Why did reigning F1 champion Max Verstappen abort his final Singapore GP qualifying lap?

Reigning F1 Drivers' Champion Max Verstappen was left fuming on the radio after he was forced to abort his final Singapore GP qualifying lap on Saturday, resulting in him qualifying a disappointing eighth on the grid. While the Dutchman has a healthy 116-point lead in the Drivers' Championship over second-placed Charles Leclerc, his disappointing qualifying result may mean that his streak of five consecutive wins may come to an end.

Why did Max Verstappen abort his qualifying lap?

While speaking to Sky Sports F1 after the qualifying session, Max Verstappen explained the team's decision to abort his final run. "We ran out of fuel," explained the Red Bull Racing driver. "It's just incredibly frustrating and shouldn't happen. When you under-fuel it or you don't plan to do six laps, then at least you track it throughout the session that you're not going to make it."

Speaking of what strategy the team could have adopted instead, Verstappen added, "They should have let me finish the lap before where I think we were already on a pole position lap. I can't see how much fuel is in the car, but we have all the sensors in the world to track these things. We should have seen that way earlier. I'm not happy at all at the moment."

After revealing his frustration, he did add that he and the rest of the team will learn from this mistake and move forward. "Of course, it's always a team effort. I can make mistakes and the team can make mistakes, but it's never acceptable. You learn from it, but this is really bad, to be honest. It shouldn't happen," concluded the Dutchman.

Charles Leclerc qualifies on pole at Singapore GP

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc grabbed pole position at the Singapore GP after Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen aborted his final lap in the qualifying session with just seconds remaining. The Monegasque's pole lap time was just 0.022s quicker than second-placed Sergio Perez and 0.054s faster than third-placed Lewis Hamilton.

With Verstappen only qualifying eighth on the grid, the title race is likely to move to Japan, as the Dutchman needs to outscore Leclerc by 22 points or more if he is to win the championship this weekend.