The Singapore sprint crash ended George Russell’s race before it really began. Russell had just jumped pole-sitter Max Verstappen into Turn 1 and taken the lead. Then he ran wide at the final corner, touched a painted white line and slammed into the wall. So the Safety Car came out almost instantly.
This race set a new record with seven DNFs in a single sprint. Qualifying has also been delayed by the same unsettled weather, and tomorrow’s Grand Prix faces a high chance of rain again. The Grand Prix follows on Sunday at 8:00 PM under another high chance of rain. Full session times for every region are in our Singapore Grand Prix 2026 race guide.
Russell was unhurt. His car rolled back across the track. But the rest of the pack avoided it. Over the radio, he repeated “Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!” to his team. Even so, nothing could undo the damage. Mercedes had lost its race leader before the first lap even ended.
Rain had already delayed the start by about 30 minutes. Every car lined up on intermediate tyres. Still, one small mistake was enough to end Russell’s race. Standing water collects on painted lines and gives almost no grip. On top of that, Marina Bay offers very little run-off, so the wall punishes any slip immediately.
Russell was not alone. Lance Stroll and Sergio Pérez also crashed early near the final chicane. Then the mechanical trouble started. Isack Hadjar suffered a power unit failure around the halfway mark, and Franco Colapinto stopped on track soon after. After that, Gabriel Bortoleto and Valtteri Bottas retired. In total, seven cars did not finish.
Cadillac took the heaviest hit, losing both Pérez and Bottas. At the same time, Red Bull also lost Hadjar to a power unit failure. Even so, Verstappen was leading by around lap 10. Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc, Oscar Piastri, Lando Norris and Kimi Antonelli followed him in that order. That left Antonelli sixth, with his teammate in the wall.
Max Verstappen has won the Singapore sprint. The final classification is now confirmed, with seven DNFs in total. One late drama came when a McLaren spun on the last lap, but it did not change the result at the front.
This Singapore sprint crash has already cost Russell a clean shot at the sprint win. Sprint results do not set Sunday’s grid. Qualifying does that, and it starts at 9:00 PM Singapore time on Saturday. Then the Grand Prix follows on Sunday at 8:00 PM. Full session times for every region sit in our Singapore Grand Prix 2026 race guide.
