The Singapore Grand Prix shows the potential power shift, as Ferrari takes the victory under the lights. Mercedes suffered for most of the weekend, while Red Bull performed very well around the street circuit.
Friday was looking good for Mercedes, but it quickly turned sour in free practice two. Free practice one was dominated by Nico Rosberg, being the only driver to top the time charts on that day. The next session was where we saw the Red Bull and Ferrari cars increase performance and overtake Mercedes. Daniil Kvyat topped the time charts with a time that was noticeably faster than the top time in the first session of the day. Alexander Rossi had a poor first session with Manor: setting the slowest time of the session and crashing. His teammate, Will Stevens, also suffered a minor crash in the second free practice sessions.
Saturday was not much better for the Mercedes team. They were only able to set lap times worthy of fifth and sixth in free practice three and qualifying. Ferrari had a much better day, topping both of the time charts for the day. Red Bull continued to be competitive. Sebastian Vettel took the pole, ending Lewis Hamilton’s consecutive pole record pursuit. Mercedes found themselves on the third row of the grid, with both Ferrari and Red Bull cars starting ahead.
On Sunday, Rosberg had a software glitch before the formation lap, but the issue was repaired and he made it to the formation lap without issue. Vettel led off of the line despite a challenge from Ricciardo in the first turn. There was a lengthy safety car period for an early accident between Felipe Massa and Nico Hülkenberg and then again for a man walking on the track. Despite coming very close to the two hour limit for the second year in a row, all planned laps were completed. Sebastain Vettel took the victory, with Hamilton losing many points to his teammate in the championship after suffering from a mechanical issue in the race.
The Formula One circus will be at the Suzuka Circuit for the Japanese Grand Prix on September 27.
