Sunday night's Singapore Grand Prix started in rainy conditions, which contributed to a Turn One accident that left a fast-starting Fernando Alonso with significant damage to his McLaren Honda.
The Spaniard had made a brilliant start in the wet conditions but was harpooned by Verstappen's car at Turn One. It was a significant impact, one which tore open the bodywork, damaged the floor and, ultimately, holed an exhaust.
The team were able to assess the initial damage as he passed through the pits behind the Safety Car, but, at racing speeds, it became immediately apparent that he couldn't continue, so they had to retire the car shortly afterwards.
“My start was brilliant. The car did an amazing launch and I managed to gain several positions, up to third place, but after that we were in the wrong place at the wrong time. I wasn't aware of what was happening on the inside, all I know is that at Turn One some cars crashed and hit us. In that situation, you are just a passenger, there's nothing you can do,” he said.
“Unfortunately, that hit was too much for our car. From the cockpit you don't understand how much damage there is, but the car didn't feel great, it had a lot of oversteer so I asked the team what was the damage but they were not completely sure because they'd lost the telemetry. At the end, we had some electrical problems and we had to stop.”
“These things sometimes happen in motor racing and unfortunately it happened to us today. We had so much hope for this race, and in wet conditions we are very strong so the disappointment is even bigger. Despite my disappointment this evening, it's actually been a positive and fun weekend - the team has done an outstanding job and I'll be hoping for better luck in Sepang in a fortnight's time.”
