Grand Prix 2023 Singapore Grand Prix Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

realise the weekend starts tomorrow & this isnt up so here we go.

incredibly this is our 15th year at singapore, & 15 years of racing at night, which i still think of as a new thing. even though we've race in singapore more than we did at adelaide. i think its a great experiment thats went quite well, this going to sound weird but when GP2 used to go as support race singapore in the day looked pretty crap, whereas at night it looks brilliant, id like to talk you through the inaugural year but as massa proved, 2008 was very uneventful nothing happened & i fell asleep by lap 20
Singapore is the toughest race, its as close to a endurance race as we get, 2 hours between the walls, in 33c heat & near 80% humidity. the driver say its like putting on winter clothes & going to run on a treadmill in the sauna. every driver say if they are fit for singapore they are fit for anything. also in the 1st few years Tv crews, teams & drivers encounters other challenges due to staying on european time because the schedule was designed to be normal european weekend, so trying to find breakfast at 3pm & evening meal at 2am was a challenge. but now there are places that stay open especially for F1

but in F1 terms, dont worry Verstappen & Red Bull clinching both drivers & constructors championships, wont happen this week. thats next week in japan & will equal schumacher record as the earliest the championship has ever been won. & because of the renovation on the float. we have a revised circuit this week & until 2026. which they think could make laptimes 10 seconds a lap quicker. it will make what is now T16 chicane. a fascinating corner, reminiscent of wall of champions, if you take too much speed & the wall will be there. because last year it was a 2nd gear at 70mph after a 130m run. but now they are coming to the same corner coming off what is now the 2nd biggest straight on the circuit

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if your interested in what the Singaporeans are renovating & what F1 will be going through in either 2026 or 2027.

pre 2022
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from 2026 onwards
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i dont know if we are talking too soon, but could this be 2015 singapore dejavu, where mercedes were dominant all season they 16 of the 19 races & took pole in 2 of the 3 races they didnt win. but singapore was the only race where they were just mysteriously uncompetitive & was the only time they didnt win or take pole.

because red bull, struggling under breaking & were 7th / 8th, 3 quarters of a second slower than either ferrari
 
the extra DRS zone made for interesting chat with horner (1st time for everything) as brundle reply to him saying, ive got on good authority that they put it out to a vote of all teams 2 said yes 3 said no & 5 couldnt be bothered to respond. & horner laughed saying "youve done your research" when brundle put it to him that the 2 were red bull & toro rosso AlphaTauri. he all but confirmed it

as my guess was
yes - red bull & AlphaTauri
No - Mercedes, Ferrari & Mclaren
Couldnt be bothered - Alpine, Alfa Romeo, Haas, Williams & other team i cant think of
 
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i might be setting myself up for failure. but red bull need to be winning an oscar as well as the drivers & constructors. as it would be incredible acting because they seem all at sea & again 6 tenths off sainz in FP3
 
top 3 separated by less than a tenth. 3 different teams in the top 4, 7 different teams in the top 10. as ive said you take verstappen & red bull out of this championship & youve got 1 of the best season i can remember.
 
To me, the complete loss of performance from Red Bull, following the new wing tests is at least indicative that their performance has been affected by the new tests.

note that the rules haven’t changed - merely that the test that enforces the rules has been changed…. I’ve never understood why teams are not retrospectively penalised, as failing the test is not what matters; following the rules is what matters!
 
To me, the complete loss of performance from Red Bull, following the new wing tests is at least indicative that their performance has been affected by the new tests.

note that the rules haven’t changed - merely that the test that enforces the rules has been changed…. I’ve never understood why teams are not retrospectively penalised, as failing the test is not what matters; following the rules is what matters!
Even Toto said he doesn't think it has anything to do with the new TD... and Toto likes to stir sh*t.
 
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