Damon Hill issues nine-word reaction as Lando Norris secures Singapore Grand Prix pole

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Damon Hill has shared a nine-word post after watching McLaren star Lando Norris beat Red Bull driver Max Verstappen to pole position for the Singapore Grand Prix.

A phenomenal final flying lap by the Briton set Norris aside from the field in the last stage of qualifying on Saturday. The 24-year-old posted a 1:29.525 lap to pip Verstappen and top the timesheet at Marina Bay, with the reigning champion only able to get within 0.203 seconds.

Oscar Piastri set the initial pace in Q3 but ultimately finished the session in P5 after McLaren sent their drivers out early. The Woking outfit were eager to avoid failing to post a time after Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz crashed at the start of the top-10 shootout without many setting times.

Damon Hill predicts a ‘great’ Singapore Grand Prix after Lando Norris took pole

Norris was the first to beat Piastri and shattered his teammate’s benchmark as the McLaren star shot into P1 by 0.428s. It proved enough for the Bristol-born pilot to post the pole time, with Verstappen snatching second in front of Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.

It is the sixth pole position of Norris’ Formula 1 career and fifth of the 2024 campaign alone. But the McLaren ace is still yet to directly convert any into a win, having lost the lead of the Dutch Grand Prix to Verstappen at the start but re-passed the home hero to win by 22.896s.

Norris will hope to hold off Verstappen into Turn 1 at the Singapore GP. But having the field close together in qualifying excites Hill for how the race will unfold on Sunday. The 1996 F1 champion thinks Marina Bay should stage another spectacle after Norris’ superb qualifying.

“Great lap from Lando,” Hill posted on X. “Great set-up for tomorrow!”

Lando Norris will not forget spending the 2023 Singapore GP behind Carlos Sainz

Taking pole position for the Singapore Grand Prix by two-tenths of a second over Verstappen will encourage Norris in their drivers’ championship fight. But the McLaren racer will be very much aware that he is still yet to hold onto the lead of the race come the end of the first lap.

Piastri passed Norris to lead the Italian Grand Prix into Variante della Roggia the last time the Briton got pole position. His teammate even passed Norris into Turn 1 back at the Hungarian Grand Prix and won, while Verstappen and Russell passed Norris at the Spanish Grand Prix.

Norris will also have his memories of spending the 2023 Singapore Grand Prix staring at the gearbox of Sainz’s Ferrari in their fight for victory firmly in the Bristol-born star’s mind. Sainz drove a tremendous race to keep Norris within DRS range but never close enough to attack.