Verstappen sweeps Singapore as McLaren teammates collide

Max Verstappen owned Marina Bay.

The Red Bull driver won both the sprint and the Singapore Grand Prix on 9-11 October, banked the maximum 33 points on offer and climbed to fourth in the drivers' standings. Charles Leclerc finished second in Sunday's main race, with championship leader Kimi Antonelli third. BBC Sport

The sprint — a short Saturday dash with extra points — delivered the weekend's flashpoint. McLaren teammates Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris were running fourth and fifth on the final lap when Norris dived for the inside at Turn Five. The two cars touched. Both spun.

Piastri hit the barriers and retired. Norris kept going but fell from fifth to eighth. McLaren left the sprint with one point instead of a possible nine.

Team boss Andrea Stella called the contact unacceptable. He said McLaren would stick to its policy of fairness and equal status between its drivers, the internal code known in the paddock as papaya rules. The stewards reviewed the clash and gave no punishment to either driver. Formula 1

Norris held his hands up. The reigning world champion said he should never have tried the move and told the team he had let them down. He finished fourth in the main Grand Prix on Sunday night, one place behind Antonelli, and admitted it was poor decision-making across the weekend. McLaren

Verstappen was ruthless at the front. He controlled both starts under the lights in Singapore and never gave Leclerc or Antonelli a clear opening. Thirty-three points from a possible 33. That is perfect efficiency.

What makes this stand out is the championship maths. Verstappen is now fourth and closing. Antonelli still leads after his podium, but a rival taking maximum points in a single weekend tightens everything behind him. For McLaren, the cost was plain. A team fight turned into lost points.

Formula 1 heads next to the United States Grand Prix on 23-25 October. Verstappen arrives with momentum. McLaren arrives with questions to settle.