2012 Singapore F1 Grand Prix

[Bye Ya]

I still think this is such a Mickey Mouse track. It has no flow. Just look at Turn 10, it destroys the cars more than it makes for good racing. This track is just another wannabe Monaco, just without the magic.

Have faith. Plenty of magic at Valencia earlier this year.

 

[Akmuq]

And it only took 27 posts for the first mention of Turn 10 this year.

Compare that with 109 in 2011 and 94 in 2010, it's probably also got a lot of mentions as 'that stupid chicane' in other threads.

 

[Bye Ya]

And it only took 27 posts for the first mention of Turn 10 this year.

Compare that with 109 in 2011 and 94 in 2010, it's probably also got a lot of mentions as 'that stupid chicane' in other threads.

The danger of this track is one of it's attractions, imo.

 

[ITCC_Andrew]

Aw, as an avid fan of the Aussie V8 Supercars & BTCC @ Knockhill, I can admit, that chicanes are my favourite type of corner. What's wrong with Turn 10? I remember really enjoying it in every virtual recreation of the track (like F1 2010.)


It should be alright. It's not as horribly distasteful as some other corners, like at South Korea.

 

[neljack]

Still confused as to why people suddenly think Red Bull are the best team ever on here and will win blitz the GP?

Entitled to your opinio n'all but I dont see the validity to it in the slightest.

 

[ghskilla]

Lotus would definitely do better here. Expect them to get a podium. The McLarens would probably continue their dominating run since the end of the summer break. Excited for this one 👍

 

[The Outlaw]

He may have looked good last time out but Monza is a completely different track to Spa and The Hungaroring where the Ferrari looked weak, even with Alonso's previous success I expect him to be just off the podium unless Ferrari have made some big improvements since Monza.

You may be right, but IMO the weekend at Spa was a bit of a conundrum though. Being that all of Friday was completely rained out and the teams went into qualy & the race with little dry running and varying setups (some leaning torward wet or dry conditions), I don't really feel we can take away too much from that race...especially being that Alonso didn't even make it past turn 1.

Regardless, Spa was most likely going to be a Mclaren track (smooth track with long straights and a good mix of corners) from the get go...so it wouldn't have been a suprise if they had a moderate advantage (especially with the rear wing they brought) over the rest of the field even if the weekend had been dry thoughout.

Regarding the Hungaroring - On paper this was probably one of the worst circuits for the F2012, particularly because the car is quite poor (struggles with understeer generally) in slower, long duration corners that are somewhat unique to that circuit (particularly in the last sector). The Ferrari was very quick/competitive in the rest of the track though (generally fastest in S1 iirc), which has more traditional corners that don't require such a strong front end. It's also worth considering that the hot weather (that plagued the Hungarian GP) isn't particularly Ferrari's strong suit either, and the predicted rain on race day probably only helped to make things a bit more unclear in terms of setup direction.

I imagine Ferrari would have focused more on success at Monza than at other tracks and perhaps that has slowed development in other areas which could hinder their Singapore performance. If I had to say which team will be strongest it would have to be Mclaren, Lotus looked very strong at The Hungaroring and that was the last high downforce track they went to.

Well, I don't feel Ferrari put too much effort into focusing in on Monza in particular - they just did some elementary changes to the wings (and ran a few universal elements that had been in the pipeline for some time)...as many of the other teams did as well.

Regarding Lotus @ Singapore - they could be a bit of a dark horse, as they supposedly have some solid updates on the way for this race (floor and DRS) they could help their qualy pace in particular..although I'm a bit iffy as to how their rather odd suspension will handle the bumpy nature of this track. I'd also imagine the track will retain enough heat into the night to where it won't be a major hinderance to them...so we shall see

 

[Wardez]

A cool picture posted by one of the track marshalls that's on the Reddit F1 community I'm a part of:

Link to his submissions:
http://www.reddit.com/user/makanguru/submitted/#page=2

Link to our community:
http://www.reddit.com/r/formula1/

A regular feature since the inaugural race, 11 religious leaders - representing the Bahai faith, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Judaism, Sikhism, Taoism and Zoroastrianism - gather to bless the Singapore Grand Prix event and pray for the safety of the drivers.

And here's a bunch of other behind the scenes photos from our friend makanguru:

Race control observer and blue flag radio loop

All the air freight ready to be unloaded

The naughty drivers chairs

Charlie Whitings race start office at the Singapore GP

The Singapore GP medical team running driver extraction drills

Singapore GP recovery and track marshals going through practice runs in preperation

The air freight has begun to arrive in Singapore

Map of the marshal posts of the Singapore GP

Just the starting grid and start/finish line left to paint in

Passes and credentials collected

It is time to turn on the lights

Button is already in Singapore and brought his bike with him it seems

 

[niky]

Button did an Ironman before his last win. I think a good long bike ride right before the race might do him good.

 

[SagarisGTB]

Add the night time and you have the reason I like it.

I wouldn't mind at all if they raced during the day. The track scenery would be the best (or one of the best)on the calendar if they raced during sunlight hours. Some of the support races practice/race during the day and the scenery is fantastic. There's trees often lining the track, buildings both colonial and modern, the Singapore skyline in the distance, and of course, the sea. Like a proper street circuit. But you see almost none of it at night; it's just a track running through an ocean of darkness.

 

[hawkeye122]

I seem to recall hearing about the ALMS guys doing a group bike ride to Laguna Seca every year. They say it builds the atmosphere for themselves, and allows them to get to know each other.
Perhaps the F1 guys should get together and do a few casual laps around the track?

 

[niky]

Would you want to ride beside Maldonado coming into the chicane, without a million dollars of carbon fiber between you and road-rash?

But seriously, cycling racecourses sounds like fun.

 

[hawkeye122]

5K worth of Carbon Fiber is still too much.

He'd probably get dropped anyways. "Quick! He's coming! Just go!"

 

[ITCC_Andrew]

^ Cycling down the corkscrew............. I am scared for life just thinking of it... And yet, I have no fear to drive it.

 

[m8h3r]

^ Cycling down the corkscrew............. I am scared for life just thinking of it... And yet, I have no fear to drive it.

Coming up eau rouge.

 

[PeterJB]

Coming up eau rouge.

On a bike that would be fine, just really steep.

 

[Anghammarad]

If Alonso wins then the championship is his.

 

[Akmuq]

I think the track looks it's best in the Free Practice times, the same time as the start of Abu Dhabi, things are just better before the night time.

 

[SKIDMARX]

I still think this is such a Mickey Mouse track. It has no flow. Just look at Turn 10, it destroys the cars more than it makes for good racing. This track is just another wannabe Monaco, just without the magic.

The thing is this track changed how F1 looks at race courses all around the world. It was the first F1 race to be held in pitch black conditions with only track and street lighting. Sure this track has some really stupid corners like the double chicane but it is designed to be a very precise corner, mess it up and your suspension is wrecked and/or your in the wall as proved by many. Some may say corners at other tracks are pointless but some are still on their calender due to their history in the sport while others are either fairly new or new tracks designed to challenge the current F1 cars and drivers.

 

[Seismica]

I love the Singapore circuit. Very close battles every year, with a couple of good overtaking opportunities (Which isn't something you can say about all street circuits).

I predict that Alonso will dominate the entire weekend. Top in practice, pole and win.

EDIT: Somehow missed the 'l' out of Alonso.

 

[Lizard]

I love the Singapore circuit. Very close battles every year, with a couple of good overtaking opportunities (Which isn't something you can say about all street circuits).

I predict that Aonso will dominate the entire weekend. Top in practice, pole and win.

I also love Singapore.

To me it is like another Monaco and actually in some respects I think Singapore is a harder and better track.

 

[ITCC_Andrew]

I also love Singapore.

To me it is like another Monaco and actually in some respects I think Singapore is a harder and better track.

Well, Monaco's tricky, but, it's full downforce. Everyone knows how to set cars up for Monaco; it's a tight, narrow, bumpy tracky, that would especially reward somewhat softer cars.


Singapore's trickier. "Do I run full downforce? Sectors 1 & 2 are somewhat long straightaways. If I can't open DRS, I'm a sitting duck. Some of the corners aren't that bumpy. Maybe I should run a stiff setup. But, oh no! I should be able to attack the curbs, a bit, at Turn 5/6 and turn 10, and maybe turns 1/2/3. How do I know I'm getting the setup right? "


Monaco is bumpy, effectively, in every corner, and it's smaller, and tighter, and the fastest spot on the track is a turn, leading to a sharp chicane, iirc.


Singapore's like another Spa, in a way; you've got a few straights, and a few turns. Should you run full downforce?


Monaco's only a great race, because speaking French is so much fun, and, maybe because of the billions of dollars worth of yachts... and maybe the famous people... and the French riviera... The races themselves are usually, if I'm honest, a bit lacklustre, due to the impossibility of passing.

 

[HeXoSKEL3t0n]

IMO, Singapore seems to have all the right boxes ticked, like close racing action, setup compromise, gruelling endurance required, great scenery/atmosphere.

Except for the track itself, its flow doesn't feel too good, with it mostly consisting of various straights connected with 90 degree corners.

Monaco at least has a very nice flow to the track, I especially love the run through Tabac into the Swimming Pool section, very unique and is a blast to nail, even though Monaco's too tight for serious overtaking opportunities.

 

[ITCC_Andrew]

"tabac?" Careful, AUP is looking for such words... It could be the short form for a less-than-acceptable word.



Onwards, I reckon you didn't know. Which corner are you referring to?

 

[LancerEvo7]

"tabac?" Careful, AUP is looking for such words... It could be the short form for a less-than-acceptable word.

It's the name of a corner, calm down.

It's turn 12, my favorite turn on the track.

 

[ITCC_Andrew]

You see, elsewhere in the world, there's a different name for that corner. "tabac" is definitely not a well-wanted word, elsewhere in the world.


Let's not go into details, BUT...........

 

[LancerEvo7]

In this case, it's the name of the corner, so it's acceptable.


As for Singapore, didn't they say they were going to shorten it a few years back?

 

[HeXoSKEL3t0n]

You see, elsewhere in the world, there's a different name for that corner. "tabac" is definitely not a well-wanted word, elsewhere in the world.

Let's not go into details, BUT...........

Calm down... Like Lancerevo7 (thanks for clarifying ) said, I was referring to turns 12-16 of Monaco... Very satisfying mix of corners to nail in GT5, simply one of my all time favourites.

At least you should have been able to tell from the context of my sentences right (street circuits)... It's not like I was discussing about anything related to whatever-illegal-stuff you're thinking about in the first place.


Speaking of which, can you tell me about this alternative name to this 🤬 corner for which I never heard about? I'd really like to know about it...

 

[Seismica]

Well, Monaco's tricky, but, it's full downforce. Everyone knows how to set cars up for Monaco; it's a tight, narrow, bumpy tracky, that would especially reward somewhat softer cars.


Singapore's trickier. "Do I run full downforce? Sectors 1 & 2 are somewhat long straightaways. If I can't open DRS, I'm a sitting duck. Some of the corners aren't that bumpy. Maybe I should run a stiff setup. But, oh no! I should be able to attack the curbs, a bit, at Turn 5/6 and turn 10, and maybe turns 1/2/3. How do I know I'm getting the setup right? "


Monaco is bumpy, effectively, in every corner, and it's smaller, and tighter, and the fastest spot on the track is a turn, leading to a sharp chicane, iirc.


Singapore's like another Spa, in a way; you've got a few straights, and a few turns. Should you run full downforce?


Monaco's only a great race, because speaking French is so much fun, and, maybe because of the billions of dollars worth of yachts... and maybe the famous people... and the French riviera... The races themselves are usually, if I'm honest, a bit lacklustre, due to the impossibility of passing.

Singapore is one of the slowest circuits on the calendar. It's dominated by slow corners, unlike Monaco which has a couple of fast corners (So good luck for the Renault alternator, which struggles for temperature at low RPM). It's also very demanding for the drivers, so it is a real test of a driver's endurance here.

It's got a couple of straights early on in the circuit that allow overtaking even without the DRS. But they generally aren't quite long enough to achieve high speed so they will still be going for very high downforce (Maybe same wings as Monaco but with reduced angle).

It's also far and away the bumpiest circuit on the calendar, and certain corners require a softer suspension setup too. This makes it more difficult for the teams as they need to balance everything, but it also requires the type of driver who can attack a circuit. That is why I think Alonso will win. I think Vettel is weaker at street circuits because he's the sort of driver who pushes the boundaries of the track (i.e. taking all of the kerb on both entry and exit to minimise the angle, even when it unsettles the car - watch any onboard lap Vettel vs Webber and you will see what I mean). At a street circuit this advantage is nullified because there are walls there, so everybody will be driving to the same limits. Car setup is much more important; all you need is a consistently fast driver.

I'm rambling so i'll stop now.

 

[Peasantslayer]

Singapore is one of the slowest circuits on the calendar. It's dominated by slow corners, unlike Monaco which has a couple of fast corners (So good luck for the Renault alternator, which struggles for temperature at low RPM). It's also very demanding for the drivers, so it is a real test of a driver's endurance here.

It's got a couple of straights early on in the circuit that allow overtaking even without the DRS. But they generally aren't quite long enough to achieve high speed so they will still be going for very high downforce (Maybe same wings as Monaco but with reduced angle).

It's also far and away the bumpiest circuit on the calendar, and certain corners require a softer suspension setup too. This makes it more difficult for the teams as they need to balance everything, but it also requires the type of driver who can attack a circuit. That is why I think Alonso will win. I think Vettel is weaker at street circuits because he's the sort of driver who pushes the boundaries of the track (i.e. taking all of the kerb on both entry and exit to minimise the angle, even when it unsettles the car - watch any onboard lap Vettel vs Webber and you will see what I mean). At a street circuit this advantage is nullified because there are walls there, so everybody will be driving to the same limits. Car setup is much more important; all you need is a consistently fast driver.

I'm rambling so i'll stop now.

I don't believe Vettel's weaker at street circuits, his performance at Valencia this year was incredible before his alternator failed. If the Mclaren is still the fastest car then I don't think Fernando will stand a chance of winning unless of course Massa crashes at the right time to bring out the safety car.