Hi folks...
It's the inaugural Singapore Grand Prix this coming weekend and as
F1's first-ever night race I am really looking forward to it a lot. Indeed I reckon most people are really excited about this one.
It should be a fantastic event and it is certainly going to be different - and a real spectacle for the fans.
A lot of stuff has been done in Singapore to get to the stage of being able to hold a race and there is lots of enthusiasm there. People can't wait for the F1 circus to turn up and deliver something and if we can repeat the kind of entertainment we have seen in the last couple of races at Monza and Spa everyone will be very happy.
Of course, while it is a night race, it is not actually going to be that dark and the circuit will be well illuminated. It has to be when you have drivers' racing around the streets at a couple of hundred miles per hour.
You also need good lighting for television and with such a huge global audience watching on the 'box that is essential.
How everyone copes with going about their business at 7 - 10 pm at night is also going to be another talking point during the weekend. With everyone coming from Europe they will be trying to get into the local time zone, although they will be operating at times which fit in with the European audience and that will be a new challenge. It will be interesting to see if people make any mistakes because of that and if they are a bit sleepy on the track and off it.
Last time out in Italy we saw
Sebastian Vettel win and take his - and Toro Rosso's - maiden victory and we could see a similar upset this Sunday, especially if we get more rain.
It was great to see Vettel win at Monza and after 20-odd years in F1 for his team - originally Minardi - it was a very special moment.
You always want the underdog to do well and come through and really it should never happen. But this time it did. To think that team started life as Minardi and now have won a race with a car delivered from Milton Keynes in the UK and powered by a
Ferrari engine is fantastic.
They did - and have done – a tremendous job and Sebastian's performance was spot on. The win was fully deserved.
If we get rain again in Singapore maybe
STR might even win again. Certainly the long term weather forecast says there is an outside possibility of rain and if that does happen who knows what the result will be.
