Cadillac Formula 1 will start the Singapore Grand Prix Sprint Race from the back of the grid after Sergio Pérez and Valtteri Bottas qualified P20 and P21 respectively at the Marina Bay Street Circuit, the team confirmed in its official session report.
Pérez’s session unraveled early when the rear of his car bottomed out at Turn 4 on his first flying lap, sending him into the wall and causing front-wing damage. The Mexican driver returned to the pits for a replacement wing, losing critical track time before rejoining to post a best lap of 1:36.760. “I was pushing hard on my first lap in Turn 4 when the rear bottomed out quite aggressively, and I lost control of the car, ending up in the wall and damaging my front wing,” Pérez said. “We had to come back to the pits to change it, which compromised the session.”
Bottas had a comparatively cleaner run but was hampered by a red flag period and traffic on his second timed lap, ultimately setting a best time of 1:36.868. “It’s really bumpy here this year — it’s got bumpier — so we’re trying to improve our ride because the biggest lap-time gains will be there,” Bottas said. “It was quite a disrupted session so I couldn’t learn as much as I wanted to.”
Team Principal Marcin Budkowski described the day as a difficult one across both sessions. Pérez had already lost track time in Free Practice 1 due to set-up changes in the garage before the qualifying incident, while Bottas had his first timed lap compromised by yellow flags and was overtaken by another car during his final attempt. “Overall, a scrappy couple of sessions for us ahead of the Sprint tomorrow,” Budkowski said, adding that the team would continue working on set-up for the hot, dusty street circuit.
The Sprint Race is scheduled for Saturday at 5 p.m. local time.