Singapore GP: Oscar Piastri snares podium finish as Lando Norris steps up F1 title fight with dominant win

Lando Norris has stepped up his battle with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen after taking a dominant win at the Singapore Grand Prix in a double McLaren podium with teammate Oscar Piastri.

Lando Norris has stepped up his title battle with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen after taking a dominant win at the Singapore Grand Prix in a double podium for McLaren with teammate Oscar Piastri.

After starting from pole position, Norris led every lap of the race to claim his third victory for the year as he finished 20 seconds ahead of second-placed Verstappen in a statement performance with Piastri finishing third.

Backing up from his second win of the year at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix last start, Piastri moved up two places from his starting position of fifth to take his fifth podium in six races.

Norris’ win in the Singapore heat adds to his victories in Miami and at the Dutch Grand Prix and has cut Verstappen’s lead in the drivers’ championship to 52 points.

Lando Norris celebrates on the podium after winning the Singapore Grand Prix. Picture: AFP

But Australian Daniel Ricciardo spoiled what could have been a perfect night for McLaren after he stole the fastest lap from Norris and his former team at the very end of the race after he pitted in the last few laps for fresh tyres to deny the British driver an extra point.

After Red Bull team principal Christian Horner told Verstappen over the radio immediately following the race, the Dutchman responded, “thank you, Daniel”.

Ricciardo finished 18th in what could be his last race for RB with speculation he will be replaced by Kiwi young gun and reserve driver Liam Lawson after Singapore.

Norris said he was feeling dizzy after the race in the taxing conditions, saying he had not taken it easy out in front, despite the ease of his win.

He admitted there had been a few close calls, having reported front wing damage to his team mid-way through the race after a brush with the concrete walls.

“It was an amazing race, a few too many close calls. I had a couple of little moments in the middle, but it was well-controlled I think otherwise and the car was mega,” Norris said.

“I could push, we were flying the whole race and at the end I could just chill.

“It was a nice race, still tough, I am a bit out of breath but a very fun one.

“It was good fun, maximum points and nice to have Oscar here, too, on the podium, he drove well here today, a good day for the team also.

“I wasn’t taking it easy, I could have taken it a lot more easy. I’m a little dizzy at the minute, but all good.”

With six races now left in the Formula 1 season, Verstappen leads the championship on 331 points ahead of Norris on 279.

The world champion, who has not had a race win since the Spanish Grand in June, joked with the McLaren pair before the podium that he thought he was going to get lapped by Norris.

While he said P2 was an “achievement” on a race weekend when he felt Red Bull would struggle, he said he knew he needed to do better to ensure he holds off Norris in the title battle.

“I tried to do the best I could, I tried to manage my own pace to the end,” Verstappen said.

Race winner Lando Norris (second from right, Max Verstappen (left) and Oscar Piastri (right) pose for a photo on the podium. Picture: Getty Images

“I think the first stint was very difficult for us, quite a bit of tyre degradation. The second stint was a bit better, I was a bit more comfortable as well.

“I think on a weekend when we knew that we were going to struggle to be P2 is a good achievement. Of course, we are not happy with second. Now we just have to try and improve more and more and that’s what we’ll try to do.

“It can also change very quickly again. So we just need to keep on trying, at one point try to overturn it a bit, not always finishing behind.”

Piastri, who sits fourth in the championship standings, said his result had been a great recovery from his qualifying performance.

“It was a good race, a good recovery from qualifying yesterday, it wasn’t my greatest afternoon yesterday so to get back to the podium is a great result,” Piastri said.

“We had a really quick car underneath us and a good strategy to get past the Mercedes.

“A big thank you to the team, the car was exceptional this weekend and some great points for the whole team.”

The next race is the United States Grand Prix at Austin, Texas, in October.

Originally published as Singapore GP: Oscar Piastri snares podium finish as Lando Norris steps up F1 title fight with dominant win