Lewis Hamilton believes his wonder lap in qualifying was a “monumental moment” for Mercedes as he went on to secure victory in the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix.
The British driver, the reigning world champion, has now extended his lead in the title race to 40 points over nearest rival Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari.
Singapore once again saw drama on the opening lap when Force India’s Esteban Ocon went into the wall after being pushed wide by teammate Sergio Perez. But for the race leader Hamilton it was a comfortable night under the lights of the Marina Bay Street Circuit.
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He cruised to victory with a “dominant display”, says F1.com, as he took the chequered flag ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Ferrari’s Vettel.
Following his superb lap in qualifying Hamilton spoke about how important the pole position was. He told Sky Sports: “We knew they [Ferrari] were going to be spectacular here this weekend and we knew it was going to take something quite special to beat them. It [the qualifying lap] was quite a monumental moment for us as a team.
“I definitely didn’t think I’d come to Singapore with ten points more [in the lead of the title], but I’m very grateful.”
On the race itself he added: “It was long, but it was still fun. Driving this track is incredible, especially with these cars. I got a great start and was able to control the pack, control the tyres and push where I needed to push.”
After slipping further behind Hamilton in the championship Vettel said that the Ferrari strategy gave the team no chance of victory.
He said: “We tried to be aggressive in the beginning and obviously it didn’t work out. With the way we raced today we didn’t have a chance.
“I said before the weekend we could only beat ourselves and I think today we didn’t get everything out of our package.”
Hamilton is top of the F1 drivers’ standings with 281 points and Vettel is 40 behind on 241. In the constructors’ championship Mercedes lead on 415 points ahead of Ferrari (390) and Red Bull (248).
The next race is the Russian Grand Prix in Sochi on 30 September.
