Formula 1: George Russell eliminated in Singapore

After the Singapore Grand Prix, George Russell is no longer mathematically in contention to win the 2022 Formula 1 world championship.

Mercedes’ George Russell was one of five drivers who entered this past Sunday’s Singapore Grand Prix at Marina Bay Street Circuit still with a chance to win the 2022 Formula 1 world championship.

But two of those drivers saw their championship hopes officially come to an end in this 59-lap race at the 23-turn, 3.146-mile (5.063-kilometer) temporary street circuit in Marina Bay, Singapore, and Russell was one of them.

It was a weekend to forget for Russell from start to finish, after he missed Q3 and couldn’t make up much ground from his 11th place starting position. An early switch to slick tires did not pay off, and a bizarre yet minor incident with Haas’ Mick Schumacher toward the end of the event simply capped off a disastrous race.

Russell finished in 14th place, last among the drivers who finished the race, netting him no points.

Points leader Max Verstappen also had a weekend to forget, but he still managed to finish in seventh place, scoring six points — and by default, outscoring Russell by six.

George Russell needed to avoid being outscored by six or more points in this race to remain championship eligible, and he couldn’t pull it off.

Russell entered the race 132 points behind the reigning world champion, so he now sits 138 points back.

There are exactly 138 points left on the table for each driver over the course of the season’s final five races, as 25 points are paid to each race winner and one point is paid to the driver who runs the race’s fastest lap. Additionally, there is still one more sprint qualifying race on the calendar, and the winner of that race scores eight points.

Despite the fact that Russell can still technically tie Verstappen atop the standings by the end of the season, Verstappen already owns the tiebreaker. Russell hasn’t yet won this year, so even if he scores maximum points throughout the rest of the season, he will finish with five wins. Verstappen has already won 11 races.

With teammate Lewis Hamilton having been eliminated after the race prior to the Singapore Grand Prix, the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, 2022 marks the first Formula 1 season since 2013 in which no Mercedes driver will be eligible to win the title heading into the season finale.

And there are still five races remaining on the 22-race calendar.

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz Jr. also saw his championship hopes brought to an end in Singapore, despite a third place finish. The two drivers who still mathematically have a chance to overtake Verstappen in the standings are Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who trails him by 104 points, and Red Bull’s Sergio Perez, who trails him by 106.

Both Leclerc and Perez, however, could be eliminated in this coming weekend’s race, the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka Circuit. There will be just 112 points on the table for each driver once this race concludes. ESPN is set to broadcast the race live beginning at 1:00 a.m. ET this Sunday, October 9. Begin a free trial of FuboTV now and don’t miss it!