F1 makes history in Singapore with its fifth Asian GP and its first ever night race. With predictions of a wet weekend it could be another show-stopper.
To call the Singapore Grand Prix a leap in the dark is probably not true. Because according to the drivers who have walked the track under the newly installed lights, visibility under the system is pretty damned good.
From a safety angle it's great news that F1's first ever night race won't be compromised by the quality of the lighting. But as we saw at Valencia, F1's other brand new circuit, organisers can iron out so many of the anomalies that we're left with a dull, charisma-less track.
Valencia was a desperate anti-climax, Singapore is unlikely to be because of the sheer novelty, but it won't be Monaco at night. Now that would be a scary thought.
With rain predicted for the GP weekend drivers will have to learn the track in what are likely to be less than ideal conditions. No-one will want to stuff their cars into the barriers early during the practice sessions because that will greatly steepen what will be a big learning curve.
Lewis Hamilton versus Felipe Massa is the main item on the agenda with Massa finding a lot more grip in the wet at Monza and a lot more confidence in his F2008 than was evident at Silverstone. In Italy we didn't have monsoon-like conditions though, which is what can happen at the new Marina circuit.
Should the skies open it will definitely favour Hamilton, but it's also good news for the very stealthy Robert Kubica, who's closing in on them both in the Championship. Should Massa and Hamilton fail to finish, then Kubica could almost be on terms with them should he win. And like Lewis, Robert is no slouch in the wet.
Hopefully the conditions won't deter the top three from racing. Irrespective of what side of the Hamilton/Spa argument you're on, the result of the stewards' action in that race is now a hindrance to racing. Why should drivers take a risk if they're going to be severely penalised for trying a move?
We saw this at Monza where Felipe Massa handed back what seemed like a perfectly legitimate pass on Nico Rosberg because he used a lot of the kerb at the second chicane. If that was wrong, then his cheeky little move at the Montreal chicane in the Canadian GP (overtaking two cars at once) was equally suspect. It seemed fine, but now teams are getting nervous and don't want to take the risk.
Sebastian Vettel's confidence will be soaring after the performance of his career in the Italian GP. He could just as easily get on the podium in Singapore if we get a repeat of the wet conditions. And if so, then Sebastien Bourdais will really need to take his opportunity having lost out on the final lap at Spa and by having a gear selection issue at Monza.
Despite confident predictions that the Safety Car would be called into action in Valencia, in Spa and again in Monza, Bernd Maylander has done little more than lead off a race and cruise back to the pits. Surely the laws of probability say he's going to do a bit more in Singapore than shop for cheap electronic goods.
It was dry and grippy in Valencia and the wide track allowed mistakes to go unpunished. Singapore also has the width available, but the grip won't be there if it's wet and given the quickness of the track, the potential for a high-energy accident and a carbon fibre shower are
Apart from the Massa v Hamilton and Ferrari v McLaren head to head, there's the Toyota v Renault joust for who comes fourth in the Constructors' Championship.
Given the near parity of the machinery now, Fernando Alonso's vastly superior racecraft is the big difference between the two teams.
Nelsinho has a final few chances to impress before the Renault exit door gapes open. Given Lucas diGrassi's impressive times in Jerez testing and his status as 'the man most likely to' from GP2, Flav should surely give him a shot at a head-to-head for the race seat in 2009.
Over at Red Bull they have to shrug off the post-Monza depression (or should that be elation) of seeing their motorhome-mates clinking off with some chunky silverware. If anybody is due a big result in difficult conditions it's Mark Webber. DC also needs to restore a little pride as his career ends ( and let's not forget he's still the fourth highest F1 points scorer of all time - and just three ahead of Rubens Barrichello).
Mark and Nick Heidfeld share the dubious honour of being the two most experienced F1 pilots yet to score a GP win. Sebastian Vettel's success means that there are now more GP drivers on the grid with at least one win to their name than without. If the weather can mix it up this weekend then at least it could do us the favour of a Red Bull or BMW victory. And you know, Heidfeld was within half a lap of pulling it off at Spa.
Source : Planet F1
Lewis Hamilton has refused to be drawn on calls for FIA rule changes following McLaren's failed appeal and insists he is focused solely on capturing his maiden title.
The International Court of Appeal ruled McLaren's protest at the 25-second drive-through penalty handed to Hamilton at the recent Belgian GP as inadmissible.
Consequently, Hamilton's lead at the top of Drivers' standings is just a single point over Ferrari's Felipe Massa going into this weekend's historic Singapore Grand Prix.
Sir Jackie Stewart has demanded that the FIA employ permanent, professional stewards for each race in order to ensure consistency in their decision-making.
However, when asked for his opinion on the three-time World Champion's comments, Hamilton stressed he has put the decision behind him in order to concentrate on picking up the points he needs in the remaining four races.
"It's not for me to comment on it," said the 23-year-old. "I haven't spoke to Jackie or read any comments.
"I am not focusing on the past and I am just moving forward and concentrating on the next race."
The hearing was no doubt an unwelcome distraction for Hamilton ahead of Formula One's first night race on Singapore's street circuit.
But the Stevenage-born driver insisted it had not affected his preparations as he looks to claim his fifth victory this season.
"It didn't really disrupt my week to be honest because I went straight to the airport and got on the plane," he added.
"We went there and gave it our best shot, perhaps it wasn't the best result but we move on.
"It is all in the past now and we must focus on the next four races. We approach them with the same confidence as we have the last ones.
"We have come here no different to how we went to Monza and we are just going to try and do a good job this weekend.
"We are all in the unknown but we have come here to try and score as many points as we can.
"The key is to score as many as we can in the last four races and be consistent."
Source : Planet F1
Despite affecting his preparation for the next race, championship leader Lewis Hamilton will attend the appeal against his Belgian GP penalty later this month.
The McLaren boss delivered the news at
The appeal, to be held at the FIA International Court of Appeal in Paris on September 22, is a battle over six points after Spa-Francorchamps stewards stripped Hamilton of his victory for cutting a chicane and passing Kimi Raikkonen shortly afterwards.
The stewards decided that
The 23-year-old will appear as a primary witness, Dennis is quoted as confirming to the German news agency SID.
The hearing is scheduled for the Monday before the Singapore Grand Prix, meaning that
"Of course it is not ideal so soon before a race, but we think it is important," said Dennis, when asked why
D.B. © CAPSIS International
Source: GMM
Hamilton was in awesome form when he finally turned up, but it was Sebastian Vettel who got it right on Saturday and Sunday and proved that nice guys can finish first.
STAR OF THE RACE
Sebastian Vettel, Toro Rosso, 1st
Ever since Mount Fuji last year, when he ran third in the wet, Sebastian Vettel has signalled that this kind of performance was within him. His trouble this year has mostly been poor getaways and poor opening laps. Given a rolling start, an empty track and a massive visibility advantage in the opening few laps he was able to get the start he wanted and never looked back.
It was an exceptionally mature performance, not faultless, with a few skips across the chicanes, but pretty close. Had the McLaren driver behind him been the one with the yellow helmet, then it could have been a lot closer. Heikki Kovalainen looked like he was never going to trouble Vettel - and didn't.
F1 is all the stronger for having another GP winner on the grid and you couldn't wish it for a nicer bloke.
OVERTAKING MOVE OF THE RACELap 38: Lewis Hamilton on Mark Webber for P7
Coming out of the pits on his new standard wets (or Inters) Hamilton slotted in behind Felipe Massa and could see the Red Bull of Mark Webber approaching fast in his mirrors down the straight. Very sensibly he decided not to contest the first turn and gave the place straight up to Webber.
The perceived wisdom was that it would take a lap for the tyres to warm up properly and for Lewis to adjust to the new braking distances that different tyres brought. Instead, he followed Webber closely down to the second chicane and launched himself up the inside, only just getting the Mclaren stopped and drifted it in to the turn.
The judgement was impeccable. Only one corner's worth of braking and he produced the most brilliant of passes. His earlier move on Raikkonen was also a masterpiece of judgement in extremely tricky conditions. It was a world away from the ham-fisted attempt he made at qualifying the previous day... After which the title of Der Regenmeister was poised to head elsewhere. Sunday was redemption.
To add insult to injury, and add a certain sense of irony, Mark Webber tried to pass him on the outside into the chicane at Turn 1 on Lap 48. After Spa, half the pitlane had gone on record to say that if you attack round the outside on any corner, you leave yourself open to being washed out into the scenery and Lewis had been asking for trouble to make the pass at the Bus Stop chicane.
Hamilton left Webber more room than Raikkonen had left him at the Bus Stop, but still the Aussie couldn't find a way to turn in without bumping wheels.
WINNERS
Heikki Kovalainen, McLaren, 2nd
Kovalainen helped McLaren close up the battle in the Constructors' Championship, but given the speed that Lewis found in his car there must be questions to answer in the McLaren de-briefing. On Saturday Kovalainen had made Hamilton look not-even-ordinary; in the race Hamilton made him look like the wrong team-mate.
At least one thing he didn't do was shag his tyres once he got onto Inters. Hamilton admitted his guilt in that department afterwards. Monza 08 will have been as big a learning curve for Lewis as Spa 08 was. Post-Spa he learnt the maxim - "leave it out for one corner", post-Monza it's "patience is a virtue".
Robert Kubica, BMW, 3rd
Kubica's third place depended on good timing, but it also relied on Robert having the right strategy and a big enough fuel tank. It was a kind of "Nelson Piquet third place" where the strategy unravels to reveal an unexpected car in P3. Now the Pole is back as a serious contender to the world title, because a DNF from Lewis and Felipe will mean that he is right in there.
Fernando Alonso, Renault, 4th
Pat Symmonds' tactical nous helped Fernando make the best of the conditions. Though David Coulthard had already changed to Inters, it was still a bit of a gamble to be the second runner. DC had nothing to lose when he changed. Any late-race rain could have ruined his day, but now Renault are looking good for P4 in the Constructors Championship.
Nick Heidfeld, BMW, 5th
He did well to keep Massa at bay in the latter stages of the race, having changed to Inters right when it mattered. More good points for the team, but is that going to be enough? You'd think it was likely to be Raikkonen who had the worst weekend at Monza, but it's probably Heidfeld. And not for anything that happened on track.
Kimi Raikkonen's contract extension to 2010 at Ferrari makes Fernando Alonso's choice of team all the more crucial. He's not going to get into a Ferrari till 2011 at the earliest so he needs to make a long-term choice (If you can call two years long-term). And on the balance of it BMW will be a far better bet than Honda, even if they do have Ross Brawn.
Felipe Massa, Ferrari, 6th
He got one point closer to Lewis Hamilton so that's got to be good hasn't it...but...but he was probably thinking it would be a few more. Having nearly lost control of his Ferrari on the way to the grid Felipe took a long time to get into his stride after the start of the race. What scuppered his afternoon was coming out behind the one-stoppers after an early pit-stop and not making progress.
Still, it could be deemed damage limitation on his part. Because with rain predicted in the latter half of the race and Hamilton ahead on the road, Lewis looked in contention for a podium until the track started to dry out forcing a switch to Inters.
Mark Webber, Red Bull, 8th
There's probably going to be some badly-forced smiles in the 'sister team' tonight. If anyone was going to rack up Red Bull's first ever win, it was likely to be Webbo. Ironically his previous best shot at victory was mullahed when he was taken out of second place at Mount Fuju, by the "****ing kid" that just won the Italian GP.
F1 Driving Skill
No traction control, yet 19 out of 20 cars finished the Italian GP run in less than optimal conditions. They're clearly getting good at this.
LOSERS
Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari, 9th
What was going on there, then? Raikkonen loiters at the back for 40 laps, puts on some intermediate tyres and then drives like a scalded cat, reeling off a series of seven fastest laps in the last nine laps of the race. He used to have the occasional late-race flurry at McLaren but this was another realm.
Sebastien Bourdais, Toro Rosso, 18th
Seb was devastated when he lost out on a 5th placed finish at Spa. He was close to tears. Today he could easily have finished on the podium, but his car failed to get away from the line after he couldn't hook up first gear and stalled.Tant pis etc.
The Davies Weather Prediction Machine
In the preview I think I said something on the lines of "and it won't be wet because I can't even remember rain at the Italian GP." The only solace is that nobody else could either, and the media crews for the race packed shorts and T-shirts. It'll be a heat wave and drought at Mount Fuji now and snowing in Brazil.
Max Mosley
Max has been using his visit to the Monza circuit to rubbish claims that Allan Donnelly his race representative and the man who interviewed Lewis Hamilton after the Belgian Grand Prix for the stewards, also works as a Ferrari lobbyist (and is thus not the bestperson to be getting involved in big post-race decisions).
Max dismissed this with his usual patrician disdain claiming that anyone who made such a supposition was stupid. So a big surprise that when the ITV television team asked for an interview with Max at Monza to clarify this he wouldn't oblige. Steve Rider is hardly an "attack dog" in the Jeremy Paxman mould.
ITV Commentary Team
Having been able to follow the GP2 season it's good to see ITV GP2 race commentator David Croft going from strength to strength. On Sundays he swaps over to BBC Radio 5 Live for F1 and he surely must be the prime contender for the BBC slot next year when they get the contract.
And GP2 presenter Charlie Webster may be jaw-droppingly attractive, but she more than ably fills the Louise Goodman role. You don't even need the sound on to appreciate her enormous contribution to races. GP2 drivers stare up at her catwalk frame with puppy eyes, wishing they were about a foot taller.
At Monza James Allen came up with a phrase he wanted us all to memorise: "You have to remember that car shares the same DNA as a Minardi". Does it ****.
It's an Adrian Newey-designed Red Bull with the best engine on the grid installed and the back end redesigned to cope with a Ferrari not a Renault. Giancarlo Minardi and Paul Stoddart did immense jobs keeping the Minardi team going, but they didn't have the Red Bull empire behind them. They didn't have the common design resources, they bought the only engines they could afford, they had no gran palazzio motorhomes and one of their drivers usually had to pay his way. The car was put together in Faenza, though. Oh, and Ledbury.
Mark - Git orf me barra - Blundell
"Lewis didn't have the confidence, because there wasn't the confidence out there."
Andrew Davies
Source : Planet F1
Sebastian Vettel's victory heralds the birth of a new superstar...
A New Superstar Is Born
After last Sunday's sinister controversy and behind-closed-door machinations, victory for the infectiously-joyous Sebastian Vettel and the renamed Minardi team was the sweet tonic to Spa's harsh gin.
In another mad, mad race, Vettel's performance was the solitary act of sanity. The start-to-finish manner of his victory is worth emphasising because, while F1 has witnessed plenty of unexpected victories before, few have occurred from pole position. Vettel didn't just display skill in Monza, he also demonstrated the temperament and composure of a champion.
The next one may be a long time coming, but this will be just the first of many victories. A star is born with a very special talent.
Toro Rosso Are Competitive
To further underline the point that this was not a fluke victory for either driver or team, take a glance at the fastest laps charts for the two previous grands prix. In Valencia, Vettel set the sixth-fastest lap time with team-mate Sebastien Bourdais repeating the feat in Belgium. On both occasions, the only drivers setting a faster lap time were in a McLaren, Ferrari and BMW.
So What A Shame That Vettel Is 'Only' At Red Bull Next Year
Yet F1's 'loss' in the short-term may prove Vettel's gain in the long-term.
Partnering Mark Webber represents another progression in his development and, with the exception of the possibly-vacant second seat at BMW, the hardest challenge available. As the youngest-ever driver to win a grand prix in the sport's history, time is on Vettel's side and no harm - and plenty of gain - will be done by a prolonged apprenticeship.
That was the path taken by Fernando Alonso who debuted for Minardi at the age of 20 and then spent 2002 completing lap after monotonous lap as Renault's test driver. One of the reasons why Lewis Hamilton attracts so much antagonism is the feeling that, having jumped straight into a McLaren without even completing a year's tour of the test circuit, he never served his time.
Hamilton Is F1's Most Valuable Asset
Supporters of Kimi Raikkonen, Robert Kubica, Fernando Alonso and even Felipe Massa will presumably still argue that their man is still the number one driver in the sport. What is indisputable, however, is that Hamilton produces more excitement, more drama, and more controversy than any other performer in F1.
He Is Also F1's Best Driver In The Wet
If the F1 season was held in the winter months then Lewis Hamilton would be unstoppable. Such is his superiority in the wet that he was probably the only driver in attendance this weekend who was praying for rain. Whatever their driver allegiance, a F1 fan cannot claim to be a F1 driver if he did not enjoy the sight of Hamilton charging through the field in Italy.
Raikkonen Must Have Had The Wrong Set-Up
The contrast between Hamilton's confidence and pace in the rain and that of Kimi Raikkonen was staggering. And as Felipe Massa proved, it wasn't as if the Ferrari was undriveable in the wet.
Only when the track dried, to whatever the bone of tarmac actually is, did Raikkonen finally set competitive times. It was almost as if his Ferrari was set-up for dry conditions - but how could that be the case given that it rained all weekend and bucketloads were predicted for Sunday? Even Raikkonen was perplexed afterwards: "Sometimes it works and sometimes not, and we don't really have an explanation about why it doesn't work, and why the tyres work sometimes."
Raikkonen's inability to fathom an efficient set-up for his car is a manifestation of his contempt for the technical aspect of the sport and a substantial flaw in his package that can no longer be ignored. If Massa drove like Raikkonen drove this weekend then his detractors would once again be questioning his position in the team. Raikkonen's status as World Champion is providing him with an immunity from criticism that his current form of 29 points from ten races does not warrant.
McLaren Will Want To Know Whether Ferrari Spoke To Charlie Whiting
Having stressed that they were assured not once but twice by race control that Hamilton's move past Raikkonen in Belgium was acceptable, McLaren's appeal against his retrospective ban is likely to make particular stress on the advice given by Charlie Whiting. But the matter is anything but straightforward. In conversation with reporters at the weekend, Max Mosley, the FIA President, indicated that Whiting's opinion was not only irrelevant but his evidence inadmissible.
"McLaren should not have asked Charlie Whiting whether Lewis had done anything wrong and he should not have answered," Mosley, a trained lawyer lest we forget, insisted. "When rain came down on one of the fastest circuits in the world, with most of the cars on dry tyres, it was a very dangerous situation. If there had been a spin and a collision between two cars, it would have been a nightmare. That is something none of our safety procedures can deal with.
"Charlie was in one of the most highly pressured situations, so teams should not ask and he should not answer, because he is not in a position to give even the beginnings of a considered opinion. His responsibility was to see that nobody got killed."
Those remarks could deal a hefty blow to McLaren's hopes of overturning the stewards' decision. But the issue will take another twist if it confirmed that Ferrari ordered Felipe Massa surrender his place to Nico Rosberg in Monza after he cut the chicane upon the advice of race control...
Bourdais Is F1's Unluckiest Man
Sebastien Bourdais has plenty of luck. The only problem is that it is all bad.
Last Sunday, he began the penultimate lap of the Belgian GP in a well-earned third place. Courtesy of some opportunistic pit-stops by the drivers behind him, he crossed the line in seventh. This weekend, he failed to make it off the grid after the anti-stall in his Toro Rosso failed. For the second time in seven days, he must have finished a race close to tears.
F1 Doesn't Do The Simple Things
This column has remarked previously with considerable incredulity at the repeated inability of F1 teams to produce a reliable two-way radio system. Incredulity this weekend, however, was reserved for the absence of a reliable weather forecast. Rain in the second-half of the race, eh? Err, off with those wet tyres and on with the intermediates then.
At least they were consistent in their inaccuracy. Lewis Hamilton's disastrous decision to begin the second segment of qualifying on intermediate tyres was, Ron Dennis revealed, based upon a radar communication that the rain would ease. He had barely had he left the garage when the heavens opened and unloaded their liquid cargo.
Weather forecasting is evidently a difficult science to master. Which makes it all the more perplexing that F1 teams are determined to rely on technology when a much more reliable and simpler method would be follow the example of Dave Richards, the former BMW boss, and send a helicopter upwind with the instruction to report on what was coming next.
Pete Gill
Source : Planet F1
Following their great success at re-arranging the result of the 2008 Belgian Grand Prix, the race stewards are now turning their attention to other sporting events that have finished. Outraged sports writers from the world's news media have slammed them for having no experience in judging football or athletics or swimming, but now the stewards have hit back. They have rightly pointed out that they have just as much knowledge of floor gymnastics and athletics as they have of F1
Notices of Re-Classification
Olympic 100 metres
The Olympic 100 metres final has been reviewed by the stewards and Usain Bolt has had 25 seconds added to his time. The stewards verdict was that Bolt... "didn't run across the line properly and started celebrating way too early".
Tour de France
Carlos Sastre has hung on to his position as winner of the Tour de France, but second-place man Cadel Evans from Australia has seen his second place wiped out.
"Evans is just a back wheel sucker," said Belgian steward Yves Bacquelain, "he never does any of the work on a climb." As Bacquelain is the same nationality as the great Eddie Merckx his decision cannot be overturned.
Swimming
Michael Phelps has seen his Beijing medal haul cut from eight to seven after the stewards decided to hand the win of the 100m butterfly to Milo Cavic. Apparently second-placed man Cavic was almost there first and morally was the winner.
Gymnastics - Beam
Less controversial is the stewards' ruling that American gymnasts Natia Liukin and Shawn Johnson should swap positions in the Beam event at Beijing. Liukin drew huge praise for her artistic performance on the apparatus but lost out to a more complex, but artistically clunky routine from American rival Johnson. "We have decided that Nastia should get the gold because she is a much fitter than Shawn Johnson," said Nicolas Deschaux
Champions League Final
Chelsea are the new champions of Europe after winning the recalculated penalty shoot-out in Moscow. The stewards decided that Manchester United's narrow victory by 6-5 wasn't correct. They have allowed John Terry's missed penalty to count. "We feel that he would have scored if he hadn't lost his footing on a poorly prepared pitch, which was out of his control and so award him the penalty." Chelsea now win 5-4.
F1
And finally, Jenson Button and Nick Heidfeld will both have 10-place grid deductions for the Italian Grand Prix after the Kenyan steward discovered they both had beards as scruffy as Sebastien Loeb's.
