MOTOR RACING: Verstappen extends Singapore surge with pole position and sprint race win

Max Verstappen's revival is alive and well after the Dutch driver won the sprint race at Singapore on Saturday and followed that by claiming the pole position for the Singapore Grand Prix on Sunday.

After winning his first race of 2026 at Malaysia last weekend, Verstappen kept the momentum going by winning the final sprint race of the season with a bit of good fortune.

After the sprint race started following a 30-minute rain delay, George Russell took the early lead before his chances for victory ended when he crashed toward the end of the opening lap.

Verstappen took the lead from there and held off the field in the 20-lap race. The Ferrari duo of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc finished second and third, respectively. Kimi Antonelli finished fourth and now has an 89-point lead in the driver's standings.

In qualifying for Sunday's race, Verstappen held a slight lead on Hamilton in Q3, with Leclerc just behind the pair. The Ferrari drivers ended up swapping spots with Leclerc second and Hamilton third, followed by Antonelli, Lando Norris and Russell.

Verstappen won the 50th pole position of his career. The Singapore winner has started on the pole in 11 of the past 16 times the race has been contested.

-Field Level Media/Reuters