A telling sign about Verstappen’s struggles

Ferrari’s sweep to a one-two finish in second practice for the Singapore Grand Prix on Friday night came as something of a surprise. The Ferrari car has been best at the quicker, lower downforce circuits this season, quite the opposite of the high downforce demands of the Marina Bay Street Circuit, making it another step in the team’s confusing season.

Carlos Sainz topped FP2 ahead of Charles Leclerc, while Red Bull endured what Max Verstappen called its worst Friday of the year so far, only finishing the session down in eighth place. Is Red Bull really out of contention?

Sainz had his doubts. “When you look at their long run pace, already they look the strongest car,” Sainz said on Friday night. “So I think once they sort out the one lap pace they’ll be there fighting for pole.”

Sainz also talked up the form of Ferrari’s immediate rivals: Aston Martin, McLaren and Mercedes. All four teams featured in the top six — Sergio Pérez was the quickest Red Bull in P7 — setting things up for a close battle on Saturday.

“Hopefully we can be in that fight (against Red Bull) but it also looks like Aston, McLaren, Mercedes should also be in that fight,” Sainz said.

“So I think we are on for an exciting day tomorrow and hopefully we can get the best out of it.”