Sebastian Vettel was left stunned by the performance of his Ferrari in Q3 after he snatched pole position from Max Verstappen at the Singapore Grand Prix.

Through the first two sessions under the lights on Saturday, the German could not usurp the dominant Red Bulls, however that all changed when it mattered.

His first run of the top-10 shootout put him in first place and he improved even further to claim his fourth Singapore pole and fifth of 2017 – Vettel using every inch of the track as he brushed the wall on his way to a new lap record of one minute and 39.491 seconds.

"I don't know [where that time came from]," Vettel said. "I struggled also this morning. I shouted as loud as the crowd. It was unbelievable.

"I love this track. The car was tricky but was getting better, better and better. [I am] so pleased we got it done.

"I need to calm down. The car was amazing. It's an amazing track when you feel the car was coming together. I knew we had it in us but we had to get there.

"I'm happy we got the car where it deserved to be. Tomorrow is a long race and the Red Bulls are very quick. It will be a very close race."

Vettel's mood will have been boosted further with Lewis Hamilton having to settle for fifth place on the grid, the Mercedes man in possession of a three-point advantage at the top of the drivers' standings coming into the weekend.

High-downforce conditions at the Marina Bay Circuit are not to the Silver Arrows' liking, with Valtteri Bottas qualifying alongside Hamilton on the third row.

"There seems to be a certain pattern during the season," said Mercedes boss Toto Wolff. "We have been particularly competitive on high-speed corners, this is just another example.

"Lewis probably hasn't extracted everything from the car that is probably possible here today.

"Valtteri has been lagging behind all weekend, [but] tomorrow is what counts."