Max Verstappen has ‘unfinished business’ as remarkable stat emerges | F1 | Sport

Max Verstappen has confessed he has “unfinished business” at the Singapore Grand Prix. The Dutchman has thrust himself back into outside Formula 1 drivers’ title contention with consecutive triumphs for resurgent Red Bull.

However, the Marina Bay Circuit stands as a rarity in that Verstappen, who celebrated his 28th birthday on Tuesday, has never claimed victory there. It is the only active track in F1 on which he has failed to taste any success. That is a record the 67-time Grand Prix winner is determined to put right on Sunday.

He said: “It is quite a physically demanding track for all drivers and in this race it is about really getting comfortable with the uncomfortable. It is a cool street circuit to drive but, of course, I have never won there so you could say there is unfinished business. We need a strong team performance so I am looking forward to what the week brings.”

Verstappen clinched his third and fourth Grand Prix wins of the season at Monza and Baku after Red Bull finally achieved a breakthrough in mastering their temperamental machine. The elated Dutchman proclaimed following last month’s Azerbaijan triumph that his squad has worked out how to make their car more manageable without sacrificing too much speed.

Yet, their recent displays have been somewhat enhanced by the reality that the high-speed Monza and Baku tracks favoured their cars considerably more than the championship-leading McLarens. And Verstappen recognises it will prove far more challenging to overcome title contenders Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris this weekend.

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He said: “The last two races have been great for the team. We have made really strong progress, found a positive set up with the car and are heading in the right direction. Both were low downforce tracks that we performed well at and the Singapore circuit is quite different, so will be more of a test.”

Norris delivered one of his most commanding victories at Marina Bay last year and is eager to close the championship deficit to teammate Piastri for the third consecutive race weekend. The Brit said: “I’ve got good memories here with a podium and winning it last year, so I’m ready to go for it again.”

Piastri remains 25 points ahead despite his first-lap retirement in Baku during the previous outing. The championship frontrunner confessed he is “very keen” to return to action and hopes additional support from his compatriots can assist him in moving past that initial DNF since 2023 as swiftly as possible.

He said: “On paper and with the temperatures involved in Singapore, our car has been proven to be comfortable in the past and with that in mind, I’m looking forward to a really positive weekend. Singapore is the closest race to Australia in terms of distance, so we’ve always seen a great Australian contingent there cheering on their drivers at one of the best night races of the season. It’s great having that additional support.”