Verstappen urges Red Bull to fix race starts problem

A day after topping a Formula 1 qualifying session at the Marina Bay Street Circuit for the first time, Max Verstappen has now added a victory at the same venue. Both sprint sessions underline that Red Bull has a more than competitive car in Singapore this year, although Verstappen himself still does not count these achievements.

When the four-time world champion was asked about the significance of this sprint victory, he immediately made it clear that it meant very little to him.

“I want to win tomorrow,” he said. “I don't see this as a win in terms of actually winning a grand prix.”

Verstappen has previously made it clear that he feels no emotion whatsoever when winning a sprint race, a format he is famously not a fan of. Nevertheless, it could be argued that victory in Singapore means slightly more given Red Bull's struggles at the street circuit in recent years.

However, when Motorsport.com put that to Verstappen, it turned out not to be the case. The sprint underlines that Red Bull is heading in the right direction with the RB22, but for Verstappen it means nothing more than that.

“My emotion is the same,” he added. “It doesn't matter to me if I have won on the track before or not.”

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: James Sutton / Formula 1 / Formula Motorsport Ltd via Getty Images

It means Verstappen's attention is entirely focused on Sunday's grand prix. Qualifying is naturally crucial, given how difficult overtaking is in Singapore, but Verstappen also points to another major concern for Red Bull: its starts.

In Malaysia, Verstappen saw both Mercedes cars surge past him, and the same thing happened with George Russell in Singapore on Saturday.

“The start was horrendous again, so that's definitely something that we need to improve on,” admitted Verstappen. “If you have something like that tomorrow, that's your race over, if nothing crazy happens.”

Asked what exactly went wrong, Verstappen responded: “As always, it just doesn't go off the line. The car just doesn't go, we don't accelerate off the line.”

Red Bull has been struggling with this for some time, raising the question of whether there are any potential solutions for Sunday or whether the team will simply have to hope for the best.

“We have a few limitations that we have to work on, and that is probably from our side as well,” said Verstappen. “We have to do a better job because Racing Bulls sometimes does better starts than us, so yeah, we just need to be better.”

Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari, Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, George Russell, Mercedes

Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Sutton Images via Getty Images

On Saturday, the poor start ultimately did not prove costly, as Verstappen saw Russell crash out in front of him at the end of the opening lap.

“He was already sideways a few times in that first lap, so I think he was just pushing quite hard on the first lap,” said Verstappen. “And then in the last corner, he clipped the white line and, of course, it did send him into the wall. It’s an easy mistake to make, I guess, and unlucky at the same time.”

Verstappen himself tried to avoid taking such risks, knowing that overtaking is virtually impossible unless someone makes a mistake. That was even more the case on a partially wet track, as the drivers found out there was only one racing line.

“It was calm in a way, but at the same time, you need to be focused. If you relax, it’s easy to make a mistake or go wide, so it was more about paying attention,” Verstappen explained his mindset.

“Stay calm, but pay attention on the road ahead with your tyres degrading and the road becoming dry in some places and greasy in others. You just have to be patient.”

Verstappen managed to do just that, although he still has two more steps to take towards the victory that – unlike the sprint race – really matters to him: getting the second qualifying session of the weekend right and improving his start.