Daniel Ricciardo outlined his credentials at the Singapore Grand Prix with a commanding performance during the second practice session at the Marina Bay Street Circuit.
Ricciardo clocked two laps on the Ultrasoft tyres quick enough for top spot, his best a 1:40.852, as he finished over half a second clear of Red Bull team-mate Max Verstappen.
Mercedes emerged as Red Bull’s primary opponents, with Lewis Hamilton third fastest, a tenth of a second down on Verstappen.
Valtteri Bottas, though, was over half a second adrift of his Mercedes team-mate, having run wide through the final corner, with his Ultrasoft lap slower than Verstappen’s Supersoft benchmark.
Ferrari, meanwhile, had a low-key session, with Kimi Räikkönen ninth and Sebastian Vettel only 11th.
Vettel’s first Ultrasoft run was scuppered when he encountered Sauber’s Marcus Ericsson through Turn 16, having been half a second down on Ricciardo through the sector two checkpoint.
Vettel went again, but his second lap was ruined when he drifted wide at Turn 10 and brushed the wall, meaning his best effort, 2.2s off the pace, came on Softs.
On a day in which off-track activity dominated proceedings, Renault took fifth place courtesy of Nico Hülkenberg, ahead of 2018 customer McLaren, which had Stoffel Vandoorne and Fernando Alonso in sixth and seventh.
Force India’s Sergio Pérez took eighth, with Esteban Ocon 10th, the pair sandwiching the aforementioned Räikkönen.
Carlos Sainz Jr., whose 2018 Renault deal was announced during the break between sessions, finished 12th, in front of Toro Rosso team-mate Daniil Kvyat.
Jolyon Palmer took 14th position, while Williams’ struggles on high-downforce circuits continued, as Felipe Massa and Lance Stroll placed 15th and 16th.
Haas was a low-key 17th and 18th, with Kevin Magnussen ahead of Romain Grosjean, the latter suffering a half-spin through the exit of Turn 7, stopping just short of the wall.
Sauber once more took up its position at the rear of the field as Pascal Wehrlein and Marcus Ericsson finished 4.8s down on Ricciardo, and eight-tenths of a second adrift of nearest rival Grosjean.
