F1 drivers on Singapore GP return: 'It's going to be super-tough'

Formula 1 returns to Singapore this weekend after skipping two years due to the pandemic. Amid the ongoing debate about where we should be racing, few dispute that 14 years after its debut the event remains an important event on the calendar.

The Marina Bay track has tended to produce processional races but, like Monaco, it’s a real challenge for the drivers, especially in the energy-sapping humid conditions. A mistake is never far away and the possibility of a safety car creating a strategic opportunity for someone is always there.

Historically high attrition also means that points are potentially available to teams and drivers who usually hover just outside the top 10.

“Singapore is super-tough. It’s the race that I think of when I need some motivation in the gym.”

After being away for a couple of years, drivers will require a few laps to dial themselves in on Friday. It will be a completely new experience for Mick Schumacher, Nicholas Latifi, Yuki Tsunoda and Zhou Guanyu, none of whom have raced there previously.

Teams have no recent data to which to refer, and of course they are coming back with very different cars, fitted with 18-inch rims that react differently to the kerbs compared to their predecessors. Indeed when you consider that the last Singapore GP was won by Sebastian Vettel in a Ferrari you realise that three years is a lifetime in F1 terms…

The track has also been resurfaced by Italian specialists Dromo, and it remains to be seen what impact that will have both on the bumps and on how tyres behave.

In fact the resurfacing is only partial. It includes the full width of the pit straight to just after Turn 1, from Turn 5 to just before the braking point for Turn 7, from Turn 12 to Turn 13, from the braking point for Turn 14 through to the exit of the corner, and finally from Turns 15 to 19. That still leaves a section of the track untouched, and potentially creates some tricky transitions between old and new.

“Singapore is all about slow corners and maximising traction” says Pirelli’s Mario Isola. “We’ve got the three softest compounds for maximum speed and grip, but looking after the rear tyres in order to ensure the drive needed will be key.

“With the tendency of the latest cars to understeer, it will be even more important to find the right set-up balance to ensure a strong front end without compromising acceleration at the rear.”

The big question is how the 2022 cars will behave in terms of bouncing and porpoising. It was a major issue at Baku and Montreal, similar temporary tracks with long straights and bumps. It’s been less of a topic since then, partly because of the FIA’s efforts to oblige teams to dial it out, and partly because of the nature of the venues we’ve been to recently.

“It’s going to be very bumpy,” said Esteban Ocon. “A big challenge I think for us, very physical. I love Singapore, but the track itself is not my favourite. They are go-karts on kerbs, it’s going to be a tricky one.