, Lando Norris, finished fourth after a difficult qualifying session. Thanks to their strong performances, McLaren now leads the Constructors' Championship for the first time in ten years, 20 points ahead of Red Bull. Norris has also reduced his gap to Max Verstappen in the Drivers' Championship to 59 points.
After the race, there were questions about the legality of McLaren's rear wing, which had small openings creating an aerodynamic effect dubbed "mini DRS." However, the FIA confirmed that the MCL38 was fully compliant.
As McLaren shines, Ferrari is their closest rival, especially on the streets of Singapore, where Carlos Sainz won last year. This weekend, Ferrari is bringing a new front wing planned for a future race.
Red Bull has struggled in Singapore historically, with only one win from Sergio Perez last year. Despite their challenges, they aim to build on their progress from Baku.
Mercedes, with three wins this season, isn’t seen as a favorite for this weekend, but the unpredictability of the season means anything can happen. Rain is expected, which could disrupt the plans of both McLaren and Ferrari.
Singapore's challenging track features 19 corners and a new DRS zone to promote overtaking. There are also rumors that this could be Daniel Ricciardo's last season in F1, as Liam Lawson is waiting for his chance to drive for Red Bull. A resolution on this situation is expected during the upcoming break between races.
Lando Norris reacts
Young Brit Lando Norris believes he has a strong chance in the Singapore race. In a media interview, he stated that he isn't afraid of Verstappen, thinking that the Dutch driver has more to lose in this race. While Verstappen is leading the championship, Norris knows he must give his all to catch up and try to shatter Verstappen's dreams of winning the title.
Verstappen has dominated the F1 tracks for the past few years, facing little competition. However, it seems he is now starting to lose his rhythm. Norris is motivated to disrupt Max's ambitions, but he is also aware that the task ahead of him is challenging.
"It's still for him (Verstappen) to lose, not for me," -Lando Norris said, as quoted by supersport.
"I'm still the one who has got nothing to lose."
McLaren's driver reflected on the beginning of the season when Red Bull was clearly the dominant force, emphasizing their huge advantage over other teams. Lando Norris pointed out that Red Bull had a massive edge compared to them. He doesn't want to assume that the Austrian team will continue their poor performances, believing they can regain their rhythm and achieve their goals as the season progresses. Many are questioning whether the young driver is trying to relieve pressure from himself while shifting it onto Red Bull instead.
"If you go back to the beginning of the year, Red Bull were still dominant," said Norris.
"They were beating us by bigger margins than we are beating them. I strongly believe they can turn things around quite quickly."
Max Verstappen reacts
Verstappen knows that the Singapore race is crucial for him and his team, as they need to deliver their best performance to get back on track. However, it’s difficult to expect great results from him after everything we’ve seen recently. It seems that Red Bull lacks the right solutions for these challenges, and they haven’t faced issues like this in a long time.
Verstappen stressed that his setup was incorrect for qualifying in Baku, which eventually affected his performance during the race. He explained that starting from the back of the top group meant he faced balance issues in the car. As a result, he found himself stuck behind two cars during the middle of the race, leading to excessive tire wear. This misjudgment in setup quite hindered his ability to compete effectively.
Verstappen also praised McLaren, recognizing their strength as a team. He emphasized that for Red Bull to remain competitive, they need to focus on making things more difficult for McLaren. However, he recognized that this improvement starts with Red Bull itself; they must improve their performance and make their car faster. It seems both drivers are trying to take the pressure off themselves while accepting the rising challenge from their rivals.
Singapore could be a turning point for many teams and could reveal the strengths and weaknesses of some teams. In any case, we will soon find out how things are. Drivers are motivated like never before.
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