F1 Today – Singapore Prixview – 29/09/2022
Unrealistic to seal title in Singapore – Verstappen
Max Verstappen thinks it is a ‘bit unrealistic’ for him to win the world championship at this weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix. The Dutchman looks on course for a second title after dominating much of the season with his first opportunity to wrap up the championship this weekend.
However he needs remaining contenders Sergio Perez and Charles Leclerc also not to score well, he is not expecting to clinch the crown this time out. He told reporters “I need to win, and Checo needs to finish fourth or lower and Charles eighth or lower. It’s a bit unrealistic for it to happen. So I don’t really think about it. It’s quite a long shot. And I just want to enjoy the weekend. And of course, try to win it.”
Although in the build-up, there has been much anticipation about Verstappen’s title opportunity this weekend, the Dutchman says he would actually prefer to win it in Japan next weekend. The return to Singapore marks the first race in East Asia since the pandemic and Verstappen believes wrapping it up at Honda’s home race and circuit would mean a lot more.
he said “I think Japan is nice. I’m really excited to go back there. It’s been a while. It’s an amazing track. And for me anyway, it has quite special memories. The first time I drove an F1 car was there in FP1, and I will always remember that. And besides that, yes, it is kind of a home GP with Honda.”
“And also, I think [it will be] my first proper opportunity to win the title. So yeah, of course, I’m looking forward to Singapore right now. But I’m also very excited for next weekend.”
While this championship looks to be wrapped up before the Americas leg for the first time in almost a decade, he admitted there was part of him wishing Ferrari still were in the fight.
Verstappen one of the fastest drivers ever Norris
Lando Norris has hailed Max Verstappen as one of Formula One’s fastest-ever drivers as the Dutchman closes on a second world title but admits it’s “frustrating” not to be able to race against him for McLaren.
Following the controversial conclusion to last season’s fight between Hamilton and Verstappen in Abu Dhabi, the Dutchman is on the verge of winning his fifth title this weekend in Singapore, after winning eleven of the sixteen races this season. He is also on a run of five back-to-back wins and could set a new record for wins in a season.
A good friend of the Red Bull star, Norris joked to Sky Sports F1 that his season “has been easy” and that “he should maybe have a go back in our car and see what it’s like”, with McLaren only fifth in the standings.
He added, “He’s done amazing. Very impressive, of course. Similar to Lewis in previous years, when you’ve got a car that can deliver and win races, he’s the one taking those opportunities. He’s beating his team-mate every time, but it’s impressive to see day in and day out.”
“Even Practice One, Two and Three, he’s never under the limit, he’s always pushing the limits. Even P1, first lap of the whole day, his times are sometimes quicker than we ever do in qualifying!” Norris says that Verstappen is one of the most talented drivers ever to take part in the sport, and believes that he will win a few more titles.
Verstappen is spearheading a talented new generation of elite F1 drivers, with Charles Leclerc and George Russell, both twenty-four years old like Verstappen, also fighting at the front. Although Norris is regarded to have similar abilities and competed against them in junior series he has “frustratingly” not been able to show that and fight at the front regularly.
Adding “You have to [bide your time] you can’t do too much else. “You can’t really complain. I still have an opportunity in Formula One. I still feel like when I’ve finished P6, P7 sometimes, I’ve driven the best race of my life, or I’ve done the best lap in qualifying and I’m P8 or P9.”
He says that it’s frustrating as you feel you deserve more than you’re getting when you’re working so hard in the race to get eighth and they are having the easiest race and taking wins. But that is not hard feeling as they are deserving to be in that position, while he also has faith in a few years or a few races, he will have your opportunity.
Hamilton dismisses winless run
Lewis Hamilton has dismissed talk of the “dry spell” and insists Mercedes will take the positives from their 2022 struggles to return to the top. The eight times constructors champions arrive in Singapore still seeking their first win of the season, their longest run without a win since their winless 2011 season after falling behind following the rule changes.
Hamilton, who holds a record in winning a race in all fifteen of his F1 seasons to date and has claimed six titles for Mercedes since 2014, said on Wednesday at a Petronas event that he “doesn’t look at [2022] as a dry spell”. Adding to comments earlier in the week saying he doesn’t care if he doesn’t keep that record going if Mercedes return to the front next season.
He explained, “I look at it as a bit of adversity and I think that’s where you can really gain strength. I think we’ve gained a lot of strength in depth. When you winning all the time it’s a wonderful thing but you don’t gain a lot when you win.”
“There are six races [left] so there’s six opportunities and we will try to get a win, but if we do not do well, I do not think it is the end of the world.” Red Bull and Hamilton’s title rival from last year, Max Verstappen, have stormed clear this year but a defiant Hamilton added: “We will get back to the top.”
While Mercedes has been much slower than Red Bull and Ferrari overall this year, their lack of mistakes means they have a chance of overhauling the Scuderia for second in the constructors’ standings with a strong finish. The German manufacturer is currently thirty-five points behind Ferrari.
Hamilton went into the second half of the season wanting to cause havoc at the front, Mercedes aim remains to go after Ferrari. To do that the seven-time champion says that they need to go on maximum attack because they have nothing to lose. He also thinks that Singapore should be a good circuit, although Mercedes will be wary of the bumps
Albon ready for return after appendicitis
Alex Albon says he is prepared to return to his Williams seat at the Singapore Grand Prix, after missing the Monza race with appendicitis. The British-Thai driver withdrew from the race at Monza after undergoing emergency surgery, allowing Nyck de Vries to make his debut where he impressed with ninth place.
Following his appendectomy, Albon also had to contend with respiratory failure following the procedure and thus had to be taken to intensive care overnight. He was able to recover, however, and has since been able to use the three-week break to get ready for F1’s return to Singapore for the first time since 2019.
Albon said that he was not “underestimating” the challenge of getting back behind the wheel at the Marina Bay circuit, which is frequently one of the hottest races of the year despite its night-time setting. Albon said, “Firstly, I’d just like to thank everyone for all their messages and support over the Italian Grand Prix weekend.”
“My preparation for Singapore has been a little different than normal but I’m feeling good and I’ve done everything possible to get ready for one of the most physical races on the calendar. I am not underestimating how big of a challenge this is going to be, but I am looking forward to hitting the track on Friday and getting back driving.”
De Vries will remain on hand as a reserve once more, in case the situation arises where Albon is unable to continue with the weekend.
While the FW44 was particularly potent at both the Spa and Monza races, which helped de Vries on his way into the points, Williams head of vehicle performance Dave Robson expects a more “challenging” race on the Singapore streets.
Gasly expects answers in “two to three weeks” on future
Pierre Gasly says “the next two to three weeks should have a clear answer on my future”, regarding the possibility of a 2023 Alpine switch as Fernando Alonso’s replacement. The Frenchman’s future has been one of the biggest talking points since Alonso decided to join Alpine.
Red Bull is open to allowing Gasly to leave its fold as there is no chance he will be promoted back to its senior squad after his short-lived 2019 stint, but only if it has a suitable replacement lined up. It initially wanted IndyCar star Colton Herta before that plan was derailed by his lack of super licence points and the FIA opting against granting him an exemption.
Alpha Tauri could go after Mercedes backed Nyck de Vries, following his debut in place of Alex Albon at Monza, while also continuing talks with Williams and Alpine if that team’s plan to replace Alonso with Gasly and create an all-French line-up alongside Esteban Ocon does not come off.
When asked to provide the latest update on his 2023 options in the press conference for this weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix, Gasly replied: “Everybody knows the ongoing conversation and discussion, but on my side I think hopefully in the next 2-3 weeks we should have a clear answer on my future. But, so far, nothing has changed. And when there is something confirmed on my future I’m sure you guys will know about it!”
This weekend the team have a new aerodynamic upgrade, which will include a reprofiled nose and front wing connection. Gasly hopes this update will reverse the trend of his squad being “slightly more competitive in low-downforce tracks” in 2022.
Looking ahead to the weekend, he said “Spa was good, Monza was good. But all the tracks with higher-downforce [such as Singapore] we seem to struggle a bit more. So, hopefully this upgrade we have this weekend can change that picture a bit.”
“We know the McLarens are usually pretty fast in these conditions, Alpine sometimes are really fast, Aston as well. I don’t really have any expectations, I just hope the upgrade brings us more speed and I know if that’s the case then we will have our chances to fight for points.”
Alpha Tauri is just one point behind Haas’ seventh place in the constructors’ championship, while Alfa Romeo is currently nineteen in front in sixth. Gasly believes beating the American team is the objective, but Alfa Romeo remains a threat.
Talking points Singapore
Max Verstappen can become world champion for the second time at Sunday’s Singapore Grand Prix.
It’s not very likely to happen, mathematically, Ferrari duo Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, Verstappen’s teammate Sergio Perez and Mercedes driver George Russell still have outside chances, but the race does mark the first time this season the title can theoretically be won.
Leclerc realistically is the only rival to Verstappen, as Red Bull are not going to let Perez beat him. While Russel and Sainz would need a miracle of several races where Verstappen finishes outside the points and them to win the remaining six races.
To take the title under the lights in Marina Bay, Verstappen must first win. Any other result means the championship will last at least until the following race in Japan. If Verstappen does win, Leclerc must finish lower than eighth for the Dutchman to be crowned, or lower than seventh if Verstappen also sets the fastest lap.
When he has finished a race this year, Leclerc has never finished lower than sixth.
Singapore is a circuit which should favour Ferrari, who took victory last time this race was held in 2019. The streets of Singapore has lots of slow corners and few long straights plays to their strengths. But it being Ferrari’s best chance for a victory is not the same as saying there is a good chance.
Leclerc has not won since Austria back in July, and in recent races Ferrari has suffered an alarming slump in form to compound the reliability and race-management problems that have sabotaged their most competitive season for four years.
The race statically is about qualifying, winning from the front row is only behind Monaco. Also is the most challenging races of the year with the heat and tyre wear, making it about strategy and taking advantage of situations.
Ferrari’s strategists have not exactly provided evidence this season that they can be relied upon to calmly bring home a win, whatever the circumstances. Singapore seems, on paper, to not be that well suited to the Red Bull car, which is much stronger on faster tracks where its straight-line speed comes to the fore.
In the constructors’ championship, Red Bull enjoys a 139-point advantage over Ferrari with six races including Singapore remaining in the season. However, Red Bull has never won a race on the streets of Singapore in the V6 hybrid era, with its last victory in the city-state recorded back in 2013 with Sebastian Vettel at the wheel.
Proposing metric modified for Singapore
Motorsport.com says it has learned that the porpoising metric has been tweaked from this weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix to help remove potential problems caused by bumpy tracks.
As a result of the bouncing seen following the regulation changes this season extreme porpoising seen in testing led to drivers raising concerns about safety, the FIA introduced in Montreal an Aerodynamic Oscillation Metric that teams would not be allowed to exceed.
Teams had to ensure that their car was below the maximum bouncing limit over each lap, or there was a risk of them being sanctioned on safety grounds. In a document sent to teams ahead of the Montreal race, they were warned that breaching the rules would carry the risk of cars being excluded from events.
F1’s head of single seater matters Nikolas Tombazis said in that note: “Any car whose AOM exceeds the stipulated AOM [limit] will be reported to the stewards with the recommendation that they be excluded from the results of the sprint or race.”
Following some debate with teams about the implications of the metric, it finally came into force from the Belgian Grand Prix. By that stage of the season, with teams having a much better understanding of the forces that triggered much of the early season porpoising, no team has fallen foul of the metric so far.
However, there have been some concerns that some of the end-of-season races on bumpier tracks, including Singapore and Austin, could have triggered particular headaches. With the metric being taken as an average over a distance, initially 10 J/kg per 100km, running of the cars had shown that if cars hit bumps on the track then those impact spikes could serve to have a dramatic impact on lifting the overall average.
This has to lead to concerns that teams could inadvertently exceed the AOM limit because of the surface of the circuit rather than anything to do with there being too much porpoising. Tombazis has written to teams to say that the FIA is tweaking the metric from now on to help alleviate the bumpy track complication.
The governing body has notified teams that to avoid excess energy spikes caused by track bumps skewing the metric, a new maximum reading limit will be put in place to not take into account such extreme impacts.
The FIA has said from now on that there will be a top limit of 7G attributed to readings, meaning any track strike above that will not be taken into account for compliance with the metric. This change in approach should help teams avoid any risk of them inadvertently breaching the AOM limit.
No issue with Norris getting upgrade first – Ricciardo
Daniel Ricciardo has no issue with his McLaren teammate Lando Norris getting priority on a major new upgrade package for the Singapore Grand Prix. The new upgrade package includes a new floor and sidepods, with Norris getting priority on it for Singapore as Ricciardo will take delivery of it next weekend in Japan.
The Australian acknowledge that the team couldn’t ready enough parts to equip both cars this weekend, and that Norris was given first go because he is staying and thus has to PRIXVIEW – Singapore Grand Prixlearn as much as he can heading into 2023. Asked about the upgrades, he told Motorsport.com, “Lando has got it. Just with time and whatever, resources ultimately, we’ll both have it in Japan, but this weekend, it’s just him.”
“I guess the next question is why him? A lot of its development as well, and direction for 2023. So it’s pretty much that. And obviously, he’s here next year, I’m not, so for him to get another weekend to give the team feedback and obviously direction for next year, that’s ultimately the reason.”
Ricciardo downplayed any suggestion that he is losing out because he is exiting the team at the end of the season. The Australian says he should have the upgrade next weekend, and they should have the same upgrades until the end of the season.
Ricciardo acknowledged that there could be some benefit in having an unchanged car heading into the weekend, rather than having to adapt to the new parts. Adding, “I mean, normally you want it, don’t get me wrong, but it’s not as simple as, okay, we’re going to bolt it on, you’re going to go five-tenths quicker.
The weekend ahead
This weekend the sport returns to Singapore after a two-year break due to Covid, this weekend is one where the sport gets a lot of deals done for things like sponsors as its one of the showcase races. That will be an off track talking point, we have already seen Mercedes in Malaysia doing things with Petronas and others normally pop up, we will see how the weekend develops.
The race is going to focus on whether Max Verstappen can wrap the championship up at the first opportunity, while it to me seems a bit too early in the season I think with the advantage Red Bull has at the moment it seems possible. This is a street circuit so anything can happen, if Ferrari want to go after the championship next year the work starts now.
Singapore is a race where anything can happen and we know that its about the teams taking advantage where they can. Overtaking might be easier, we know with any night race teams need to avoid overreacting if the set up is not right in the twilight sessions and this means not going too far if they are off the pace in the twilight session.
The midfield battle is likely to be between Alpine and McLaren, I still believe that Alpine has the upper hand and we know that Lando Norris has been leading the team’s fight. McLaren in my mind have had better performances at street circuits with Norris likely to be the best of the rest, British drivers come alive on street circuits for some reason, I think Fernando Alonso and Alpine knowing how to win around here could give them the advantage