SINGAPORE — After breaking a Formula 1 record by winning his 10th consecutive race at the Italian Grand Prix on Sept 3, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen has set his sights on continuing this hot streak at the Marina Bay Street Circuit this weekend.

Never mind if he has never won the Singapore Grand Prix before.

“Of course, I want to try and continue that (winning) streak but I know that there will be a day that it will stop,” Verstappen said at a press conference on Thursday (Sept 14).

Held at the F1 Pit Building in Marina Bay, Verstappen and nine other drivers including Mercedes’ George Russell and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz spoke about their performance in the Formula One season so far and how they are preparing for the upcoming night race here — touted as one of the most gruelling tracks due to the humidity and nature of the circuit. 

However, despite the Singapore circuit being one with “more risk and chaos”, Verstappen said that he is still here to win and will try to do that during the race on Sunday. 

On whether he feels pressured to maintain his record-breaking streak, he said that he does not track the wins and is instead focusing on doing his best. 

“I just always want to do the best I can. So naturally, every single weekend, it’s basically the same amount of pressure you put on yourself to try and get the best result out of it,” he said. 

“So nothing really changes on that side.” 

The two-time F1 world champion is now leading this season’s drivers championships with 364 points — 145 points ahead of his teammate Sergio Perez. 

By all accounts, he has had a stunning year so far, winning 12 out of the 15 races so far to be the outright favourite to win the drivers' title. 

However, the Dutchman has never won a race in Singapore, finishing seventh on the grid last year while his teammate Sergio Perez clinched the top spot with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc coming in second. 

Verstappen's best finish in Singapore was runner-up in 2018.

Although he will not yet clinch the drivers championship even if he wins in Singapore, it is possible for Red Bull to win the constructors' championship should both its drivers come in first and second place.

Asked about his comment after winning the Italian Grand Prix in Monza about how the Singapore Grand Prix will be harder for Red Bull, Verstappen said: “I think we are just not as competitive as (we are on) other tracks. I think the street circuits are a little bit tougher for our car.

“I still think that we can do a good job but it will be very tight.” 

The changes to the track this year could put less strain on the tyres and Verstappen is hoping that it will help with the race performance. 

The 2023 Singapore Grand Prix will see its biggest changes to the circuit yet, including the removal of the four 90-degree corners towards the end of the lap that will create a longer straight due to construction work at the Marina Bay floating platform. 

These changes will put less stress on the tyres and allow drivers a quick breather. 

“Less braking, less steering, it’s more relaxed,” Verstappen said to chuckles from the other drivers. 

However, Alpine’s Pierre Gasly was not “so keen” on the track changes. 

“Usually the more corners, the better it is for us so I wasn’t so keen. But I've always loved Singapore for how twisty and technical it is,” he said. 

On the two chicanes — a tight series of twists and turns, which have been taken away and one grandstand that is facing “the wrong way” — he quipped: “Hopefully they didn’t sell too many tickets there.” 

The drivers also spoke about braving the heat and humidity while racing and how they keep hydrated throughout the two-hour race, which can see drivers losing up to 4 litres of fluid. 

Haas’ Kevin Magnussen said"“Singapore is one of, or if not, the toughest race of the year just because of the humidity and the heat, and also because the track keeps turning.”

He added that it is the one race that keeps him going during the tough days at the gym. 

“Because of this race, you know this is going to suck if you don’t work hard on your fitness." 

On staying hydrated, Magnussen said that he does have drinks in the car, though they “get very hot very quickly”. 

“So you get the first 15 to 20 minutes of the race to drink cold water and then it gets almost like tea — too hot to drink,” he revealed. 

Agreeing, Lance Stroll of Aston Martin said that the humidity is “brutal” and it is always a very long race with not much rest time in the car. 

“It’s one that I prepare for throughout the year in the gym and it’s always a grind. It’s never easy to get to the end around here.” 

As for Mercedes' George Russell, he is keen to close the gap slightly on Red Bull.

Mercedes is on 273 points in the constructors' championship, behind Red Bull's 583 points and ahead of Ferrari's 228.

“So I think it is that battle for the P2 (second position) on the road but you're going to have to nail every single detail, because it's going to be by the smallest of margin," he said.