Alpine driver Esteban Ocon breaking down at the pit exit triggered a virtual safety car on lap 44 of 62 at Marina Bay. This created a window for both Mercedes drivers to pit for medium tyres.

This gave them a late-pace advantage in a bid to close and overtake eventual winner Carlos Sainz and runner-up Lando Norris , who were nursing aging hard Pirellis.

But Ferrari racer Sainz was confident to ease off to give Norris DRS to help the McLaren driver defend against the chasing Mercedes before George Russell crashed out on the final lap to hand Lewis Hamilton third.

Despite the team ultimately coming up short, Wolff said he 'loved the call' from the strategists and drivers and that the risk to win the race was worth repeating "every day of the week".

"We tried to win and w

See Full Page