This weekend’s fourth
Singapore Grand Prix marks the start of a hectic time,
featuring six races crammed into the space of ten weeks,
with the season finale taking place on November 27th,
the latest ever date in the calendar for a Formula 1
race. Last year, Scuderia Ferrari was in the running for
the titles right up to the final round, as indeed it has
been on so many occasions. However, this year that will
not be the case as one team and one driver has dominated
the preceding thirteen races. Nevertheless, six grands
prix means six more opportunities to try and win races,
so motivation is still high for the men from Maranello.
Fernando Alonso’s third place in Monza a fortnight ago
promoted him to second place in the Drivers’
championship and the Spaniard will be doing all in his
power to finish the year in the “silver medal” position,
starting with the Singaporean event which he won from
pole last year for Ferrari.
As for team-mate Felipe Massa, last week was the tenth
anniversary of his first ever test in a Formula 1 car
and a decade at the highest level of the sport has not
dulled his will to win. “Felipe now, compared to Felipe
then? I am much more experienced which is important,”
says the Brazilian. “The early Felipe always wanted to
be quickest on every lap, whereas experience teaches you
to know when to push and when it’s better to conserve
the car and save the tyres. I don’t know about doing
another ten years, but I hope to continue for many years
to come.” Massa started the inaugural event from pole in
2008, missed 2009 and last year a problem in qualifying
saw him start from the back of the grid, before fighting
his way up to seventh.
When it comes to the Scuderia’s own motivation, many
team members have recently used the expression “Ferrari
is Ferrari” to explain why it will still be putting so
much effort into a season that will not deliver any
titles. If more prosaic reasons are required, the
Prancing Horse is trailing second placed McLaren by 71
points in the Constructors’ championship and catching
the English team is a mathematical possibility. In
addition, the remaining races will also provide a very
useful test bed for some elements that could be used on
the 2012 car. While next year’s car is now the main
focus of attention for the designers, this year’s 150º
Italia will be sporting a few aero updates, mainly
around the rear wing; these modifications having been
planned before the aero department switched its
attention entirely to next year.
That rear wing and the front one too, will be set for
maximum downforce for this street circuit, which runs at
an average speed higher than its more famous relative in
Monaco. While there are similarities between the two
harbour venues, including the obvious fact the barriers
are very close to the track and the surface is extremely
bumpy, there are differences too. The most obvious one
is the heat and humidity which in Singapore are among
the highest encountered all year. Even with the night
time start, this is a tough race for the drivers to cope
with, especially as it tends to run right up to the two
hour limit imposed in the F1 regulations. Unusually,
throughout practice, qualifying and the race, drivers
and engineers have to deal with the fact that, as night
sets in, ambient and track temperatures actually drop
during each session and the race, which is the opposite
to all other grands prix. The cars are set up with a
high ride height to deal with all the bumps, still there
despite some resurfacing, while brakes require more
cooling than usual thanks to the heat and the fact the
Marina Bay Circuit boasts no less than 23 corners.
Pirelli will be bringing its Soft and Super-soft
compounds and it’s a well known fact that this is the
combination that best suits the 150º Italia, however, it
is not a miracle solution. “Of course, if we were
allowed to make our own tyre choice, this combination is
what we would want,” says Massa. “But tyres on their own
cannot make all the difference.”
When Singapore first appeared on the calendar, the night
time schedule dominated the headlines, with concerns
expressed about the lighting of the track and the need
to work during the night and to sleep during the day.
Both worries have proved to be unfounded, as visibility
is excellent thanks to the sophisticated illumination
being much brighter than that seen at other sporting
events. As for working a “night shift,” it has actually
proved to be quite straightforward with the added bonus
that, for once, when the F1 workers return to their
European bases, jet lag is reduced to an absolute
minimum.
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