Max Verstappen may have dominated the 2023 season but he still believes that Red Bull got a painful reality check during the Singapore Grand Prix weekend. The race at the Marina Bay Street Circuit was the only GP that Red Bull failed to win all year. Since Red Bull struggled to get the balance right on their car, Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz made the most of his opportunity by clinching an outstanding victory.
Verstappen has now reflected on the same while appearing on the most recent episode of the F1 Chequered Flag podcast. When asked about what happened in Singapore, Max Verstappen replied, “We just didn’t get it together. We tried a lot of stuff but on a street circuit, once you hit the ground running, it’s not easy to recover. But in general, it just highlighted the weaknesses of our car“.
After stating the same, the Dutchman concluded his remarks by stating that Red Bull will now work on such weaknesses over the winter break to improve their RB20. The Singapore GP was indeed a difficult weekend for Verstappen as this was the only race in which he failed to finish on the podium.
After qualifying all the way down in eleventh, Max Verstappen only managed to finish the main race in fifth. Moreover, since Sergio Perez failed to win this race either, it was the only GP that Red Bull didn’t manage to register a victory in all season.
As for Ferrari, the win in Singapore gave them a massive boost. Ever since the race at the Marina Bay, the Italian outfit had some sort of a resurgence in their season. Although Ferrari could still not match Red Bull in terms of pace, they yet seemed to have the second-fastest car by the time the 2023 season ended.
Why was Carlos Sainz’s win in Singapore so crucial for Ferrari?
Carlos Sainz’s victory in Singapore was crucial for Ferrari as this was the first win that the team registered under the new leadership of Fred Vasseur. Following the conclusion of the race, the Frenchman praised Sainz for the splendid way in which he managed the tires.
Since Ferrari struggled with tire management throughout the campaign, it was extremely important that the Spaniard did not push too hard and lose performance in his tires. Hence, Sainz had the difficult task of backing up the pack for the whole race, which he did superbly to get his only win of the season.
Speaking of Sainz’s race, Vasseur told the media (as quoted by racingnews365.com) that he was delighted with the way the 29-year-old managed the pace. Vasseur believes that Sainz drove a “controlled‘ race from the outset, and therefore, deserved the win.
On the other hand, Charles Leclerc finished in P3 as a result of misfortune. Since the safety car came out at the wrong time for him, the Monegasque lost time in the pits due to traffic. As a result, he lost a couple of places to Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton, who finished second and third respectively.
Since Sainz was the only non-Red Bull driver who registered a win, it gives a massive boost to Ferrari, who now have two strong racers on their side. Many initially considered Leclerc to be the number one in the team but Sainz has now proven that he can match the 26-year-old.
