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F1 (Round 15) – Highlights Of The 2019 Singapore Grand Prix And Results

♦ A 1-2 finish for Ferrari in Singapore and for Sebastian Vettel to stand at the top of the podium – which he has not done since August last year.

♦ ‘Unfair’ was how Charles Leclerc felt when the Ferrari team allowed Vettel to undercut him and come into the pits one lap earlier, resulting in Leclerc losing his lead.

♦ Lewis Hamilton managed only fourth among the finishers but his strong points lead still gives him a comfortable buffer for the remaining rounds.

♦ Although his qualifying time got him eighth place on the starting grid. Daniel Ricciardo was disqualified and dropped to last position. This was due to the MGU-K of the Renault exceeding the power limit during the qualifying session.

Mercedes-AMG GT R — *The AMG GT R is the 11th Official F1 Safety Car provided by Mercedes-AMG over the past 23 years. It is the quickest Safety Car in the sport’s history so far.*

Next race in Russia on September 29

6 challenges racing at the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore

The F1 races in Malaysia and Singapore have always been physically the toughest due to the high temperatures and high humidity. This year, the drivers must also cope with the haze though it does not seem to have been mentioned as much of a problem.

The steel beams underpinning the concrete of the Esplanade Bridge are magnetised and the magnetic fields created are strong enough to interfere with some sensors on the cars. Therefore, teams replace some sensors with special sensors that are less susceptible to interference. In order to prevent the magnetic field impacting the hydraulic valves in the gearbox, they are shielded with what’s called ‘mu metal’ (a special nickel alloy which is effective against magnetic fields) – only used in Singapore.

The first ever F1 race at night was run at the Marina Bay Circuit in 2008. There were concerns about whether the lighting conditions would be good enough to ensure safety, especially on a narrow street circuit. The organisers installed 1,600 lighting projectors around the circuit and no one has ever complained of conditions being unsafe due to inadequate illumination.

Drivers can lose around 3 kgs of weight through sweating over the course of the race, due to the incredibly high temperatures and humidity. Fluid loss is also a factor for team members, so keeping hydrated is crucial. The recommended amount of fluid intake on a hot day ranges from three to five litres.

Drivers change gear about 62 times during one lap of the Singapore circuit, the second most number among current circuits. In the 2018 race, Lewis Hamilton completed 3,100 gear changes and Valtteri 4,140.

The drivers and crews do not change their ‘body clock’ to Singapore time, which means that when the race starts in the evening, it will be like their usual afternoon timing in European events. Therefore they stick to European time and routines, having breakfast at midday and lunch around 6 pm. Dinner times vary depending on the day and workload but are usually from 1 am onwards. The drivers will go to bed around 6 am to get 8 hours of sleep.

F1 (Round 15) – 2019 Singapore Grand Prix Starting Grid

Race starts at 8:10 pm Singapore/Malaysia time on Sunday

UPDATE FOR STARTING GRID: Daniel Ricciardo starts from last position due to disqualification for exceeding the MGU-K power limit during qualifying.

Previous Winners Of The Singapore Grand Prix
2008: Fernando Alonso (Renault)
2009: Lewis Hamilton (McLaren Mercedes)
2010: Fernando Alonso (Ferrari)
2011: Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Renault)
2012: Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Renault)
2013: Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Renault)
2014: Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-AMG)
2015: Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari)
2016: Nico Rosberg (Mercedes-AMG)
2017: Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-AMG)
2018: Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-AMG)

F1 (Round 14) – Highlights Of The 2019 Italian Grand Prix And Results

♦ Second consecutive victory for 21-year old Charles Leclerc. He also gave Ferrari its first win on home ground after 9 years.

♦ Although under attack from both Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas at different stages of the race, Leclerc stayed cool and remained out of reach to take the chequered flag.

♦ Sebastian Vettel’s race was one he would want to forget. After losing control of his car at a chicane, he was involved in a collision with Racing Point’s Lance Stroll got him a 10-second penalty.

♦ Although Ferrari seems to be competitive enough, the improvements being made to their car can’t be fast enough to collect more wins before the season ends, especially if circuits are tight with lots of corners.

♦ Daniel Ricciardo’s fourth placing was the best for Renault since the carmaker returned to F1 in 2016.

♦ The McLaren team was fined 5,000 euros (about RM23,000) for an unsafe release that caused Sainz to retire from the race.

Next race in Singapore on September 22

F1 (Round 14) – 2019 Italian Grand Prix Starting Grid

Race starts in Italy at 3:10 pm/9:10 pm in Malaysia

Audi’s new all-electric Formula E racing car previewed before public unveiling

When the next Formula E season starts in November, Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler drivers Daniel Abt and Lucas di Grassi will pilot a new e-tron FE06 all-electric racing car with a spectacular new look. The car will be unveiled publicly for the first time at the Frankfurt International Motorshow next week but Audi is giving a preview of its new colours and evolutionary technology. Its first race will be in Ad Diriyah (Saudi Arabia) on November 22/23.

With plenty of visible carbonfibre and a conspicuously bright orange livery to accentuate the lines across the whole car, the e-tron FE06 clearly appears even more aggressive than its predecessor in Abt and di Grassi achieved the runner-up position in the championship during last season.

“Compliments to the design team at Audi,” said Abt, the most successful German Formula E driver. “I’ve been keeping track of the visual development over the last few weeks and think the result is brilliant – the car simply looks aggressive and fast.”

New appearance but continuity in all other respects
While Audi pursued new paths with the design, including the selection of the orange that takes cues from the colour palette in which the road-going Audi e-tron was previously presented, the team relies on continuity in all other respects.

A new partner of the team is SONAX, a manufacturer of carcare products which has been closely linked to motorsport for decades and also supported Abt during his still young career. “We’re delighted that a new chapter is being opened in our long-standing partnership with ABT and that we’ll be able to present ourselves as a partner of the Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler team in Formula E in the future. The fascinating environment of the series provides our brand with great prospects of reaching even more potential customers worldwide,” said SONAX Head of Marketing, Franz Fischer.

The schedule before the first race is tight. Following the intensive private testing phase in Germany and Europe and the preparation of the two racing cars during the next few weeks, the team will travel to Valencia in the middle of October for the official 3-day Formula E pre-season test for all of the teams and drivers. At the beginning of November, the cars and equipment will then be loaded to be air-freighted to Ad Diriyah.

F1 (Round 13) – Highlights Of The 2019 Belgian Grand Prix And Results

♦ Charles Leclerc’s win at Spa brings the total number of victories at the Belgian GP for Ferrari to 18, the most of any team.

♦ The death of Anthoine Hubert in an accident during the Formula 2 race was a tragedy that hit Leclerc especially hard because of their close friendship. 5 years earlier, Leclerc also lost his godfather, Jules Bianchi, who died after an accident in the Japanese Grand Prix.

♦ Max Verstappen was knocked out at the start of the race after contact with Kimi Raikkonen’s Alfa Romeo. However, the Dutchman, currently third in the championship standings, did not blame Raikkonen for the incident which damaged his steering.

♦ After it was clear that Sebastian Vettel was struggling to maintain his pace, the team made the decision that he had to defend Leclerc’s bid for victory, and he followed the team orders.

♦ The tragic death of Anthoine Hubert on Saturday affected the whole F1 community and Daniel Ricciardo revealed that he had almost decided not to race on Sunday.

♦ In the final lap, Sergio Perez and Alexander Albon had a close fight to try to improve their positions which caught the attention of the stewards. However, they did not receive any penalties after the race, the stewards reporting that ‘each driver described it as hard racing and agreed there was potential danger. In view of the explanations and the successful overtaking move, it was considered there should be no further action’.

Next race in Italy on September 8

F1 (Round 13) – 2019 Belgian Grand Prix Starting Grid

Race starts at 3:10 pm in Belgium/8:10 pm in Malaysia

F1 (Round 12) – 2019 Hungarian Grand Prix Starting Grid

Race starts at 3:10 pm in Hungary/9:10 pm in Malaysia

♦ Max Verstappen will start from pole position with Valtteri Bottas alongside. It’s the first F1 pole position for the 21-year old Aston Martin Red Bull Racing driver.

♦ The 4.38-km circuit is often referred to as ‘Monaco without walls’ because of the tight and twisting layout. This is not good for the Ferraris as their downforce is not as strong as the leading rivals.

♦ Improved aerodynamics on the Williams cars have helped George Russell perform better. This is especially important on the Hungaroring circuit’s flowing sequences of slow and medium-speed corners and frequent changes of direction. The teams are using the highest levels of downforce seen all year at a purpose-built track to Hungary.

♦ The Ferrari team is concerned about tyres. The circuit layout also places relatively high lateral loads on tyres and that, allied to often high track temperatures, means that rubber is put under some stress. Sebastian Vettel expects it to be a very difficult race today in terms of tyre management and given the characteristics of the car.

♦ This will be the last round before the teams take a summer break. The next race will be in Belgium on September 1.

♦ As the team managers enjoy their holiday break, they will also be thinking about the driver line-up for 2020. Although there are rumours of Verstappen moving to Mercedes-AMG, this is unlikely to happen and the team’s boss will be looking at retaining Bottas or letting current reserve driver Esteban Ocon partner Lewis Hamilton.

F1 (Round 11) – Highlights of the 2019 German Grand Prix and Results

♦ Rain created a drama-filled race which delighted spectators who had not seen so much action in a while.

♦ Aston Martin Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen collected his second win of the 2019 season. The Dutch driver has won 7 F1 races to date.

♦ Lewis Hamilton, who was ill, finished 11th but got promoted two positions up as a result of 30-second penalties imposed on both Alfa Romeo drivers for start-line offences.

♦ Robert Kubica’s promotion to tenth place gave the Williams team, powered by Mercedes engines, its first point of the season.

♦ Russian driver, Daniil Kvyat, had two reasons to celebrate after the race. First was his unexpected third place after a chaotic race and second was the birth of his first child the same day.

♦ The event might not have been run this year had Mercedes-Benz not come in to provide support as the main title sponsor and provided much-needed financial support.

Piston.my

FIA

F1 (Round 15) – Highlights Of The 2019 Singapore Grand Prix And Results

6 challenges racing at the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore

F1 (Round 15) – 2019 Singapore Grand Prix Starting Grid

Race starts at 8:10 pm Singapore/Malaysia time on Sunday

F1 (Round 14) – Highlights Of The 2019 Italian Grand Prix And Results

F1 (Round 14) – 2019 Italian Grand Prix Starting Grid

Race starts in Italy at 3:10 pm/9:10 pm in Malaysia

Audi’s new all-electric Formula E racing car previewed before public unveiling

F1 (Round 13) – Highlights Of The 2019 Belgian Grand Prix And Results

F1 (Round 13) – 2019 Belgian Grand Prix Starting Grid

Race starts at 3:10 pm in Belgium/8:10 pm in Malaysia

F1 (Round 12) – 2019 Hungarian Grand Prix Starting Grid

F1 (Round 11) – Highlights of the 2019 German Grand Prix and Results

Next race in Hungary on August 4

F1 (Round 15) – Highlights Of The 2019 Singapore Grand Prix And Results

6 challenges racing at the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore

F1 (Round 15) – 2019 Singapore Grand Prix Starting Grid

F1 (Round 14) – Highlights Of The 2019 Italian Grand Prix And Results

F1 (Round 14) – 2019 Italian Grand Prix Starting Grid

Audi’s new all-electric Formula E racing car previewed before public unveiling

F1 (Round 13) – Highlights Of The 2019 Belgian Grand Prix And Results

F1 (Round 13) – 2019 Belgian Grand Prix Starting Grid

F1 (Round 12) – 2019 Hungarian Grand Prix Starting Grid

F1 (Round 11) – Highlights of the 2019 German Grand Prix and Results

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