Singapore
Marina Bay Street Circuit
- 2026 – Max Verstappen
- 2025 – George Russell
- 2024 – Lando Norris
- 2023 – Carlos Sainz
- 2022 – Sergio Pérez
- 2019 – Sebastian Vettel
- 2018 – Lewis Hamilton
- 2017 – Lewis Hamilton
- 2016 – Nico Rosberg
- 2015 – Sebastian Vettel
- 2026 – Max Verstappen
- 2025 – George Russell
- 2024 – Lando Norris
- 2023 – Carlos Sainz
- 2022 – Charles Leclerc
- 2019 – Charles Leclerc
- 2018 – Lewis Hamilton
- 2017 – Sebastian Vettel
- 2016 – Nico Rosberg
- 2015 – Sebastian Vettel
When was the track built?
The Marina Bay circuit was assembled on public roads around Singapore’s waterfront and civic district for its 2008 debut, with a substantial lighting installation the defining piece of engineering. Hundreds of projectors were rigged to give near-daylight conditions for a race run after dark, an arrangement that had not been attempted at this level before. The layout is largely temporary, going up around normal city traffic each year, and was significantly revised in 2023 when a slow sequence near the bay was replaced by a long straight.
When was its first Grand Prix?
The inaugural Singapore Grand Prix in 2008 was Formula 1’s first night race, and it delivered instantly, though for reasons that only emerged later and became one of the sport’s uglier scandals. Since then it has been an anchor of the Asian leg, missing only the pandemic years. It quickly acquired a reputation as the most physically brutal race of the season, and for a long stretch produced the highest average race duration on the calendar.
What’s the circuit like?
Long, hot, bumpy and unforgiving. The lap packs in a lot of corners, most of them slow, with walls close enough that a small mistake is usually a large one. Teams run near-maximum downforce, brakes take a beating from the constant stop-start rhythm, and the surface changes character as track temperature drops through the evening. Tyres suffer more from thermal stress and traction demands than from raw cornering load. Overtaking is difficult but not impossible, particularly since the 2023 revision added a proper straight. The heat and humidity make it the toughest physical test drivers face all year.
Why go?
It is arguably the best weekend on the calendar for a non-purist companion. The race runs at night against a lit skyline, the venue is in the middle of a city with world-class food and public transport, and the ticket includes concerts and entertainment that would stand on their own. October is hot and humid with a decent chance of a downpour, so plan for both. Because sessions run in the evening, you have your days free to be a tourist, which very few Grands Prix allow.
Where is the best place to watch?
The Bay Grandstand gives you the skyline backdrop and the run along the waterfront, which is the postcard view. The Pit Grandstand covers the start, the pit lane and the first-corner braking zone. Turn 1 and Turn 2 stands are the pick for on-track action, catching the heaviest braking and the best chance of a pass. The Padang area works well for walking access to the entertainment. General admission zones near the Anderson Bridge put you very close to the cars in the tighter corners.