Max Verstappen’s first Singapore Grand Prix victory was far less straightforward than the final margin suggested. The Red Bull driver revealed that he encountered a power-unit problem before releasing the clutch at the start, then suffered difficulties with energy deployment during the opening laps before the team found a solution that allowed him to pull away from Charles Leclerc.
Despite those problems, Max Verstappen retained the lead into Turn 1 and eventually controlled the race, building a cushion of roughly ten seconds over his rivals. His success at Marina Bay also provided further evidence that the RB22 has taken a significant step forward, not simply in outright performance but in predictability and drivability.
Max Verstappen faced a Singapore start problem before clutch release
After securing pole position on Saturday, the biggest immediate threat to Max Verstappen was the first 300 metres between his grid slot and the braking zone for Turn 1.
Historically, dry Singapore Grand Prix starts have rarely produced overtakes that change the race lead immediately. For Max Verstappen, however, there was an additional concern: the RB22 has not always been particularly effective in the first few metres after the lights go out.
During the Sprint, part of that problem had been linked to the gear selected in wet conditions. Yet the weakness has appeared repeatedly during the season, particularly in its opening and middle phases, with slow launches sometimes costing Red Bull positions.
The problem has never been completely eliminated. Racing Bulls, which shares the same software, has also occasionally launched more effectively, suggesting that human choices and procedural decisions form part of the equation as well.
That was why Max Verstappen had already acknowledged that falling to second at the start would make the race considerably more complicated. With two Ferraris in contention, Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton could potentially have increased the strategic pressure on Red Bull, even though the RB22 ultimately proved slightly stronger on outright performance.
Verstappen says something was wrong with the engine before the start
Those concerns proved justified because Max Verstappen again encountered a problem during the launch procedure.
“There was something that, once again, wasn’t right, so I need to understand what happened with the engine even before I released the clutch, because I think that compromised my start.”
He expanded on the issue in the post-race press conference.
“I need to understand what went wrong there because, once again, it wasn’t fantastic. Let’s put it that way.”
Max Verstappen later explained that during the normal starting-light procedure he usually hears a specific engine sound. This time, that sound was absent, and he believes the anomaly contributed to the weaker launch.
Verstappen planned Turn 1 defence against Charles Leclerc
Despite the compromised getaway, Max Verstappen had already planned how he intended to defend against Charles Leclerc into the first corner.
“I was only there to win. So I had to do everything possible to make it very difficult for Charles to go strongly into the corner. I think that was the only way to prevent him from taking the lead of the race.
“But Charles is a very experienced driver and we managed to keep everything clean. To be honest, it was a nice battle, I think. But it is always very difficult to judge exactly where the correct braking point is.”
Max Verstappen kept the lead by squeezing Charles Leclerc’s line sufficiently to force the Ferrari driver to lift, while the Red Bull committed decisively to the corner.
The choice to start on a fresh set of Soft tyres also proved important, giving Max Verstappen an additional step of grip when he needed it most.
Early energy deployment problem keeps Leclerc close
The start was not the end of Red Bull’s technical difficulties. During the opening laps, the RB22 also experienced problems with energy management, while Max Verstappen’s radio was not functioning correctly.
Initially, Charles Leclerc appeared to have enough pace to remain close to the Red Bull. The underlying picture, however, became clearer as the race developed.
Red Bull was struggling with how the car deployed its electrical energy and repeatedly adjusted its mappings in an attempt to alter the points around the lap where battery power was used, particularly to defend on the exit of Turn 17.
Once Red Bull found a workable configuration, Max Verstappen’s true race pace became apparent.
“We had some problems with the energy deployment in the first few laps, which is why Charles was so close to me,” Max Verstappen confirmed.
“Once I managed to sort that out, everything was straightforward. We managed the tyres well and I built a good gap to avoid an undercut.”
From there, Max Verstappen gradually created a buffer of around ten seconds, enough to control the race and remove the most significant strategic threat from behind.
Radio failure leaves Verstappen unable to communicate normally
Max Verstappen also completed the race while dealing with another familiar Red Bull issue: unreliable radio communication.
“Yes, maybe he was happy it wasn’t working,” Max Verstappen joked afterwards, referring to his race engineer being unable to understand him properly.
“I couldn’t really say anything. At one point he tried to ask me some things using codes over the radio, and I think he understood correctly what I meant or what I wasn’t doing, right? But it’s never a pleasant situation.”
It was not the first time this season that Red Bull’s radio had malfunctioned. On previous occasions the driver’s voice had become robotic or heavily distorted, but the Singapore problem was even more disruptive.
First Singapore win confirms major RB22 improvement
The victory was Max Verstappen’s first at Marina Bay, ending the only winless record he still had among the circuits on the current Formula 1 calendar.
Red Bull had expected Singapore to suit the RB22, but the strength of Max Verstappen’s first stint was arguably greater than anticipated.
“Yes. We’ve now been strong on very different types of circuits, and obviously that is always nice to see,” he explained.
“I really think our car has made a very good step forward. But, above all, it has become easier to drive and more predictable. That was exactly what I wanted and what I needed from the car to find that final step required to fight at the front.”
That improvement is particularly significant because Marina Bay places less emphasis on outright power-unit performance than several other venues. The result therefore suggests that Red Bull’s progress involves the wider chassis and aerodynamic package rather than one isolated advantage.
Austin will provide a very different test for Red Bull
The next question is whether the same progress can be maintained at the United States Grand Prix.
Austin presents a different challenge for the RB22 because the Circuit of the Americas is extremely bumpy. Finding the correct balance over uneven surfaces has regularly been one of Red Bull’s weaknesses.
Drivers have complained several times about bouncing under braking at circuits such as Canada, Monaco and Baku, although Red Bull has often found ways to mask or manage those problems.
Max Verstappen therefore refused to assume that his recent form automatically makes Red Bull a favourite in Texas.
“I mean, it’s very difficult to say. And I certainly don’t want to say now that we’ll be in the fight in Austin. But the last few weekends have been really positive.”
He added: “I take things race by race. When we get to Austin, we’ll see how it goes there. Once again, it is a very different track from the ones we’ve raced at recently.
“The track is incredibly bumpy. My goodness. I’ll probably have to order a new spine after that weekend. But then I’ll become like RoboCop! It’s crazy. It will be another challenge for everyone.”
Singapore nevertheless offered another compelling indication of how far Red Bull has progressed. Max Verstappen had to overcome a compromised launch procedure, energy-deployment problems and failed radio communication, yet once the RB22 was operating correctly, neither Charles Leclerc nor the rest of the field could match his pace.
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