Russell baffled by Singapore pole but he’ll ‘take it’

George Russell confessed he was as astonished as anyone after producing a dazzling performance under the lights of Marina Bay on Saturday night to clinch pole position for the Singapore Grand Prix.

The Mercedes charger stunned the paddock by not only topping the timesheets but doing so with two laps quick enough for pole – his first at the notoriously demanding street circuit.

The Briton edged Red Bull’s Max Verstappen by less than two-tenths of a second, while teammate Kimi Antonelli secured an impressive fourth, marking a resurgent day for Mercedes after a difficult start to the weekend.

A Turnaround from Trouble

For Russell, the result came as a complete surprise following a scrappy Friday that saw him brush the barriers in FP2 and amid concerns that Mercedes’ car would struggle in Singapore’s humid heat.

"If I were to put my money on the circuits we had a chance of being on pole I reckon this would have been in the bottom three to be honest," he admitted.

"I don't know what we've done to find this performance. I think we've all been a little bit surprised by McLaren's lack of performance as we were expecting them to fly here but I'll take it."

It was only the second pole of Russell’s 2025 campaign, the first having come in Montreal — where he also claimed his sole victory of the season so far. But while Saturday’s achievement has reignited hopes of another win, the 27-year-old was quick to downplay expectations ahead of Sunday’s showdown.

"Singapore’s not been the kindest to me in the past and that’s been through my own doing the majority of the time," he reflected.

"I’m not going to get carried away with this pole position. Of course it’s the best place to start, there’s a good pole side advantage here and I’d like to think I can hold the lead into Turn 1 but obviously this guy [Verstappen] on my left is pretty good at race starts and sending it down the inside, so I’ll be keeping an eye."

Promise amid Frustration for Antonelli

While Russell celebrated his remarkable achievement, teammate Kimi Antonelli upheld the newfound consistency and momentum displayed in Baku.

The 18-year-old Italian produced a composed recovery after a fraught qualifying session that nearly ended in disaster.

"Q1 was quite sketchy again with the traffic and then I found myself with no lap and I had only one shot," Antonelli explained.

"But my emotion took over, and I just started to drive a bit tense, because I felt I had a real shot to at least front row – because we were quick. But then I started to overdrive.

"I started to push more and more. Starting to carry a lot of speed into the corners. But just, it was too much over the limit.

"Left a lot of time on the table, just a shame because the potential was high today."

Even with those frustrations, Antonelli’s fourth place on the grid marks his second consecutive top-four start, continuing an upward trend that has impressed many inside the Mercedes camp.

With Verstappen’s ever-present threat looming and 61 laps of Singapore’s twisting streets ahead, Sunday promises to test just how far Mercedes’ sudden speed can carry them.

Russell might not know how Mercedes found its pace, but he’s more than happy to make the most of it.

Read also: Wolff offers most recent update on Russell’s contract

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