Only a week after taking up one of the vital unforgiving circuits on the calendar in Baku, groups and drivers should metal themselves for one more demanding road monitor. The Singapore Grand Prix is recurrently the longest and most gruelling race of the yr.
The fifteenth version of the primary F1 race ever to be held at night time, the Marina Bay circuit presents drivers with an identical problem to Baku – solely a for much longer race in energy-sapping humidity.
Since Max Verstappen received the Spanish Grand Prix nobody has managed to win two races back-to-back. Will the race produce one other unlikely winner this yr after Carlos Sainz Jnr’s shock triumph 12 months in the past?
These are the speaking factors for the Singapore Grand Prix.
Can Crimson Bull resolve their set-up woes?
Crimson Bull failing to attain a podium end final weekend in Baku was nothing out of the extraordinary, given how the world champions have been caught and surpassed by their rivals because the 2024 season has progressed.
However what was hanging was how, for the primary time in a very long time, Verstappen didn’t have the tempo of workforce mate Sergio Perez. Whereas Perez was combating for a podium within the closing laps, the championship chief was languishing in sixth place and unable to match the pace of his workforce mate forward.
McLaren have been persistently sooner than Crimson Bull for a lot of rounds now, however Verstappen has been capable of maintain the harm within the championship from Lando Norris to a minimal via a mix of his personal talent and McLaren being unable to make the very most of their alternatives. Nonetheless, Verstappen now heads to a circuit that produced Crimson Bull’s worst efficiency of the 2023 season final yr. Will they battle once more this yr?
Verstappen believes that his underwhelming efficiency final weekend was right down to the set-up course he and the workforce went for in Azerbaijan. Crimson Bull should guarantee they strike the precise stability with the set-up this weekend, in any other case they won’t be capable of forestall Norris taking a big chunk out of Verstappen’s championship lead.
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Ferrari on the entrance
Final yr’s Singapore Grand Prix was a standout amongst a season dominated by Crimson Bull and Verstappen. The truth is, it was the one race all season that the world champions didn’t win out of the 22.
Sainz took full benefit of Crimson Bull stumbling across the Singapore streets to ship among the finest performances of his profession and maintain off a number of rivals in a tense finish to the race and win. However he additionally had Ferrari workforce mate Charles Leclerc to thank.
After Sainz beat Leclerc and George Russell to pole place, Leclerc accepted the workforce’s plan to place him on mushy tyres for the beginning of the race because the second-placed driver of the 2. If he might get forward of Russell early, then he might sluggish the Mercedes down to provide Sainz a niche forward and assist enhance the workforce’s possibilities of a victory.
That was precisely what occurred as Leclerc managed to leap Russell off the road together with his softer tyres. Though he would lose out with the later Security Automotive, Leclerc had performed his half and helped Ferrari to stop a Crimson Bull whitewash of the season.
Leclerc and Sainz have been each combating for podium locations final Sunday in Baku, whereas Leclerc additionally took victory the spherical prior in Monza. Will the Ferrari pair be prepared to work collectively once more in Singapore to attempt to secured a second successive Singapore win?
Briatore again on the scene
The primary ever Singapore Grand Prix in 2008 was imagined to go down in historical past because the very first night time race in Method 1. As a substitute it turned one of the vital infamous races of all time.
It took nearly a yr for an FIA investigation to conclude Renault’s then management, managing director Flavio Briatore and government director of engineering Pat Symonds, organized for driver Nelson Piquet Jnr intentionally crashed his automotive on the outdated flip 17 to deliver out a Security Automotive to benefit workforce mate Fernando Alonso.
In 2009, the FIA investigated Renault over the incident, discovering the workforce responsible of bringing the game into disrepute by intentionally orchestrating a crash to profit the workforce. Briatore was handed an efficient ban from the game, however this was later overturned by a French courtroom of attraction.
The ‘crashgate’ scandal was one of many ugliest incidents of dishonest within the sport’s historical past, but earlier this season, Alpine introduced that Briatore had joined the workforce as an government advisor forward of the Spanish Grand Prix. The transfer was met with disapproval by many.
Alpine will now head to Singapore, the scene of the scandal, with Briatore as a paid member of the workforce for the primary time since 2009. In the meantime Felipe Massa’s authorized motion in opposition to the FIA and F1 over the implications of the incident rumble on – a botched Ferrari pit cease in the course of the Security Automotive interval value him an opportunity to win the race, which he blamed for his defeat in that yr’s world championship.
Issues are little higher on-track for Briatore’s workforce as we speak. Alpine are only one place off the underside of the championship standings after Williams overtook them in Baku.
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Return of the Magazine
After struggling the indignity of being the primary Method 1 driver ever to obtain a one-race suspension for accruing 12 penalty factors on his superlicence, Kevin Magnussen will return to his VF-24 this weekend.
Though the veteran will depart Haas on the finish of the yr, possible bringing his time in F1 to an finish, he’ll at the least have seven final grands prix to look ahead to till the tip of the season. And Singapore is an efficient venue for Magnussen to be returning to his workforce – he scored their ultimate level of 2023 with a tenth place end final season.
Whereas Magnussen seems to be ahead to getting again within the automotive and having fun with what’s prone to be the ultimate Method 1 races of his profession, Haas have been capable of get a sneak peek at their future as Oliver Bearman stepped into his automotive final weekend in Baku. The Ferrari junior had his second high ten end of the season, taking the ultimate level in tenth place. Will their common driver be capable of match that?
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Pirelli’s efficiency
Heading into final yr’s Singapore Grand Prix, there was loads of consideration on F1 tyre suppliers Pirelli because the FIA mulled who they’d choose as the game’s unique tyre producer for the 2025 to 2027 seasons. Though different manufactures expressed an curiosity, there was little shock when Pirelli secured one other three-year extension on their current deal.
But after final weekend’s race in Baku, Pirelli have come beneath consideration as soon as once more. George Russell was lower than complimentary about what he believes is inconsistent efficiency of Pirelli’s F1 compounds that groups are struggling to cope with. The Mercedes driver prompt that “critical conversations” have been wanted concerning the traits of the tyres, saying “I don’t assume those who make the tyres even perceive the tyres”.
At one other low-grip road circuit this weekend, will there be any additional complaints concerning the tyres so as to add to Russell’s voice?
Which Security Automotive streak will break?
A standard speaking level amongst latest weekends has been the dearth of a Security Automotive deployment because the Canadian Grand Prix. Though there was a Digital Security Automotive – ultimately – after the late-race crash between Sainz and Sergio Perez in Baku, the Azerbaijan Grand Prix was nonetheless the eighth consecutive grand prix which didn’t function a ‘conventional’ Security Automotive.
However now the sector head to a circuit that has seen a Security Automotive deployed at each one of many 14 races it has held in historical past earlier than. Whereas that doesn’t imply, as is usually often asserted, that there’s a ‘100% likelihood of a Security Automotive’ this weekend, it’s sure that one in all these two streaks should finish.
The query is, which?
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DRS in every single place
Overtaking at Singapore has at all times been tough, even with three (fairly quick) DRS zones. The addition of a fourth to the Marina Bay road circuit might make all of the distinction or none in any respect.
If passing is instantly a extra lifelike risk, it’s going to make a big distinction to groups’ method to methods. The type of ways Ferrari employed final yr might not be doable.
DRS usually proves a prescription for predictable overtaking – there was no scarcity of conspicuously simple passes within the prolonged zone in Baku final weekend. However it’s laborious to think about it might tip the stability that far at a monitor like Singapore.
Are you going to the Singapore Grand Prix?
If you happen to’re heading to Singapore for this weekend’s race, we wish to hear from you:
Who do you assume would be the workforce to beat within the Singapore Grand Prix? Have your say beneath.
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