Chasing from behind on Sunday, Daniel Ricciardo was moving nicely up the order when the Red Bull driver's charge was suddenly halted by what Renault has identified as a clutch issue.
Red Bull elected to install a brand new Spec-C Renault power unit in the Aussie's RB14, a change that came with an unavoidable grid penalty but which would strategically set him up nicely for Singapore.
The demotion took nothing away from Ricciardo's determination to put in a good effort in the race as his early progress and a few signature overtaking moves clearly showed.
However, it all came to an end after 23 laps, just as Ricciardo was eying a spot in the points.
"I passed Stroll into Turn 1, then out of the corner, I looked in the mirrors to see if I was clear of him," he recounted.
"I couldn’t see that well and that’s when I realised there was smoke coming out of the back. I mentioned that straight away and they said stop."
A preliminary analysis of the issue by Renault confirmed that Ricciardo's retirement was not engine related, but linked to a clutch failure.
"It’s been a frustrating period of races but hopefully we can change some things on the car, improve the reliability and aim for the podium in Singapore."
Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers
Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter
Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu has revealed that nine Formula 1 teams stand in opposition…
Lewis Hamilton and George Russell led the field in a chilly but trouble-free first practice…
Full results from Free Practice 1 for the Las Vegas Grand Prix in the United…
Aston Martin performance director Tom McCullough has shed some light on why the team’s former…
The FIA has issued a pivotal Technical Directive to F1 teams ahead of this weekend’s…
The abrupt removal last week of FIA race director Niels Wittich with just three races…