Max Verstappen kept his winning streak going by taking first place at the Singapore GP, where he led the race, and Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli finished third to stretch his championship lead.
The Red Bull driver held off Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari going into turn one and stayed in front for the whole race. It followed on from his Malaysian Grand Prix victory last time out and Saturday’s sprint victory at the last race in Singapore.
Leclerc was runner-up, and Antonelli completed the podium, which helped him stretch his lead to 102 points with six events to go.
Antonelli would win his first F1 world championship this season with a mathematical cushion at the United States GP in Austin on 25 October. He would win by winning, George Russell finishing ninth or lower and Lewis Hamilton fifth or lower.
Verstappen said after the race: “I think the last couple of races have been really positive for us and it is just nice to see, and we have plenty of motivation in the team to really deliver even more results.”
Ferrari’s drag race back to the pits after the first red flag proved to be his undoing, as Hamilton elected to stay out on track under virtual safety car conditions. He dropped to sixth behind Antonelli, Norris and Piastri.
Russell moved up from 19th to cross the line ninth, with Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar filling the final place in 10th.
Championship battle heads to the US Grand Prix from 23-25 October.
