Max Verstappen finally ticked the Singapore Grand Prix off his Formula One bucket list with a serene Sunday drive around the streets of Marina Bay, helped by more questionable Ferrari strategy calls.
The Madring, the new venue for the Spanish Grand Prix introduced this season, is now the only current F1 venue at which the Red Bull racer has never won.
Verstappen dominates from pole
Verstappen qualified on pole and, on a circuit where overtaking is very difficult, the only threat to him looked likely to be at turn one on the opening lap. Charles Leclerc got a good launch off the line and challenged as hard as he could, but the pole-sitter retained the place and it was his to lose from there.
Still, his life was made simpler by more questionable Ferrari strategy decisions. Lewis Hamilton looked to be the quicker of the two Ferraris early in the race on an alternative strategy but, after the first of his originally-planned two stops, it all began to unravel from there.
Hamilton's race unravels
Hamilton was told over the radio that the plan had changed, the Scuderia strongly hinting that he was moving back onto a one-stop. Bizarrely, they stuck to that even when the virtual safety car came out and offered them the opportunity for a cheap change of tyres.
They brought Leclerc into the pit lane, despite having planned to only stop the Monegasque once, but left Hamilton on track. And so the seven-time world champion was a sitting duck for both the other Ferrari and also Lando Norris as he tumbled out of the podium places on old rubber.
Ferrari stuck to their guns and kept Hamilton on those exhausted soft tyres until the very end. They clearly hoped he would be able to hold off Oscar Piastri and at least keep hold of fifth place, but even that did not happen in the end.
Piastri passes Hamilton on final lap
The Aussie had so much more grip, having had to stop twice himself because of a slow puncture. And the massive tyre offset he had in his favour meant, despite Hamilton's best efforts, the Ferrari driver was unable to resist Piastri on the final lap.
Leclerc remained the fastest man on track for the rest of the Grand Prix, but it wasn't enough for him to ever threaten Verstappen. The Dutchman took the chequered flag to tick this venue off his list, while Kimi Antonelli completed the podium despite having been worried at one point that he might not finish due to a brakes issue.
He took the opportunity to widen the gap to George Russell even further as the Brit found it tough to make progress from the back of the grid. Having served engine grid penalties, Russell knew it would be tough to make up ground on this circuit.
And his efforts were hampered even further by the fact the virtual safety car ended just as he entered the pit lane to change his tyres, meaning many others had grabbed a cheap stop while he had to take the full pain in the pit lane while everyone else back out on track could get up to full speed.
