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F1 Singapore GP: ‘Mega’ race sees Kvyat back in the points

Daniil Kvyat says he is 'loving' racing again after scoring his first points since Silverstone with a feisty drive to ninth in the Singapore Grand Prix.

The Russian driver, who started the season with Red Bull Racing, has endured a trying time since being relegated to the Toro Rosso 'B Team', scoring just two points in the last ten races.

However, around a Marina Bay Circuit well suited to the taut but underpowered Toro Rosso STR11, both Kvyat and Carlos Sainz enjoyed a strong weekend, even if the latter saw his race ultimately ruined by a collision on the start-line.

With Kvyat left to carry the torch for Toro Rosso, he engaged in an entertaining battle with Max Verstappen - his replacement at Red Bull - and Sergio Perez, though he would ultimately lose out to the Mexican. Indeed, though ninth was down on his seventh place starting position, Kvyat says he enjoyed the race.

"I thought maybe we were going to get ahead of Alonso with clever strategy but we didn't manage to invent something clever," he said. "Unfortunately and then we fell behind Perez so even if his tyres were more used, the engine and the straight-line speed were more than enough to defend against us.

"It was shame we didn't risk enough with the strategy but that's the only complaint I have about it. We were stuck behind Perez for the whole final stint and there was nothing I could do about it because his straightline speed means he was incredibly hard to pass.

"I enjoyed it a lot. The racing over this past month has been a big test of my passion but I'm loving it again so that's mega. I pushed to the very last centimetre and left myself on the track." 

Zdroj: crash.net