Fernando Alonso’s future has been one of the main talking points of the season. After Alonso won the 2006 title with Renault, he had a difficult year at Mclaren, which hurt his reputation a little.

Alonso now wants to get back into a competitive race seat as quickly as possible, and start challenging for championships again. His career has derailed slightly and he wants to get it back on track.

The decision is made more difficult by the fact that it is hard to predict which teams will do well next season. With the huge 2009 rule changes, there could be a shift in the current pecking order. It is like starting from a fresh piece of paper as opposed to simply upgrading their current packages, as we saw between 2007 and 2008.

Alonso had been linked with Ferrari, likely his dream destination, for months on end, but that option went for naught with Kimi Raikkonen renewing his contract.

BMW Sauber would also have been a very competitive team to join, but they have just recently announced that they are keeping both of their drivers. Red Bull was once linked with signing up the Spaniard, but they opted against making it and signed Sebastian Vettel instead.

So, as it stands, Fernando Alonso has two options for next season. The first one is to stay with Renault and hope the team can continue their current fight back and challenge for the championship once again.

The second is to take a big gamble with Honda which, under Ross Brawn, wants to fight for championships within the next two or three years. Of course, tabloids will carry on suggesting that a seat at Ferrari is possible. But realistically, it is between Renault and Honda.

Maybe if it wasn’t for his responses to certain situations last season, Alonso may have some better options right now. However, it does seem Ferrari and BMW Sauber have some worries at the back of their head about what happened at Mclaren in 2007.

Therefore, they have opted for the safe approach and have chosen for the stability option in terms of their drivers.

Fernando Alonso has said that he won’t be making any decision until after Brazil. So, should he stay at Renault or go for Honda?

Let's look at the positives and negatives of both Renault and Honda.

Renault

Positives

 

Fernando Alonso is very used to this team. He feels right at home there and all the team mechanics love having him. Renault is the only team to have beaten Mclaren and Ferrari in the last decade. They have had the experience of being in a tight title fight and know what it takes to get across the line first.

The key word for Alonso here is stability. Stability is important for anyone in the workplace, whatever and wherever it may be. He doesn’t have to start the season in an alien environment and build new relationships from scratch. Driving for a third team in as many years could be unsettling for Alonso.

Alonso only likes to be the No. 1 driver in a team. This shouldn’t be a problem should he stay. Either Nelson Piquet Jr. or a new graduate from GP2 will likely occupy the second seat.

If Piquet remains in the team, this will not be an issue. Alonso has beaten Piquet in every single qualifying session this season. Piquet has rarely even challenged Alonso.

Lucas Di Grassi and Romain Grosjean are both the possible graduates from GP2. However, neither has displayed anywhere the level talent that Lewis Hamilton displayed whilst he was in GP2.

Renault have recently showed that they are still capable of improving the car and fighting back. At the beginning of the 2008 season, Renault was over a second off the pace of the leaders. Over the last few races, this gap has been closed considerably. At Fuji they were only three or four tenths of second off the ultimate pace.

Importantly, they have now shown that they have recovered from their problems of the last couple of years. They struggled when Mass Dampers were banned in the middle of 2006. Since Michelin left the sport, adapting to the Bridgestones has been a huge struggle.

Plus there have been problems with wind tunnel calibration (results shown in the wind tunnel not being reflected in on-track performance). These problems seem to be behind them.

The wins at Singapore and Fuji have definitely changed the team. Everyone seems much happier and optimistic about the future. The level of motivation will now be a lot higher, so Renault could potentially go into 2009 in a strong position.

Negatives

One of the biggest problems with Renault currently is its engine. Over the season, other teams have managed to find loopholes to improve their performance, whereas Renault didn’t do so.

Therefore, they have fallen behind in performance on the engine front. However, this negative may not exist next season as the teams and the FIA are seeking to equalize the engine performance from next season.

One of the biggest issues could well be Renault’s long-term commitment. At the main headquarters, they are trying their hardest to cut back on costs. This could affect the F1 team’s budget or its existence altogether. As it is, Renault does not have the sheer amount of money or facilities that Mclaren, Ferrari, and even Toyota have.

With Renault’s recent comeback, this may motivate the boss at Renault to carry on investing in an F1 team and maybe even increase the budget. Alonso will certainly need assurances on this, as lack of stability saw at Renault him initially sign with Mclaren for 2007.

Flavio Briatore will also be stepping back next season to a lower role at Renault. Briatore has been a brilliant boss for Renault and he has had a major influence on the team over the years.

How will this affect the team’s progress? Key team members, like Pat Symonds and Bob Bell, aren’t getting any younger. How much longer will they be in the big roles? Symonds has already stepped back slightly recently.

Renault has been working flat out over the whole of 2008 to improve the car to get to the point they are now. As mentioned, the regulations changes are huge. Has Renault put too much effort in 2008 to the detriment of the 2009 project?

Other teams have been putting a lot of effort into 2009 from a very early stage. The biggest teams have been able to work on both 2008 and 2009 at the same time. It could be that Renault may end up being behind on 2009 developments.

The team has had to show Alonso that they are making great progress in order to persuade him to stay on. If they had given up on 2008, then their goal of keeping Alonso could have been negatively affected.

Honda

 

Positives

 

Ross Brawn being the principal at Honda is the main positive. He has already made a lot of changes at Honda. The signs are that, overall, Honda is a much more efficient operation than it was before he took over the team.

From the offset, it was clear to see how much of an immediate impact he made. Just before the first race, he contributed greatly to adding a second’s worth of extra pace onto the car. The team has changed its way of working for the better.

Ross Brawn is very good at working with drivers and having strong relationship with them. He built a very close relationship with Michael Schumacher, which lasted many years. Brawn is a big and dominant personality; if anyone can build a strong relationship with Alonso and keep him on the straight and narrow, it has to be Ross Brawn.

Since those aforementioned upgrades, Honda has mainly been putting its focus on the 2009 car. Reports suggest that they have up to 5 separate wind tunnels working on the car.

Another big plus is that Honda is said to be quite a margin ahead of the other teams with KERS development (Kinetic Energy Recovery System). Other teams (notably Ferrari) have come out and admitted that they are struggling with the system and may not have it ready for the start of the season.

The difference between a good and bad system could be worth a big chunk of time. Ross Brawn is renowned for his ability to adapt to new regulations

Honda also has a huge budget, which is another major plus point over Renault. With a huge amount of technical changes a lot of money is needed. Honda effectively throw whatever money at the F1 project that is needed. Honda’s facilities are very strong and up there with the likes of Ferrari and Mclaren in this department.

Honda are desperate to succeed in F1, and spending big to hire Ross Brawn emphasizes that desire to win in F1. Honda have won in other areas of motor sport. They now want to add F1 to their list.

Negatives

Of course, settling into a new team is always extremely difficult, and it would take a while for Alonso to feel at ease with Honda. Alonso never really adapted to how Mclaren worked. Would he be able to get Honda to work for him and build a good and close relationship with those around him?

The biggest issue with joining Honda is the big gamble that comes with it. At the moment, Honda is only just ahead of Force India on pace. Therefore, to believe that Honda can move up five or six rows in one season is putting a lot of faith in them.

Apart from Ross Brawn, much of the same team of engineers who were responsible for the slow cars of this and last season are still there. There hasn't been a whole host of new staff that have come with Ross Brawn.

This lack of new team members and mechanics is unlike his stint with Ferrari, when a host of Benetton staff (where Brawn worked prior to leaving) followed him. Will Brawn’s influence be enough to get the Honda staff to build the car Alonso needs and wants?

Joining the team would be a long-term plan. There is no way Honda can turn from tail end Charlies to champions in one season. It will take two or three years for Honda to be realistically challenging for the title.

Alonso has a lot of hunger for titles and wants to be challenging straight away. In order to achieve success at Honda, he will have to work hard behind the scenes to make it happen. However, if it all comes together, Alonso and Honda could enjoy a long era of success similar to Michael Schumacher and Ferrari.

Fernando Alonso much prefers to be the number 1 driver. At Renault this would certainly be a given. However, at the moment, Honda is pretty much Jenson Button’s team. The team has been built around him and all the team members have a close relationship with him.

Button is also a very capable driver in a quick car and could challenge Alonso. Alonso would also be paired with a British driver (again). This means renewing that poor relationship which Alonso had with the British media and fans.

There is a chance of some instability in the team if Alonso signs. How will Alonso react if Button beats him? How will Button feel if the team he has helped build suddenly just revolves around Alonso? Could it work? 

Honda would want Alonso to commit for the long-term. They don’t want him to sign for a year, only to see him pack his bags and leave. This was one of the reasons why Red Bull was unwilling to sign him.

If Alonso wants to take this almighty gamble, he has to commit for the long term. If he does this and Honda doesn't progress, his career risks stalling even further, and he could end up being stuck.

Conclusion

 

So, after reflecting on the positives and negatives of joining Renault and Honda, which side should Fernando Alonso choose?

With Honda, there is a lot of potential. In a way, the potential is similar to what Ferrari had before Michael Schumacher joined the team.

If Alonso went there in a positive manner and worked well with Ross Brawn, the amount of success they could have together may be endless. However, the element of risk is huge and Alonso would need a big level of commitment.

Alonso simply doesn’t have to take such a huge gamble at this time. If he wasn't to go to Honda, then the team would likely add an extension onto Rubens Barrichello’s contract or give a rookie, such as Bruno Senna, a one-year contract.

Alonso could sign with Renault for an extra year and see how well they adapt in 2009. At the same time, he can look down the pit lane at Honda, and assess the amount of progress they are making. If it looks like Honda are making big strides and Renault isn't, Alonso can rethink his options.

Honda wants Alonso so they will happily put him in the team instead of whoever is in the second Honda seat for 2010. However, if Alonso sees that Honda still isn't going anywhere, he will know that he made the right decision.

He can then think about extending his Renault contract beyond 2010 or, if a sear becomes available in a desirable team, he will be in a position to pursue them.

So basically, this writer’s advice to Fernando Alonso is not to wait until after Brazil to decide, but to pen that contract extension straight away. Don’t commit for more than a season though!

Use next season to assess how things are going. How are Renault and Honda adapting to the 2009 rules? Is there a chance of a vacancy re-appearing elsewhere? He needs to use 2009 to assess what is the best way forward from 2010 onwards. Staying at Renault for the time being would also keep dreams of driving for Ferrari later in his career alive.

Committing long term to Honda now could potentially be career breaking, but could equally be career destroying. It is not worth the gamble at the moment.

It is best for him to stay put, be cautious, and see how things play out first. 

Fernando Alonso took his second victory of the season in style, winning back-to-back Grand Prix's by crossing the line first in this morning's 2008 Japanese Grand Prix.

Having done the same thing as the Singapore Grand Prix by claiming that it would be impossible for him to repeat his victory feat, the Spaniard was again at the right place and right time to take the top step on the podium.

At the start of the race, Ferrari's Kimi Räikkönen was able to get a good start ahead of McLaren's Lewis Hamilton. However, coming up to turn 1, Hamilton out-braked himself and forced Kimi Räikkönen off the racing track.

The McLaren and Ferrari teams were involved in their own battles and that allowed BMW's Robert Kubica and Renault's Fernando Alonso to jump ahead at the chance and took the race lead.

Meanwhile, David Coulthard was the first casualty of the race as he spun on the track with rear suspension failure and a gentle nudge from a Toyota, his Red Bull car shattering before hitting the tyre-wall.

Felipe Massa then led the chase to catch up with Hamilton, while Heikki Kovalainen was settled comfortably in third place behind Robert Kubica and Fernando Alonso.

Massa got alongside Hamilton at turn 11, before running on the chicane and then plunging his nose into the side of Hamilton, putting the Brit into a spin.

As a result, Hamilton had to watch the rest of the field pass by him before he could rejoin the back of the pack.

Massa was then handed a drive-through penalty for this move, while Hamilton was similarly handed a drive-through penalty for forcing Räikkönen wide at Turn 1.

The penalties dropped Massa and Hamilton to the back of the field. However, Massa was on a charge and hungry for any point he could salvage from this disastrous weekend.

He got into a tangle with Toro Rosso's Sebastien Bourdais as the latter came out of the pits, and this incident will be investigated after the race by the stewards, but Ferrari can only keep their fingers crossed that the investigation will not change Massa's eighth-place finish in any way.

Fernando Alonso was later able to jump ahead of Robert Kubica with a well-executed pit strategy. Kubica seemed to be lacking the race pace as he fell further back and was under huge pressure from third-place Kimi Räikkönen. But it could have been a conservative strategy from the Pole, as he later responded and pulled away from the Finn.

Nelson Piquet Jr. drove a quiet but composed race to come in fourth, scoring proud points for the Renault team. Jarno Trulli was the only one left to fly the Toyota flag high as his teammate Timo Glock retired from the race after just seven laps.

McLaren's hopes for scoring any points went up in smoke along with the engine failure of Heikki Kovalainen. The Finn could only wonder what could have been with a good start and taking the third place but it was not to be.

Both Toro Rossos finished sixth and seventh, with Bourdais ahead of Vettel.

Nick Heidfeld was not able to do anything spectacular, and finished in 10th place, ahead of Williams' Nico Rosberg. Rosberg's Japanese teammate, Kazuki Nakajima, was not able to fly the Japanese flag high as he got into a spin at the first lap and had to pit for some repairs. He was subsequently trailing the field and ended the race in last place. 

Robert Kubica had made his displeasure about Hamilton's racing antics clear this weekend with his comments. If anything, the penalty meted out to the Brit will just be yet another reminder to himself that he has to reflect upon his racing tactics.

Victory is one thing, but sportsmanship's another. Formula 1 has no place for dirty racing, and certainly Hamilton does not have to think too hard when he wonders why he has possibly the most number of penalties against him so far.

Hamilton has admitted that he "made a mistake and I paid a price for it," but was unhappy about receiving the same penalty as Felipe Massa when he did not cause anyone to spin with his move, while the Brazilian had put him into a spin.

Perhaps he has a point there, but one must not forget that the victim he forced out (Kimi Räikkönen) had lost out on his good start all because of Hamilton's move.

Räikkönen did not benefit in anyway from Hamilton's penalty, and certainly lost four points thanks to Hamilton's move.

With just two races to go (Grand Prix of China next week and the Brazilian GP on Nov. 2), Ferrari has once again emerged ahead of McLaren in the Constructors' Championship.

Räikkönen scored some vital points for Ferrari, while McLaren failed to get any point out of the Japanese GP. Desperation might just drive Hamilton to commit more silly (and unwarranted) moves on his rivals, and Ron Dennis will certainly need to give a pep-talk to Hamilton if he wants the Drivers' Championship this year for his young star.

  Results
01 F. Alonso Renault 1:30:21.892
02 R. Kubica BMW + 5.200
03 K. Räikkönen Ferrari + 6.400
04 N. Piquet Jr. Renault + 20.500
05 J. Trulli Toyota + 23.700
06 S. Bourdais Scuderia Toro Rosso + 34.000
07 S. Vettel Scuderia Toro Rosso + 39.200
08 F. Massa Ferrari + 46.100
09 M. Webber Red Bull + 50.800
10 N. Heidfeld BMW + 54.100
11 N. Rosberg Williams + 1:02.000
12 L. Hamilton McLaren + 1:18.900
13 R. Barrichello Honda + 1 laps
14 J. Button Honda + 1 laps
15 K. Nakajima Williams + 1 laps
Did not finish
16 G. Fisichella Force India F1 + 46 laps
17 H. Kovalainen McLaren + 51 laps
18 A. Sutil Force India F1 + 58 laps
19 T. Glock Toyota + 60 laps
20 D. Coulthard Red Bull + 67 laps
Times from PlanetF1.com

*Photo: Reuters/Issei Kato

The writer is the editor of F1GPSG.com - the Singapore community fansite for Formula 1.

The 2008 season hasn’t been what the double world champion from Spain wanted.

His fallout with McLaren came at a time when few rides were available; his subsequent choice to return to Renault has seen him struggle to score regular points, let alone compete for race wins and podiums.

However, the team and car has improved as the year has gone on, giving hope that Alonso could at least see the podium this year. At the same time, cases of bad luck and overdriving have caused such opportunities to slip away.

He qualified second in Barcelona and seemed to be poised for a podium in one of his home races. However, a poor race start and first stint dropped him back, and mechanical failure ended his day.

In Monaco, the rain gave him a real chance to show his struggles were due to the car, not the driver. Alonso’s known to be one of the best wet-weather drivers, and he was very fast in the opening laps.

However, an overly optimistic pass attempt on Nick Heidfeld failed; Alonso dropped back, and Alonso finished out of the points.

In Canada, the collision between Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen gave Alonso a chance to get a podium finish. He was in prime position to do so…until he spun exiting the second turn. He failed to finish.

It’s safe to say this is a year Alonso would rather forget.

However, we all got a glimpse of what may be to come from him and Renault next year (if they indeed hit KERS right).

The car performed perfectly (except for a mechanical problem in qualifying), the driver drove perfectly, and the team pitted the car perfectly. Everything that could have gone right…did. It was a dream weekend for Alonso and Renault.

Despite his win and upturn in performance, he still hasn’t decided though where he will drive in 2009. Alonso, a word of advice: it’s apparent to everyone that you want to be the team’s top driver.

Chances are very good that you won’t be at BMW…and a move to Honda might be just plain stupid (given that team’s inability to do anything right in the past two seasons).

Stay at Renault, Alonso. That team is on its way back up. Plus, you could have a small “Michael Schumacher”-type of moniker if you stay on and help get that team back at the front permanently (like what Schumi did for Ferrari).

The 2007 spygate saga has all but labeled Alonso as damaged goods; no team seems to want a driver who could, potentially, go rogue if they don’t fully back him as their No. 1 driver.

Ferrari has already said they want no part of Alonso, even though rumors persisted that they’d sign him to replace Kimi Raikkonen.

BMW Sauber seems happy with their pair of drivers, though Nick Heidfeld may not be there after 2009. Even still, the team has a rising start in Robert Kubica, meaning Alonso wouldn’t get No. 1 treatment if he went there.

We all know that McLaren is totally out of the picture, and I can’t see Alonso taking a seat
“down” the grid. And if he does, his win on Sunday may be his last.

Renault likes you and wants to keep you Alonso. You were the driver who brought that team its first championship since 1995 (back when they were Benneton). You’ve got a good nest egg there. Don’t try leaving again.

Stay put, and you just may be in the hunt for a title next year. The aero rules and introduction of KERS will surely shake up in the grid next year. If you want a possible preview of what could happen, look to 1998, the last time big changes hit F1.

The prior season in 1997 saw Williams and Ferrari dominate. However, the next season, neither team held its form and McLaren were the dominant team.

Why? Likely because they were focused on building a car for “the narrow track” rules of ’98, while Williams and Ferrari were focusing on the ’97 championship(s).

This year, McLaren and Ferrari are the dominant teams. Like with Williams and Ferrari in ‘97, that may not suit them well next year, and could open the door for BMW Sauber, Renault, Red Bull, etc. to have some glory.

Alonso: stay at Renault! Another title could be in your reach.

I've been watching Formula One since I can remember.  I am 22-years-old and I can still remember May 1st, 1994.  I was eight and I don't think I have ever cried so hard in my life.  That was the day I never thought would come, the day my immortal hero was gone, the day Ayrton Senna left this world.

With Senna's death, the F1 world seemed to have a black hole that couldn't be filled. Michael Schumacher burst into the scene that same year and took the next two championships, but then came an era of non-spectacular, non-charismatic champions like Damon Hill, Jacques Villeneuve, and Mika Hakkinen.  Finally, in 2000, we saw Schumi back on top and in 2001 came a driver who looked like he could have some legendary battles with the German, Juan Pablo Montoya.  

However, the Ferrari was unbeatable for four years and the seasons were boring, and the greatest racing series in the world turned into a never-ending red parade.  So in came Fernando Alonso and a Renault team that for two years was king. There was a clear changing of the guard once again. Alonso was bold, brash, and daring, but still, something was missing.  I missed the old two or three team battles, the pure dislike felt by Senna towards Prost, and the great abundance of talent from the 80's and 90's.

And suddenly in 2007, it began to happen.  

Ferrari had two drivers at a similar level, McLaren had two teammates who despised each other, and the bitterness translated beautifully on the track.  It didn't matter whether you were an Alonso fan or a Hamilton fan, you had to love their battles and their Senna-Prost like hatred for one another. In some strange way it was also a perfect ending—Hamilton and Alonso winding up empty-handed, in part due to their struggles against each other, and Raikkonen strolling in, taking the title in the final race.

F1 was back to what it once was, people were bickering and fighting, but most importantly, the talent was incredible on both the dominant teams.  

Could 2008 get any better? It turns out it could. Just add a third dominant team, take Alonso back to the squad that brought him success, and mix in a 21-year-old driver with so much talent who could bring the team that used to be perennial losers, Minardi, their first ever win in Formula One.  

14 years have passed since the light when out on Ayrton Senna's spectacular life.  His talent, along with Prost's retirement in 1993, left Formula One with only sadness and yearning for the times when three, four, and even five drivers battled for championships. Now, the overwhelming talent is back. The charismatic, loved, and hated drivers are out in force and we better brace ourselves for some more years of dramatic, controversy-filled finishes just like when Senna ruled the racing world.

Let's just hope Sebastian Vettel gets into a good car and steps up to the fight as well.

Singapore was a highly anticipated event, and everyone was looking forward to seeing how F1 racing would look at night time, and seeing how big the challenge of the track would be.

People were expecting Valencia to be a great track, but it ended up being rather disappointing. The track lacked character, it was too forgiving to driver errors, and overall it was just bland and didn’t produce a great race.

So the pressure was on Singapore to prove it wouldn’t end up going down the same route as Valencia.

Was Singapore a success?

 

Overall, I thought Singapore’s first weekend was a great success. It beat my expectations by a big margin.

Unlike Valencia, this was a proper street circuit. There were bumps all over the track. The barriers were dangerously close to the track in places, plus there were lots of slow 90-degree corners. These are all the characteristics you expect to find at a street track.

It was great to see drivers being punished for small errors and seeing the amount of work they had to put in over the whole lap. Just like at Monaco, the lap is very busy and there isn’t one moment where the drivers can have a rest.

Add in the heat and the increased length of this race, and the drivers had a huge physical challenge on their hands. At most street tracks, overtaking is very tough, and this was expected to be the same at Singapore.

Instead, we saw a lot of moves going into turn 7 and into turn 1, which was another bonus.

The night racing added to the spectacle, although it didn’t really change the race other than the drivers wearing different visors and having to change their eating and sleeping patterns.

For us at home, the night setting made the cars look shiny and spectacular, and for the first time in a while, we saw sparks coming off the cars. It was almost like a fireworks display.

The other thing to note spectacle wise was being able to see the drivers' faces through the clear visor. You could see the amount of sheer concentration in their eyes.

Many of the recent new tracks have had a lot of money spent on them by the country’s governments, but they haven’t captured the imagination of the fans.

Here in Singapore, the race sold out a long time before the race and you could see the grandstands were full to bursting.

The people of Singapore have really taken to this event, and they will become more knowledgeable F1 fans as time continues and the atmosphere will continue to improve.

For Singapore as a country, they have piled a lot of money and effort into this event. I think in the long run, it will really pay off for them. The uniqueness of the night race and the track cleverly positioned to show off the tourist attractions, will have made the headlines everywhere.

Singapore won’t have been a country people knew much about before the race, but now it has been exposed to millions worldwide.

I think in time more tourists will visit Singapore and we will see a bigger mix of nationalities attending the race. Hosting this race could end up being a very shrewd move by the government and make the work and effort worthwhile.

The only small negatives were the pit lane entrance, which was badly positioned as it was on the racing lane. We saw Heidfeld entering the pit lane legally and in the process inadvertently blocking Barrichello, who was on a hot lap in qualifying.

Heidfeld was very wrongly punished. The pit lane entrance needs a re-design for next season along with the pit lane exit, which joins the racing line. To have this is as the only main fault on the circuit’s first attempt is extremely impressive.

Main stories from the race

 

This was a dramatic GP and in the title race, it could end up being a real turning point. There were a lot of stories that occurred during this race. Lets look at the main ones.

Ferrari have a Singapore “night” mare

 

This is a mega opportunity missed for Ferrari. They will go away from this event feeling really low after a 1-2 finish was there for the taking.

Ferrari were comfortably quicker than McLaren. In the race Ferrari were around 0.5 seconds quicker per lap. The track was still very warm despite it being night time so Ferrari were able to look after its tyres better than McLaren.

Also, Ferrari seemed to have found the sweet spot for the race and the Ferrari was much easier to drive than the McLaren. Therefore, Ferrari’s laptimes were far more consistent than McLaren's.

Hamilton was a little bit ragged at times, especially during qualifying. Massa got a better handle on this circuit.

Massa’s qualifying lap was supreme, six-tenths is a big gap. Hamilton may have been a couple of laps heavier but that doesn’t equal six-tenths difference.

Massa was driving away from Hamilton easily in the first part of the race. Raikkonen was also much quicker than Hamilton and was gaining on him quickly.

Without the Safety Car's intervention, Raikkonen would have very likely jumped Hamilton at the first round of pit stops, and supported Massa for the rest of the race.

Over the race distance with no Safety Cars, I think Hamilton and McLaren would have been very soundly beaten. Pace wise, McLaren had no response to Ferrari.

However Piquet’s crash completely turned the race upside down, and this is where Ferrari’s race fell apart. As soon as the pit lane re-opened after the initial pit lane closure (which hampered Rosberg and Kubica) all the leaders came in.

Ferrari have recently been using a lights system as opposed to the lollipop man. This system already caused controversy in Valencia with two fumbled pit stops there.

The system is normally automated once everyone has finished their jobs, but here it was worked manually. Basically, one of the Ferrari pit crew gave the go-ahead too early and Massa left the pit lane with the hose still on.

Massa was given a green light too soon; he wasn’t at fault whatsoever. It was a simple human error, and one which could prove very costly.

Massa ended up at the back of the snake behind the Safety Car, and problems were confounded when he got a drive-through penalty for an unsafe release in the path of Adrian Sutil.

This is quite ironic, as Sutil was the man Massa was released in the path of in Valencia, where he got away with just a fine on that occasion. From then on, his head was down and he simply never recovered like he should have.

He had a very fast car so he had enough of a time advantage over his rivals in front of him to overtake them, and snatch himself a point or two.

Points scored in these disastrous situations can win championships. Massa simply didn’t deliver and was lucky not to retire when he scraped the wall on the entrance to the tunnel.

Raikkonen had another unusual race. He started slowly but then picked up the pace and looked a sure bet for second place. However the safety car queued him behind Massa in the pits, so he lost ground.

However, he did well to get back to fifth place and would have scored four vital points to keep Ferrari ahead in the constructors championship. But he pushed too hard and made a silly mistake at turn 10 and hit the wall. This ensured that Ferrari scored no points.

This weekend, Massa should have taken the lead of the championship; instead, he is now seven points behind. Ferrari should have extended their lead comfortably in the constructors championship, instead they are now one point behind McLaren.

They have to pick themselves up very quickly and ditch that lights system they currently use for their pit stops. If Ferrari lose both championships, they may well look back at this race.

Alonso returns to glory

 

After a frustrating season, this surprise victory came at a great time for Fernando Alonso. Admittedly, there was a lot of luck involved in this win. However, Alonso was in superb form throughout the weekend and maximized his opportunity.

Alonso had a great chance of starting at the front of grid, but a reliability gremlin in Q2 put him down in 15th on the grid. When Alonso got out of the car, you could see the sheer frustration. If someone had jokingly told him after that session, that he could win the race he would probably have thumped them.

However, a different strategy and perfect timing of the Safety Car played into Alonso’s hands. Alonso started on the soft tyres and on a light load with a potential three-stop race. Alonso made a few places at the start and then got stuck in the Trulli train but did eventually get past him.

When he stopped, he hadn’t made up as many places as he would have liked and lost a lot of ground behind Trulli. Renault decided to change tactics and they gave him nearly 30 laps worth of fuel.

When Piquet crashed and the Safety Car came out he was now suddenly in a great position, as all the drivers on a standard two-stopper came in leaving just the one-stoppers ahead of Alonso.

The one-stoppers gradually made their stops and Alonso took the lead of the race. Hamilton was being held up by Coulthard, which took out Alonso’s most likely rival for victory out of the equation.

Rosberg had to serve a 10-second stop/go, so that was another potential rival out of the way as well. Alonso drove superbly at this stage of the race and built up a big gap worth a full pit stop ahead of the Hamilton/Coulthard battle.

When the Safety Car came out for the second time, Alonso’s big lead evaporated and Hamilton in third place came back into play.

Alonso could have lost the race at this point but when the Safety Car came in he showed no signs of nerves, and shot off away into the distance again and won the race.

He was now on the harder tyres, which were the right tyre choice at this stage of the race. Starting the race on the unfavourable tyre proved to be a very gutsy choice.

Everything may have fallen Alonso’s way in this race but trying to do something different, is the key factor that won Alonso his race. Ironically it was his team mate Piquet crashing that made the gamble work. I am sure Renault didn’t tell Piquet to crash on purpose!

Nevertheless, this was a great drive by Alonso and reminded everyone why he is one of the best drivers in Formula 1. This victory will remind Alonso how much he enjoys F1 and possibly re-motivate him, and revive his career from this point onwards.

This victory is also the huge boast that Renault needed, after a tough time since winning the championship in 2006. Can this be the springboard to a more successful 2009?

Hamilton takes cautious approach

 

Up to the chaos after the safety car deployment, it looked like both Ferrari drivers would thrash Hamilton today. Ferrari were just simply quicker than McLaren.

So this race would have ended up being a case of damage limitation. Ron Dennis pretty much admitted this before the race started and would have been perfectly happy to finish behind Massa.

However the Safety Car and Ferrari’s big pit error played beautifully into Hamilton’s hands, and gave him a big opportunity. In the end Hamilton may have been a bit disappointed he didn’t make full use of the opportunity.

Hamilton lost a lot of time stuck behind David Coulthard and this allowed Rosberg and Alonso to get away. He did eventually pass Coulthard with a spectacular move and went up to third.

When the Safety Car came out at the end of the race there was perhaps a chance of a win. He thought about passing Rosberg but in the end thought better of it. Last season Hamilton may have opted to go for glory but he has learnt from his previous mistakes. Trying to overtake Alonso after their previous history may not have been very wise. With Massa scoring no points Hamilton had to ensure he scored good points rather than crashing and not punishing Ferrari for their errors.

Hamilton now has a seven-point lead in the championship over Massa. This means that Hamilton could finish second to Massa in the last three races and be champion. Considering that Hamilton could have left Singapore three points behind Massa then it’s starting to look quite good. The error in the pits by Ferrari has effectively made a 10-point swing in the Drivers Championship in Hamilton’s favour.

Let's remember that Hamilton lost the lead of the championship with a bigger lead this time last year. However he has learnt a lot since then and matured as a driver so he has a fighting chance to finish the job off.

Red Bull play a blinder and then lose it

 

Red Bull were really shrewd in that as soon as Piquet crashed, they reacted straight away and brought both their men in. They anticipated that the Safety Car would have to be deployed. Initially, after Piquet crashed they was a slight delay before the Safety Car was deployed. This meant there was time for the Red Bull drivers to pit before the Pit Lane was closed.

This allowed them to move up the order and they could have got a giant haul of points. Unfortunately, Mark Webber had a gear problem and was potentially on target for eight points. David Coulthard was running third but a botched pit stop, and then brake problems in the last part of the race meant he could only snatch two points for the team.

It could have been so much better and Red Bull and could have put themselves back into contention for fourth place in the Constructors.

Great drive by Rosberg but was he helped out by the Stewards?

Rosberg got a much-needed result in Singapore. Overall this has been a very disappointing season for him and Williams. During the season, Rosberg has fallen off the radar of other teams after such a great season in 2007.

Here though he qualified solidly in the top 10, and took the lead thanks to the Safety Car period. Unfortunately he had to pit whilst the pits were closed. This meant he would incur a 10-second stop/go penalty more or less straight away and have to sacrifice this lead.

However, the stewards took around 15-20 minutes to give him the penalty in which time he built up a huge gap over Fisichella in 3^rdplace who was holding a lot of drivers up. This allowed Rosberg to take his penalty and still come out in second ahead of Hamilton.

There is no doubt that Rosberg drove exceptionally well. Question marks hang over the amount of time it took the stewards to give a penalty for something that is so clear-cut.

There is no need to deliberate over whether Rosberg pitted whilst the pit lane was closed. Why was the penalty not given immediately?

Had the penalty been given straight away Rosberg’s race would have ended up being completely different. He would have been lucky to come away from the race with any points at all. On another note Hamilton would have finished 2^nd. Some cynics may say that the Stewards have done Hamilton once again and cost him 2 points.

Final Verdict

The first-ever Singapore GP produced a dramatic race. The track was a real unique challenge for the teams and drivers.

This is by far the best new addition to the F1 calendar we have had for quite some time, and goes straight into my top 5 current F1 tracks. Singapore could challenge Monaco for F1’s best street race although I think Monaco will always have the edge due to its rich history and heritage. Everyone will look forward to coming back to Singapore next season.

This race should have been a great win for Ferrari, giving them a hand on both trophies. However, one small human error has given Hamilton and McLaren the advantage going into the final three races. The Ferrari really worked around Singapore, the McLaren didn’t look as strong.

The next two races should suit McLaren, and in Fuji, a dry race is as rare as a wet race in other places. Ferrari have to try and simply stay in touch, or hope McLaren slip up, to have a chance of taking both titles in Brazil. It is still possible for Ferrari, but they have made it much harder for themselves.

Fernando Alonso has told British ITV that his win in this year's Singapore Grand Prix will not influence who he will drive for next year.

Up until a couple of months ago, when Kimi Raikkonen re-signed with Ferrari, there were strong rumors Alonso would be driving a red car out of Maranello next year. However, Alonso isn't short on offers, with BMW and Honda hot on his tail.

"This victory is also thanks to the massive effort the team are making with this year's car and next year's car but it's not changing the decision for next year," he told ITV.

Singapore was Fernando's first race win in exactly a year, and he did it in style after a dismal qualifying session where his Renault's high-pressure fuel pump cut-out placing him fifteenth on the grid for Sunday's race. A clever strategy and assistance from one of the two Safety Car outings saw him take home the winner's trophy.

The double world champion, Alonso, is happy with this improvements made at Renault, but said they had to come.

"We started the season quite far away from pole position and from the top teams and now we are much closer, so we are definitely one of the teams who have most improved their car but maybe it was not difficult because at the beginning of the season we were not at the right level."

The next stage of this year's Formula One sees the teams jet off to Japan for the Fuji Speedway.

According to Alonso, it will be the week after Fuji that the team will find out exactly what the improved Renault engine has to offer.

"I think on a normal circuit we will realize the potential of the car a little bit better than on a street circuit, where it's more about the set-up than how lucky and risky the laps are."

Best of luck to Fernando in the closing stages of this years season, and I'm sure we are all eager to see what Japan has to offer in two-weeks time.

My disdain for street races is reaffirmed by yet another minimal overtaking weekend. Adding to an already boring Monza was Valencia this year.

Singapore under lights with a bumpy track, high kerbs and the usual close barriers made the race more a safety car poker following Nelson Piquet’s crash.

While Felipe Massa lost the most, Fernando Alonso came out with a surprise win, followed by Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton.

The Friday and Saturday practice live on TV gave the audience a glimpse of a floodlit track. All credit to Italian Engineer Valerio Maioli, whose 1,500 light projectors wired with 110km of cable powered by three projectors generating more than a billion watts turning night into day.

While the 22-cornered track boasts of a quick 290km at Turn 6, it is also hard on the carbon disc brakes that take heat up to 800 degrees nearly 16 times during a lap.

At the close of the qualifier, Massa beat his Championship Rival by six-tenths to P1 and was posed to finish 1 point more than Lewis in the table.

For race winner Fernando, a fuel pump issue led to him not setting a time in Q2 forcing him to start at P15.

Kimi, whose championship chances have practically slipped out of his hands, started P3, but who knew that his bad luck would dog him to a nil-point finish for the fourth time in a row?

Felipe Massa had led the race from start and built a lead over Lewis, till his compatriot and Renault driver Piquet crashed into the barriers, calling for a safety car period that continued into the first pit-stop window.

Felipe, Lewis and Kimi entered the pits and as the lights on turned green, Massa took off but with the fuel nozzle attached till the end of the pit lane. Ferrari engineers sprinted and pulled the nozzle out, but his race was finished.

Fernando was the happiest registering, what could possibly be the only win of the year, obviously because he luckily pitted before the safety car came out. Things couldn’t get any better for Renault registering a win after nearly two years and the first at night!

All said and done, I hope F1 limits itself to traditional tracks with adequate run-off areas. It is really not funny to see cars crashing into them, inviting safety cars, and lucky finishes!

A season that has seen seven different race winners from five teams ends in another three races. In the two-horse race, Lewis just extended his lead. He now has 84 points to Felipe’s 77 after the latter’s zero-point Singapore sojourn.

For the team table, after months of arduous effort McLaren has 135, leading by 1 point over double-DNF Ferrari; BMW at 120 have sealed third place. Watch out for more action at Shanghai, Fuji and Interlagos!

After fuel problems meant he had to start from 15th place on the grid, Fernando Alonso defied the odds by winning his first Grand Prix in over a year, when he took the top spot at an action-packed, historic Singapore Grand Prix.

It was the first ever night race in Formula One, one of the most expensive sporting spectacles in history, and by no means did it disappoint.

Just like its predecessors, this Grand Prix was jammed packed with everything. The drama, the crashes, the technical problems, the catastrophic errors from Ferrari, and of course, brilliant driving.

Most people anticipated that this would be a thrilling race, and it was, although not for the reasons most people were expecting.

After Felipe Massa started on pole, with Lewis Hamilton in second, many expected a thrilling race as these two would battle it out for the lead in the WDC with only four races to go.

But thanks to Nelson Piquet and his Renault crashing into the wall, when Massa pitted during while the safety car was out, his race was ruined by an altercation in the pit-stop.

The Brazilian was given the green light to go too early and ended up dragging the fuel hose away with him, as well as knocking down one of his Ferrari crew in the process. This cost him any hope of points in the race as he was delayed considerably before the Ferrari crew managed to pull the hose out of the car.

But despite Massa's woes, and Hamilton securing third place on the podium to extend his gap at the top of the WDC to seven points, the day very much belonged to Fernando Alonso.

On the anniversary of his last Grand Prix victory, the Spaniard defied all odds by winning a thrilling Grand Prix after taking advantage of his teammate's crash and Massa's pit-stop problems.

A brilliant race by Alonso and one that was only topped by Nico Rosberg in his Williams F1. The German bounced back from a stop-go penalty to finish second, ahead of McLaren's Lewis Hamilton.

Kimi Raikkonen compounded a terrible day for Ferrari when he crashed with only four laps remaining, after holding fifth for much of the race.

Toyota's Timo Glock finished fourth, while Toro Rosso's Sebastian Vettel followed up his Italian Grand Prix victory with a fifth place finish in Singapore.

BMW Sauber's Nick Heidfeld finished sixth, while Red Bull's David Coulthard finished seventh, and Kazuki Nakajima of Williams F1 took the last points with his eighth placed finish, in a dramatic, action-packed, historic Singapore Grand Prix.

Sometimes Formula One can be just incredible; today's race at Singapore was one of those times. Fernando Alonso came from 15th on the grid to win his first race of the season in what was also F1's first nighttime race. It could not have been better.

It started off as a race reminiscent of the Schumacher years, with Felipe Massa building up a comfortable lead over Lewis Hamilton, who never looked threatening. However, you could sense that it would not stay like this, and we were proven right before the first set of pit stops.

Nelson Piquet had put his Renault into the wall at turn 17, setting up a chain reaction which caused his teammate to find himself in a winning position.

Alonso had pitted three laps before Piquet's crash, and he had fuelled for a very long time, meaning he ended up fifth.

The pit stops were most notable for Felipe Massa's impression of a Liverpudlian (nine Liverpool players have been burgled in just over two years) when he drove off with the fuel hose his mechanics were fuelling him with. He very kindly stopped at the end the pit lane, so that the mechanics could sprint 500 meters to take it off.

These poor mechanics had to trundle back and forth past every single team, who were no doubt loving it. A mention should go out to the controller of Ferrari's unique semi-automatic pit lane release system, which caused this accident and nearly ruined Adrian Sutil's day. (That gets ruined later.)

Rosberg and Kubica had pitted when the pit lane was closed, so they had to serve 10 second stop-go penalties. Pretty harsh when the alternative is stopping on track when you run out of fuel. Rosberg's penalty actually caused a mild amount of confusion, as he managed to get back out ahead of Hamilton, leading (for one hilarious moment) to the ITV commentators to think he had forgotten to stop.

The next few laps were slightly less eventful, but that is hardly surprising. Then, on lap 50, Massa put his Ferrari into a wall. He spun back onto the track, but Sutil (yes, the one from earlier) had to avoid him, and ended up crashing himself. This brought the safety car out, causing a few nerves at the Renault garage.

Sutil must really hate Ferrari now, as, way back in Monaco, Kimi Raikkonen shunted him put of a points position, near the end of the race.

Ferrari's day went from bad to worse, as Raikkonen misjudged the triple chicane later on, and went into the wall and out of the race.

Alonso held on to his lead, and became the seventh driver to win a race this season. Credit should also be given to Rosberg, who finished second, despite a stop-go penalty; and Sebastian Vettel, who finished sixth to get 14 points from the last two races.

Honda's troubles continued with Barrichello's retiring again; then, as he went to throw his gloves to the crowd, the wind blew them into the sea. Button finished ninth.