2017 Singapore Grand Prix

2017 Singapore Grand Prix
Previous←	2017 Italian Grand Prix
Round	14 of 2017
Next→	2017 Malaysian Grand Prix
Marina Bay Street Circuit (2015 layout)
Race Details
Date	September 17, 2017
Official Name	2017 Formula 1 Singapore Airlines Singapore Grand Prix
Location	Marina Bay Street Circuit Marina Bay, Singapore
Course	Temporary street circuit 5.065 km (3.147 mi)
Scheduled Distance	61 laps, 308.965 km (191.982 mi)
Completed Distance	58 laps, 293.77 km (182.540 mi)
Pole Position
Driver	Sebastian Vettel Ferrari
Time	1:39.491
Fastest Lap
Driver	Lewis Hamilton Mercedes
Time	1:45.008 on lap 55
Podium
First	Lewis Hamilton
Second	Daniel Ricciardo
Third	Valtteri Bottas
Lap Leaders

The 2017 Singapore Grand Prix (officially the 2017 Formula 1 Singapore Airlines Singapore Grand Prix) was the fourteenth race of the 2017 Formula One season, and the tenth time the Singapore Grand Prix was held. It was held between 15 September and 17 September 2017.

In qualifying, Sebastian Vettel took his third pole position of the season, while Max Verstappen, who was fastest in the first two sessions, went second fastest in the final session to score his second front row start. Verstappen's teammate Daniel Ricciardo qualified fourth, while championship leader Lewis Hamilton could only manage fifth on the grid.

In the race, on a wet track Vettel moved left after the start, attempting to protect his position. In so doing, he squeezed Verstappen into Kimi Räikkönen, and the three collided and were out of the race. Fernando Alonso also suffered damage that would lead to his retirement, a few laps later. Hamilton inherited the lead, and led every lap for the victory. Ricciardo was second, ahead of Hamilton's Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas in third.

Background

Looking to the Future

Weather Conditions
Practice 1	Partly Cloudy
Practice 2	Sunny
Practice 3	Cloudy
Qualifying	Sunny
Race	Rain

Available Tyres
Softest	Ultrasoft
Mid	Supersoft
Hardest	Soft
Inters	Intermediate
Wets	Wet

Whilst it had yet to be officially confirmed, the press were already making the rounds that McLaren and Honda were set to end their partnership. Honda instead after much deliberations were set to bring their engines to Toro Rosso. Nonetheless, all the concerned parties remained tight-lipped about the futures of their organisation.  

Fernando Alonso simply stated to Ted Kravitz " I don't know, I've read the same news you have." Asked about the future for himself and his team in the press conference, Alonso simply stated "there are options everywhere, and they are all very good. You just need to be patient and wait a couple of weeks."

However it appeared clear that Alonso was waiting for the team to make a decision over their own future before he decided his own. Alonso noted "his main priority is McLaren" and "after they make decisions, I will need to study what kind of performance they will have next year and after that I will make my decision." However he further added to Ted Kravitz, "I will make my decision to win next year and to be able to enjoy the podiums next year." Albeit as he mentioned in the press conference, there was still suggestions that he would be entering IndyCar or Le Mans 24 Hours to pursue his dream of the triple crown.

Toro Rosso appeared to be set to lose their lead driver Carlos Sainz, Jr. to the Renault team. Concerned for Toro Rosso,Ted Kravitz noted to Sainz "they're gonna get a pretty bad deal. They're gonna have a worse engine and they are going to lose their best driver, which is you. I'm worried about the future of this team, it looks like they are going to go backwards next year. Am I wrong to be worried about it?"

 Sainz responded by stating "I'm not worried. I'm convinced with the group of people in this team, whatever happens they will end up sorting something out. I've been at this team for three years now, they've always come up with a decent car to be in the points in very tricky conditions." Will Buxton, however noted that Red Bull would simply be "loaning him out."

The drivers also appeared to be curt about whether Toro Rosso were to receive Honda engines for 2018. Daniil Kvyat simply said,"I don't know anything about it to be honest." . Ted Kravitz made the assertion that more news on the matter would be revealed on the Friday of the weekend and that Kvyat simply "couldn't talk about it".

However,  Daniel Ricciardo provided further clarrification in stating "As a driver, we know things. But we still don't know everything. You know, I'm sure if it is going to happen then there is probably more reasons and more faith, lets say. You know, obviously right now they're not performing with McLaren. Yeah, you would need to see improvements for that to work. But obviously, probably more than I know, there is reason and there is probably more improvements to come."  

Sainz, meanwhile stated "if there are rumours, it could be true, no?".

Interestingly there were rumours that Red Bull and Renault were finally set for a break in their partnership. Will Buxton noted "Red Bull have denigrated their partners ever since the Hybrid-era began." Red Bull and Renault were no longer set to remain partners after the expiration of their existing contract that ran until the end of 2018. With Mercedes and Ferrari unable to supply the team, Red Bull were looking increasingly likely to being forced to run Honda engines for the 2019 season.

Ted Kravitz further implied that it was all "long term planning" and suggested the idea that Porsche were set to enter Formula One as a "partner with Red Bull". Ricciardo responded by stating, "I think Porsche would be good for the sport. As a brand its huge and you know everyone seems to be dipping into Formula E or wanting to." However, in regards to the potential of being powered by Honda in 2019, he noted "its still pretty early to start thinking about it but for sure I'll keep an eye on it and could dictate where I could go."

Max Verstappen was more curt on the issue stating "I don't know what's going to happen in the future because that's not up to me, I'm not the boss." However, despite his tumultuous season with Red Bull, he maintained a positive outlook with Red Bull for the future stating "I believe in the team. That's outside the engine."  

With Sainz set to join Renault, Jolyon Palmer was looking increasingly like he wouldn't have a drive for 2018. "the reliability has been a problem this year, but I would stay with Renault. I like the team and I've been here two years now." Despite rumours that Sainz was set to replace Palmer before the end of the season, Palmer assured the press that he had a solid contract for the remainder of the season. He remained positive stating "we're getting more and more competitive every weekend. Apart from Monza, of course, which was a difficult track for us, but Spa was good. My performance compared to Nico has been strong as well, so I have seven races. Strong tracks for us, strong tracks for me. Show what I can do and end the year on a high anyway."

His teammate, Hülkenberg had some sympathy for his teammate stating "He's still here fighting. He's had a lot of bad luck and some technical issues, but you know, lets see what happens."

Heading into the weekend, there was one definitive discussion point for the future as Valtteri Bottas was finally confirmed to be extending his contract with Mercedes. Bottas stated he could now "focus for long term development together as well. So I'm happy with the situation." However, once again, Bottas had confirmed only for a single year deal. Ted Kravitz, curious about this asked "Another one year deal. Do you like a one year deal?".  A surprised Bottas replied "it seems like I've always had a one year deal. Maybe it keeps me on my toes?". 

Hamilton was curt in his response to Ted Kravitz about Bottas being confirmed for the future. He simply replied "it doesn't really make any difference really." Upon further questioning from Kravitz, Hamilton begrudginly stated "its nice for the team. We can just focus on doing our job."

However, with Mercedes's line-up confirmed, discussion had already moved on to who would be driving for the team in 2019. Craig Slater suggested Esteban Ocon was being groomed for the seat to which he responded "I don't know. It's not me deciding that; it's the bosses."

Entry list

Given their successful history at the track, Ferrari were expected to be the favourites heading into the weekend. However, there was also talk that Red Bull would be able to amount a serious threat to both Ferrari and Mercedes. Max Verstappen noted "you know when you look at Monaco, we were not too far off and our car was not as good by far as we have now. So I think we can be quite competitive." 

On the developments of his car, he noted "I think they can build a really good car, but of course, was a bit tricky in the beginning of the year. We were just clearly off but I think in the last few races already, we've been really close and its not always easy to make a compromise downforce levels wise." ' When asked by Craig Slater as to whether the year would have been a failure if he didn't win, Verstappen simply responded by saying "I don't have to do anything." Daniel Ricciardo meanwhile noted, "we've been close the last two years. Last year we were within a second, then I think the year before with Seb, we were within a couple of seconds."  

Nonetheless, Ferrari were the clear favourites and with Sebastian Vettel already taking four victories at the circuit, the expectation was to see a Ferrari victory. Ted Kravitz posed the question at the Ferrari press conference whether "it would be a let down if you didn't win this weekend." Vettel was calm in his response stating "I think it depends on the race. If you have the chance to win and you don't win, then yes. If you don't have the chance to win and you don't win, well you know... pfff." Concering whether Ferrari were the favourites, Kimi Räikkönen noted, "I don't know. Not in our minds."

However, Hamilton was also a multiple winner at the circuit having taken two victories at the circuit. Nonetheless, he was unsure of the overall pace of the Mercedes stating "we've prepared the best we could. I don't know, we'll find out I guess tomorrow." He was quick to alleviate the concerns of the circuit, stating "positioning is everything here. Its very hard to overtake. It comes down to strategy." Despite his previous two victories, Hamilton noted "I've not always gone well here. Its not a particularly strong track for me, but its been okay. However having studied and understood past years, it is a track where time on the circuit really, really counts. Obviously last year, I think I missed P2."

Accounting for a seemingly distant Hamilton, Ricciardo noted "I think Mercedes won't be as dominant here as they were last year. I think the way their car is, it doesn't seem as suited to the tighter stuff as it did last year. "

In regards to the characteristics of the circuit, Vettel stated "I go with what we have. What I will feel with tomorrow on the track. The car that I will have under me, obviously its important that you trust the car. It makes a big difference on street circuits. But yeah, there is no reason to believe that the car shouldn't be any good. But how good it will be, we'll find out." 

Talking to French television, Fernando Alonso stated in regards to his coming weekend, "I'm here in body, but not in mind."

No.	Driver	Entrant	Constructor	Chassis	Engine	Model	Tyre
44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team	Mercedes	W08 EQ Power+	Mercedes	M08 EQ Power+	P
77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team	Mercedes	W08 EQ Power+	Mercedes	M08 EQ Power+	P
3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	Red Bull	RB13	TAG Heuer	TAG Heuer	P
33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	Red Bull	RB13	TAG Heuer	TAG Heuer	P
5	Sebastian Vettel	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari	SF70H	Ferrari	062	P
7	Kimi Räikkönen	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari	SF70H	Ferrari	062	P
11	Sergio Pérez	Sahara Force India F1 Team	Force India	VJM10	Mercedes	M08 EQ Power+	P
31	Esteban Ocon	Sahara Force India F1 Team	Force India	VJM10	Mercedes	M08 EQ Power+	P
19	Felipe Massa	Williams Martini Racing	Williams	FW40	Mercedes	M08 EQ Power+	P
18	Lance Stroll	Williams Martini Racing	Williams	FW40	Mercedes	M08 EQ Power+	P
14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren Honda	McLaren	MCL32	Honda	RA617H	P
2	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren Honda	McLaren	MCL32	Honda	RA617H	P
27	Nico Hülkenberg	Renault Sport F1 Team	Renault	R.S.17	Renault	R.E.17	P
30	Jolyon Palmer	Renault Sport F1 Team	Renault	R.S.17	Renault	R.E.17	P
26	Daniil Kvyat	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Toro Rosso	STR12	Renault	R.E.17	P
55	Carlos Sainz, Jr.	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Toro Rosso	STR12	Renault	R.E.17	P
8	Romain Grosjean	Haas F1 Team	Haas	VF-17	Ferrari	062	P
20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas F1 Team	Haas	VF-17	Ferrari	062	P
9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber F1 Team	Sauber	C36	Ferrari	061	P
94	Pascal Wehrlein	Sauber F1 Team	Sauber	C36	Ferrari	061	P
Free Practice 1 only
38	Sean Gelael	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Toro Rosso	STR12	Renault	R.E.17	P
50	Antonio Giovinazzi	Haas F1 Team	Haas	VF-17	Ferrari	062	P
source

Practice Overview

Practice Results

No	Driver	Team	FP1		FP2		FP3
			Time	Pos	Time	Pos	Time	Pos
2	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren-Honda	1:44.340	11	1:42.501	6	1:42.439	5
3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull-TAG Heuer	1:42.489	1	1:40.852	1	1:42.517	6
5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	1:42.598	2	1:43.104	11	1:41.901	2
7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	1:43.734	7	1:42.835	9	1:42.708	9
8	Romain Grosjean	Haas-Ferrari	1:46.456	15	1:44.928	18	1:44.295	18
9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber-Ferrari	1:47.699	19	1:45.721	20	1:46.339	20
11	Sergio Pérez	Force India-Mercedes	1:43.423	5	1:42.826	8	1:43.010	10
14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren-Honda	1:43.759	8	1:42.788	7	1:42.383	4
18	Lance Stroll	Williams-Mercedes	1:47.190	17	1:44.301	16	1:44.223	17
19	Felipe Massa	Williams-Mercedes	1:45.084	14	1:43.836	15	1:43.724	15
20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas-Ferrari	DNP	21 !	1:44.417	17	1:44.041	16
26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	1:44.220	10	1:43.608	13	1:43.574	14
27	Nico Hülkenberg	Renault	1:44.101	9	1:42.448	5	1:42.549	7
30	Jolyon Palmer	Renault	1:44.961	12	1:43.795	14	1:43.368	13
31	Esteban Ocon	Force India-Mercedes	1:45.053	13	1:43.054	10	1:43.109	11
33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull-TAG Heuer	1:42.610	3	1:41.408	2	1:41.829	1
38	Sean Gelael	Toro Rosso	1:47.570	18	DNP	22 !	DNP	22 !
44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:42.904	4	1:41.555	3	1:41.971	3
50	Antonio Giovinazzi	Haas-Ferrari	1:46.782	16	DNP	23 !	DNP	23 !
55	Carlos Sainz, Jr.	Toro Rosso	DNP	24 !	1:43.236	12	1:43.356	12
77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes	1:43.434	6	1:42.104	4	1:42.592	8
94	Pascal Wehrlein	Sauber-Ferrari	1:47.886	20	1:45.673	19	1:45.760	19
Source:

Qualifying

Qualifying Results

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team		Q1			Q2			Q3		Grid
					Pos	Time		Pos	Time		Pos	Time
1	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari		12	1:43.336		4	1:40.529		1	1:39.491	1
2	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull-TAG Heuer		1	1:42.010		1	1:40.332		2	1:39.814	2
3	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull-TAG Heuer		2	1:42.063		2	1:40.385		3	1:39.840	3
4	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari		11	1:43.328		3	1:40.525		4	1:40.069	4
5	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes		6	1:42.455		5	1:40.577		5	1:40.126	5
6	77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes		10	1:43.137		8	1:41.409		6	1:40.810	6
7	27	Nico Hülkenberg	Renault		9	1:42.586		7	1:41.277		7	1:41.013	7
8	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren-Honda		3	1:42.086		9	1:41.442		8	1:41.179	8
9	2	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren-Honda		5	1:42.222		6	1:41.227		9	1:41.398	9
10	55	Carlos Sainz, Jr.	Toro Rosso		4	1:42.176		10	1:41.826		10	1:42.056	10
11	30	Jolyon Palmer	Renault		7	1:42.472		11	1:42.107				11
12	11	Sergio Pérez	Force India-Mercedes		13	1:43.594		12	1:42.246				12
13	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso		8	1:42.544		13	1:42.338				13
14	31	Esteban Ocon	Force India-Mercedes		14	1:43.626		14	1:42.760				14
15	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas-Ferrari		15	1:43.627		15	1:43.883				15
16	20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas-Ferrari		16	1:43.756							16
17	19	Felipe Massa	Williams-Mercedes		17	1:44.014							17
18	18	Lance Stroll	Williams-Mercedes		18	1:44.728							18
19	94	Pascal Wehrlein	Sauber-Ferrari		19	1:45.059							19
20	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber-Ferrari		20	1:45.570							20*
107% time: 1:49.150
Source:

• * Ericsson was given a five-place grid penalty for an unscheduled gearbox change.

Grid

	Pos.	Pos.
	Driver	Driver
		______________
Row 1	______________	1
	2	Sebastian Vettel
	Max Verstappen	______________
Row 2	______________	3
	4	Daniel Ricciardo
	Kimi Räikkönen	______________
Row 3	______________	5
	6	Lewis Hamilton
	Valtteri Bottas	______________
Row 4	______________	7
	8	Nico Hülkenberg
	Fernando Alonso	______________
Row 5	______________	9
	10	Stoffel Vandoorne
	Carlos Sainz, Jr.	______________
Row 6	______________	11
	12	Jolyon Palmer
	Sergio Pérez	______________
Row 7	______________	13
	14	Daniil Kvyat
	Esteban Ocon	______________
Row 8	______________	15
	16	Romain Grosjean
	Kevin Magnussen	______________
Row 9	______________	17
	18	Felipe Massa
	Lance Stroll	______________
Row 10	______________	19
	20	Pascal Wehrlein
	Marcus Ericsson*	______________

Source

• * Ericsson was given a five-place grid penalty for an unscheduled gearbox change.

Race

Results

Pos.	No.	Driver	Constructor	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Points
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	58	2:03:23.544	5	25
2	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull-TAG Heuer	58	+4.507	3	18
3	77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes	58	+8.800	6	15
4	55	Carlos Sainz, Jr.	Toro Rosso	58	+22.822	10	12
5	11	Sergio Pérez	Force India-Mercedes	58	+25.359	12	10
6	30	Jolyon Palmer	Renault	58	+27.259	11	8
7	2	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren-Honda	58	+30.388	9	6
8	18	Lance Stroll	Williams-Mercedes	58	+41.696	18	4
9	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas-Ferrari	58	+43.282	15	2
10	31	Esteban Ocon	Force India-Mercedes	58	+44.795	14	1
11	19	Felipe Massa	Williams-Mercedes	58	+46.536	17
12	94	Pascal Wehrlein	Sauber-Ferrari	56	+2 Laps	19
Ret	20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas-Ferrari	50	MGU-K	16
Ret	27	Nico Hülkenberg	Renault	48	Pneumatics	7
Ret	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber-Ferrari	35	Accident	20
Ret	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	10	Accident	13
Ret	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren-Honda	8	Collision damage	8
Ret	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	0	Collision damage	1
Ret	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull-TAG Heuer	0	Collision	2
Ret	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	0	Collision	4
Source:

Milestones

• Stoffel Vandoorne's 15th entry (14th start).
• Lewis Hamilton achieved the rare feat of winning, leading every lap and setting fastest lap without starting on the pole.
• Daniel Ricciardo's 25th podium finish.

Standings after race

Drivers' World Championship Pos. Driver Pts +/- 1 Lewis Hamilton 263 — 2 Sebastian Vettel 235 — 3 Valtteri Bottas 212 — 4 Daniel Ricciardo 162 — 5 Kimi Räikkönen 138 — 6 Max Verstappen 68 — 6 Sergio Pérez 68 ▲ 1 8 Esteban Ocon 56 — 9 Carlos Sainz, Jr. 48 — 10 Nico Hülkenberg 34 — 11 Felipe Massa 31 — 12 Lance Stroll 28 — 13 Romain Grosjean 26 ▼ 1 14 Kevin Magnussen 11 — 15 Fernando Alonso 10 — 16 Jolyon Palmer 8 ▲ 3 17 Stoffel Vandoorne 7 ▲ 1 18 Pascal Wehrlein 5 ▼ 2 19 Daniil Kvyat 4 ▼ 2 20 Antonio Giovinazzi 0 ▼ 1 20 Marcus Ericsson 0 ▼ 1 20 Jenson Button 0 ▼ 1 Source:

Constructors' World Championship Pos. Team Pts +/- 1 Mercedes 475 — 2 Ferrari 373 — 3 Red Bull-TAG Heuer 230 — 4 Force India-Mercedes 124 — 5 Williams-Mercedes 59 — 6 Toro Rosso-Ferrari 52 — 7 Renault 42 ▲ 1 8 Haas-Ferrari 37 ▼ 1 9 McLaren-Honda 17 — 10 Sauber-Ferrari 5 — Source:

Notes

v·d·e

Nominate this page for Featured Article