Lewis Hamilton calls for Singapore track changes: “Would have been the most boring race without rain”

The final sprint race of the 2026 Formula 1 season produced plenty of chaos. Only 13 of the 22 cars reached the finish line, with George Russell's crash and the collision between the two McLaren drivers in particular providing plenty of talking points in the paddock.

The first of two races at the Marina Bay Street Circuit may have been less boring than feared, but drivers stress that overtaking was still impossible. Particularly on a partially wet track, there was only one racing line, making overtaking an extremely difficult task for those behind the wheel.

Formula 1F1 Singapore GP: Max Verstappen wins sprint, George Russell crashes out and McLarens collide

Hamilton, who finished the sprint in second place, believes further changes to the track are needed to make racing in Singapore more appealing to both fans and drivers.

Several changes have already been made to the Marina Bay Street Circuit over the years. The tight chicane – the Singapore Sling – was modified in 2013, while the original Turns 16 to 19 were removed in 2023 as a result of construction work.

According to Hamilton, however, more needs to be done to create a genuine overtaking opportunity.

“I really do love the race here, but I was just saying to Max, I think they need to change the track to maybe create a longer straight somewhere in order to allow us to [overtake], for it to be truly a great racing circuit.

“I think it has the potential to be a great racing circuit. It's a great track to drive over a single lap in qualifying, but there literally just isn't one place where you could potentially get close to overtake”, the seven-time world champion said.

Photo by: Alex Bierens de Haan / LAT Images via Getty Images

“And then in other places, like Turn 16, there’s a crest in the middle of the track. Sparks come up there because the track isn't particularly flat. I don't know if it's for the rain or whatever it is, but I think there's some adjustments that can be made to make this 100% a great circuit.”

Hamilton added that the entertaining sprint race in 2026 painted a somewhat misleading picture and should not be seen as a representative example.

“I thought it was fun, but if it was dry, that would probably have been the most boring race for you to have watched.

“It was the wet, the rain, that made it exciting. So, if you can always make it rain, then it's always going to be a great sprint race”, the Ferrari driver joked.

“But otherwise, it would probably just have been straightforward tyre management, everyone sticking behind each other.”

While Hamilton is looking at the track layout, Verstappen and Leclerc believe F1 should also take this into account when selecting venues for sprint races.

Singapore – like Monaco next year – was primarily chosen to provide two qualifying sessions, but according to the drivers, the races themselves are nothing to write home about.

“I think we shouldn't host a sprint where you can't pass”, Verstappen said.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Formula 1 via Getty Images

“You have tracks where you can race and overtake, but in some places you cannot pass and we are going to have sprints there next year as well”, the Red Bull driver said, referring to Monaco as a sprint venue in 2027.

According to Verstappen, the lack of overtaking opportunities is not solely down to the circuit, as the current regulations are not helping either.

“The track is great, but also the problem we have at the moment is with the Overtake Mode, it barely does anything here. You don't really gain a lot on the straights.

“So also that, with how all the rules are at the moment and our lovely batteries, it just doesn't do much. You can't even get super close or have a massive overspeed at the moment.

“Of course, I fully agree that we need to have a longer straight or more of a proper hairpin to overtake, but even with that, we also need a bigger delta on the straights.”Leclerc went a step further and believes F1 should not hold sprint races on street circuits at all.

“I don't think it makes sense to have any sprint races on city tracks in general. We should probably use these sprints to have them on tracks where it's easy to overtake, where you can have a lot of racing action and it actually adds something to the weekend. Whereas here or Monaco, I don't think it adds anything to the weekend.”

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