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F1: Charles Leclerc wins third consecutive pole in Singapore GP qualifying

By Michael EubanksSep 21, 2019, 10:48 AM EDT
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Charles Leclerc won his third consecutive pole position during qualifying for the Singapore Grand Prix Saturday, taking the top spot  from Lewis Hamilton by 0.191 seconds.

Though Leclerc’s best lap time of 1 minute, 36.217 seconds around the 23-Turn, 3.146-mile Marina Bay street circuit was enough to secure the pole, it had previously appeared that his teammate Sebastian Vettel would be the likely pole-sitter earlier on in FP3, as the Ferrari driver was the fastest in his initial qualifying runs.

However, Vettel will start Sunday’s race from the third position as he was unable to find speed in the final minutes of FP3 and aborted his final attempt.

Max Verstappen qualified fourth, while Valtteri Bottas qualified fifth.

Alexander Albon qualified sixth for Toro Rosso, while Carlos Sainz was the fastest of the McLaren drivers, qualifying seventh.

Daniel Riccardo, Nico Hulkenburg and Lando Norris rounded out the top 10 qualifiers.

Full qualifying results and times are below:

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Fernando Alonso will decide this summer whether to pursue F1 again

By Nate RyanFeb 25, 2020, 2:15 PM EST
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Fernando Alonso said he will determine by this summer if he would consider a return to Formula One next season.

After announcing Tuesday that he will return to Indianapolis Motor Speedway in May with Arrow McLaren Racing SP, Alonso said “right now the Indy 500 will take all of my concentration” but left the door open for F1 in 2021.

“In my case, probably during the summer period, I’ll make a decision on 2021 if Formula One is still appealing to me,” Alonso told IndyCar on NBC announcer Leigh Diffey in an interview (watch the video above). “The 2021 rules (in F1) are definitely a step forward, and hopefully things can be more mixed and not only three teams capable of winning races. So all this factors into play. I may consider that possibility.”

Alonso won consecutive Formula One championships in 2005-06 with Renault. He has 32 victories in an F1 career that started in 2001 and also includes stints at Ferrari and McLaren.

His last victory on the circuit was May 12, 2013 in Barcelona. He is winless in his most recent 110 starts, including the past 77 races with McLaren in 2015-18.

The Guardian recently reported that McLaren CEO Zak Brown said Alonso wouldn’t be returning to F1 with the team.

Alonso also told Diffey that returning to F1 from a two-season absence wouldn’t necessarily be linked to McLaren’s performance.

“I think they did well last year, and hopefully they make another step forward and close to the top three because they deserve it and are a fantastic team,” he said.

Though he is optimistic about more parity, Alonso said six-time champion Lewis Hamilton should be a favorite for the 2020 title based on preseason testing in which Mercedes turned heads with a new steering system.

“It seemed Mercedes is still quite competitive,” Alonso said. “They show enormous potential on the development side and on the progress from one year to next. Formula One is impossible to predict because many things happen in season.

“At the starting point, (Mercedes) are the favorites. When you have Lewis in the car and Mercedes with the potential they have, they have to be No. 1 probably.”