STING APORE GRAND PRIX
Victory looks out of reach for Lewis
LEWIS HAMILTON admits that victory could be beyond him in Singapore tomorrow as Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo set the pace in practice.
Hamilton headed to the Marina Bay Street Circuit leading Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel by three points at the top of the championship.
A run of three wins from the last four races has seen the title race momentum swing in the Brit’s direction.
But the twisting Singapore streets look like suiting the Red Bull pair of Ricciardo and Max Verstappen far more than the Mercedes of Hamilton.
Ricciardo topped both practice sessions, edging out Vettel in the opener before finishing over half a second ahead of Verstappen under the floodlights of the evening’s action.
And Hamilton, who finished third in the second session, conceded he is fixing his focus on Vettel at a track where it is notoriously difficult to overtake.
“We target to win races,” said Hamilton. “But of course we want to make sure I’m ahead of Sebastian, so that’s my goal.”
Mercedes chief Niki Lauda admitted Red Bull were favourites for both pole position today and the race win tomorrow.
He added: “I said Ferrari could be a problem and now it’s Red Bull. From what I have seen today, Red Bull are outstanding.” Ricciardo is sure he had not flattered to deceive with his practice pace.
“I expected this to be honest,” said the Australian. “I knew we’d come here with a good car. I felt prepared. We need to make sure we keep that tomorrow.
“I have a lot of faith we can stay here all weekend. A dominant weekend is what I’m after.”
Vettel is likely to be more of a threat in qualifying today after enduring a frustrating time in second practice, the German finished 11th after having his best run blocked before giving the barrier a whack.
On a circuit where raw power is not paramount, McLaren showed the potential in their chassis with Stoffel Vandoorne sixth, one place ahead of his team-mate Fernando Alonso.
McLaren have confirmed they will ditch Honda at the end of the season after a disastrous three years being powered by the Japanese giant.
It remains to be seen whether their switch to Renault engines next year will persuade Alonso to stick around.
But his fellow Spaniard Carlos Sainz will definitely be on the move next season.
This follows a loan deal which will see him swap Toro Rosso for the works Renault team.