A Night-time GP

Formula One racing held it’s first ever night-time Grand Prix on a new street circuit in Singapore at the week-end.


They say that if a Formula One car didn’t have all its wings to generate downforce it would be impossible to keep it on the ground – it would fly. Fisichella showed in free practice that it can fly even with its wings! The engineers worked like mad to get him out He then drove into the barriers in the first qualifying session although, in fairness, his throttle appeared to have stuck open. I enjoy Martin Brundle’s down to earth views, “He couldn’t drive a nail into a piece of wood,” was his comment on the one-time F1 driver Luca Badoer.


Alonso’s engine did the opposite and died. So he went out in the second qualifying session. As a result he started near the back and adopted a different strategy which paid off when his team-mate hit the wall and brought out the safety car.


Massa, who had had an unassailable lead, tried to see how the Ferrari would go with a fuel hose attached. While Massa was assaulting his engineers Raikkonen was busy queuing. Neither Ferrari scored a point. Massa spun a couple of times, did his stop go penalty and generally got fed up while Raikkonen lost concentration with four laps to go and stuck his car in the barrier. In theory Lewis Hamilton might have made it to the top of the podium but then got stuck in traffic and ended up third behind winner Alonso and Rosberg who managed second despite a stop and go penalty.


Alonso deserved his win (he wrote, grudgingly). But Hamilton says he feels comfortable heading into the final three races of the Formula One season with a seven-point championship lead. Perhaps he's forgotten that this time last year he had a sixteen point lead!