Verstappen surge continues with Singapore pole ahead of Ferraris

BREAKING: Max Verstappen takes pole for the Singapore Grand Prix, his second of the weekend and a milestone 50th career pole, with Charles Leclerc pipping Lewis Hamilton for second as Ferrari's wait for a first full pole of 2026 goes on.

Fifty career poles for Max Verstappen, and he'd never had one in Singapore until now.

Ten visits to Marina Bay, zero poles, and tonight he grabbed two in one weekend, Sprint and Grand Prix. Here he is, a man who's turned his season around one Saturday at a time. The cruel part is Lewis Hamilton topped Q1 and Q2 and looked set for his first Ferrari pole. Then Q3 happened. Verstappen went quickest on the first runs, Hamilton couldn't improve, and Charles Leclerc shoved his own team-mate down to third on the final laps. So Ferrari still hasn't taken a full pole all year, and the man who did take it starts ahead of both red cars.

Championship leader Kimi Antonelli is fourth, Russell goes to the back with an engine penalty, and overtaking at Marina Bay is basically a rumour. Verstappen has never won this race. From pole, on this form, that might finally change tomorrow.

This is Kateryna Kovalenko, reporting for HIT.