The streets of Marina Bay present a formidable challenge for man and machine – the twisty street circuit that snakes its way through the hot and humid metropolis places enormous stress on the driver and turns races into endurance events for their cars.
Worse, however, is that in 2015 the sport will be faced with a new threat in the already challenging tropical climes, because dense, low-hanging smog has engulfed the city-state in the week leading up to the race.
The smoky haze has wafted across from controlled burns in Indonesia, but has persisted over Singapore at levels considered unhealthy by the nation’s pollutant standards index after peaking on the Monday before the race.
The fire zones have been water bombed by Indonesian helicopters with a special “cloud-seeding” chemical in an attempt to prompt rain that might wash the haze from the air.
The challenge for Formula One is twofold, with both visibility during the night race – and the smog is reportedly heavier at night and visibility issues exacerbated by the light reflecting off the haze particles – and also the obvious health issues presenting issues for the running of the race.
“In the event that the haze caused visibility, public health or operational issues, Singapore GP would work closely with the relevant agencies before making any collective decisions regarding the event,” said the Singapore Grand Prix promoter in a statement.
The decision as to whether any session can be run will be down to FIA race director Charlie Whiting, who has curtailed running in the past due to air quality too poor for the medical helicopter to take off in India in 2013, and for whom the air quality for the annual Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai is perpetually a consideration.
Assuming the grand prix can get underway unhindered, the ball will be firmly in Ferrari’s court to capitalise on the progress it made at the Italian Grand Prix.
Both the Scuderia and Mercedes brought new power unit iterations to the last round, with Ferrari seemingly making a bigger step to close the gap to the runaway championship leader.
With Singapore presenting a challenge that is far more chassis-oriented as opposed to favouring horsepower, the fight at the front ought to be fiercer this weekend.
The circuit will play into the hands of Red Bull Racing, slowed as it is by its struggling Renault power unit, by allowing it to play to its aerodynamic strengths – just as it did last year when Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo finished second and third for RBR behind Lewis Hamilton.
But the spotlight will fall on one man: Nico Rosberg, who took a 22-point lead into this race last year, but this season trails teammate Hamilton by a whopping 53 points.
Just seven rounds remain for the German to overhaul his title rival’s bid for a second consecutive championship, but with Hamilton in a purple patch of momentum, time may prove too short to rescue the 2015 world championship.
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