Grand Prix 2013 Singapore Grand Prix Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

So break out your long haul baggage boys we're back on the fly aways and we're off to Singapore.

A lot has been said about Singapore but one thing that can't be argued about is how jaw droppingly spectacular Formula One's premium night race is at on the Marina Bay Street Circuit. We all know that the idea of the night race was a concept Bernie pushed for European viewing figures but wow how amazing does it look? The lit up city of Singapore is the perfect background and its success is shown in the fact that both Abu Dhabi and Bahrain are trying to move in on the turf. I've always loved Singapore For me it is the showpiece of the fly aways, the Asian Monaco.
I know some people will agree with a cynical grunt about it being the Asian Monaco as its viewed as a dull track with very few overtaking spots and while it is true that overtakes can only be done with a great amount of skill for me Singapore is a drivers circuit and we've had our fair share of action if we look back.

The place certainly has character and history for a race that's only been running in its modern format since 2008. The very first race in 2008 was of course THAT race with THAT Piquet crash. Something that has meant the corner in question shall always been known as Piquet corner if only unofficially. But lets not forget we had some other memorable moments at that race. Who can forget the site of the (slightly tubby) Ferrari pit crew rushing down the pitlane after Massa pulled away with the fuel hose still attached leaving his championship on tatters. Alonso is still listed as the official winner of that race but very few of us agree he was. The majority of people will refer to that race as Nico Rosberg's first win which I completely disagree with. Rosberg got just as much an advantage from the Piquet crash as Alonso. If it was deemed cheating the result should have been declared from the running order the lap previous to the Piquet crash which would have made Massa the first official winner - it would also have given him half points and the 2008 world title. 2009 was all about Lewis Hamilton although most people will remember it for Rosberg's top notch performance spoiled by crossing the pitlane exit line and getting a penalty. 2010 was Alonso vs Vettel with Fernando sitting just in front of Seb for the whole 60 laps after a tasty defence off the start line. We also saw a still much debated coming together between Webber and Hamilton off a safety car re-start. 2011 was the season of Vettel dominance and Singapore was not much different and I'm still not sure whether Button was really pushing him that day or he was just taking it easy. 2011 had more to discuss with yet another Hamilton/Massa coming together. Which brings us to last year which had all the right elements for a classic with Hamilton on pole, Maldonado second and Vettel in third but when Maldo got a poor start and Lewis's gearbox went on lap 23 no one could really live with Vettel who is a master round here at the best of times. 2012 did see one first though. Michael Schumacher crashed in to the back of Jean-Eric Vergne and actually got out of the car an apologised to JEV because the accident was his fault! No wonder he chose to retire.

So race number 6 is about to come up with some slight changes to the track lay out as the Singapore Sling at turn 10 has been reconfigured so drivers have to negotiate a flowing left hander and whilst, after the last two races, expectations are low but I have a feeling Singapore is going to throw us up and event. It is true that Sebastian Vettel is king of Singapore but Alonso has always been hot round here and on occasions Hamilton has looked unbeatable but has had some very bad luck. Other than China this is probably Rosbergs best track and Button has always ran well here so we do have the right ingredients for a close fight and some wheel to wheel racing which probably bring down the already high odds of a safety car. Someone who has never had a good day at Singapore is Kimi and if you throw in the fact Grosjean has always been average here (he replicated the Piquet crash in practice in 2009 much to the embarrassment of his team) and I wouldn't expect a good weekend for the team from Enstone. Di Resta got his best result ever round here but with Force India falling away I can't see him repeating it. Williams have always been good round here but this year they'll need a miracle. Toro Rosso might be worth a bet for a result though with the car looking good, Ricciardo on a high and Vergne being a bit of a street circuit demon. Although the best bet is Hulkenberg in the top 5 as he is flying at the moment.

So love it or hate it no one can argue that Singapore isn't unique and I'm sure as always with this place we'll have something to argue with each other about for weeks afterwards.
 
Yes, I am going to watch via one satellite or another. My budget for live races this year was already exceed some time ago, but that didn't stop me ; but now team orders have come into play.
 
Strange race and as expected Vettel was out of reach. The SC intervention probably made it more interesting. I'm sure Mercs got their strategy wrong and McLaren will not have a better chance of a podium after this. Also tough luck for Webber and I'm not sure how Horner can bring himself to raise a smile at the end to the race.
 
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I think that it was very good of the Red Bull team to make something of a race by getting Ricciardo to hit the wall at the right time. 5 laps later and the result would have been very different with the McLarens being to hold on. Instead the commentators were able to go on about the exciting overtakes when they were walk in the park ones.

Then at the end they sabotaged Webber just to give even more "excitement".
 
I know that the gearboxes give out something like serial number information as they pass the end of pit lane sensors, so I think that moving from one car to another is unlikely.

So far Vettel has finished all the races but one, that was the eighth. So he was due a new gearbox for the ninth anyway. Similarly Monza was the twelfth race so he could have a new one for Singapore.
 
Today was a great example as to why Vettel will be a four time world champion. The question, though, is why should I keep watching for the rest of the year. Not for fascinating racing, that's for sure.

Like it was already said before, the start and end were quite compelling. The middle was supremely dull. Steve Matchet said it best on NBCSN, Newey isn't going to forget how to design a championship winning car for next year. So I don't see an end in sight for RBR's dominance.
 
The middle was supremely dull. Steve Matchet said it best on NBCSN, Newey isn't going to forget how to design a championship winning car for next year. So I don't see an end in sight for RBR's dominance.

Sky run a feature with Gordon Murray and he talked about the total freedom he had in his Brabham days and also at McLaren. He said he literally had to sign every drawing and oversaw every design from suspension to gear box etc. In a way you can draw many parallels with the sort of control Newey has at Redbull. All the other top teams have too many hands in the pie and I can't see Redbull's dominance abating next season, never mind the complexities that the new regs will throw up. They are bound to be there or thereabouts and truly it's their in-season development which is a step ahead of everyone.
 
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It's not like Webber wasn't simply honouring an historically established protocol.

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A warning would've been fine but it's important to understand that the 10 place grid drop was the result of Webber totting up 3 reprimands. Apparently the marshals warned him not to go on the track and he ignored them. Alonso did get reprimand also. I think the stewards would've been forced to act because it all happened in a blind spot and could've easily ended up in a nasty accident.
 
Sky run a feature with Gordon Murray and he talked about the total freedom he had in his Brabham days all the way up till he joined McLaren. He said he literally had to sign every drawing and oversaw every design from suspension to gear box etc. In a way you can draw many parallels with the sort of control Newey has at Redbull. All the other top teams have too many hands in the pie and I can't see Redbull's dominance abating next season, never mind the complexities that the new regs will throw up. They are bound to be there or thereabouts and truly it's their in-season development which is a step ahead of everyone.
Interestingly enough Gordon Murray designed his best cars at McLaren.
 
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