The Red Bull driver followed his Bahrain Grand Prix victory in Malaysia with a first Singapore win as Formula 1 heads to Austin.

Max Verstappen will arrive at the United States Grand Prix with momentum suddenly roaring again, after turning victory at the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia into a second consecutive win at the Singapore Grand Prix.

The Red Bull driver won from pole position at Marina Bay on Sunday, 11 October, leading every lap to take his first Singapore Grand Prix victory in Formula 1. Charles Leclerc finished second for Ferrari, 7.335 seconds behind, while Kimi Antonelli completed the podium for Mercedes and strengthened his position at the top of the Drivers' Championship.

Verstappen's Singapore success followed his win at the rain-hit Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia at Sepang, where he had taken his 49th pole position and first of the season. That race was also the first time in 2026 that a non-Mercedes powered car started from P1.

Singapore added another layer to the run. Verstappen also took Sprint pole, won Saturday's Sprint, claimed Grand Prix pole and then converted it into victory in the 62-lap main race. It was his 250th Grand Prix start and his 73rd Formula 1 win.

Verstappen controls Singapore despite radio problem

Leclerc made the opening moments tense. Starting second, the Ferrari driver launched well and almost drew fully alongside Verstappen into Turn 1, but the Dutchman defended the inside phase of the battle and kept the lead around the outside.

Leclerc stayed within one second during the early part of the race, but Verstappen was managing his tyres and gradually stretched the gap. By the time Leclerc stopped on lap 25, Verstappen had built an advantage of around nine seconds.

Red Bull's race was not completely smooth. Verstappen had a radio problem, forcing the team to rely on the pit board, but the issue did not stop him controlling the pace. He pitted on lap 33 and still emerged in the lead.

"The last few races have been really positive for us. It's just great to see and we have a lot of motivation in the team to deliver even more results," Verstappen said. "It's a really good group of people, I really enjoy working with them, and hopefully we can have a bit more fun to the end of the year."

Max Verstappen

Hamilton strategy fades as Antonelli gains

Ferrari's other race unravelled late. Lewis Hamilton started third on medium tyres, stopped on lap 19 for softs and looked set to stay in the podium fight, but the strategy left him vulnerable in the closing stages.

A Virtual Safety Car after Lance Stroll stopped on lap 39 gave Ferrari a chance to bring both cars in. Leclerc stopped for fresh softs, while Hamilton stayed out on ageing tyres.

Leclerc soon passed Hamilton for second, and the Ferrari then came under pressure from Lando Norris, Antonelli and Oscar Piastri. Antonelli took third after the late battle, Norris finished fourth for McLaren, Piastri recovered to fifth after a slow puncture, and Hamilton dropped to sixth.

Hamilton apologised over team radio after the chequered flag, saying: "Sorry boys. I let you down today with that strategy. My call, and I lost us valuable points. I'll try and make up for it in the next one."

Liam Lawson finished seventh for Racing Bulls, Nico Hulkenberg was eighth for Audi, George Russell recovered to ninth after starting 19th because of grid penalties for a new power unit, and Isack Hadjar took 10th for Red Bull after starting from the pit lane.

Antonelli's third place moved him 102 points clear of Russell in the Drivers' Championship. He can become world champion at the next race in Austin on 23-25 October if he outscores Russell by 23 points and Hamilton by 14 points.

For Verstappen, the immediate picture is simpler: two races, two poles in the main Grands Prix, and two wins. After Bahrain in Malaysia and Singapore, the next test is whether Red Bull can carry that form into the United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas.