After two seasons of forced absence due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Singapore Grand Prix returns to Formula 1 stronger than ever, seeking to leave a historic edition in the official return of the Grand Circus to Southeast Asia. The rain, without a doubt, will play a key role in this situation, as a result of the multiple precipitations that have conditioned the entire weekend, and that will also be the protagonists this Sunday.
If a Belgium 2021 situation can be avoided, the competitors will face a difficult event with the potential for multiple surprises, the kind of racing in which the poleman always has more to lose than the rest. All eyes will therefore be on Charles Leclerc, whose previous 17 pole positions have only translated into five wins, and who is looking to start reversing that dynamic from today.
Seven places behind, Max Verstappen starts, after Red Bull’s blunders in qualifying yesterday. This fact has greatly complicated the particular scenario that would proclaim the Dutchman champion today with a five-race advantage, since he needs the victory and for Leclerc himself to fall to the position from which he starts. In turn, his teammate Sergio Pérez must also collaborate by staying off the podium, and the Mexican is precisely the one who accompanies Leclerc on the front line.
In yesterday’s very even classification, Lewis Hamilton was very close to ringing the big bell, and his third starting position represents perhaps a unique opportunity to aspire to end his victory drought in 2022. Of course, he will have to defend himself at the beginning of the Spanish double threat, with a motivated and paced Carlos Sainz who wants to go for it all, and a Fernando Alonso who is fully in his element in the water in Singapore. His Alpine has worked like a charm all weekend, and a drawer is not out of the question in his case either.
All of them will have to overcome the tough challenge of Marina Bay, an appointment that in the dry is usually around or more than two hours, but that in the wet can become almost literally an endurance test. Its mid-speed corners, treacherous accelerations, blind spots and overtaking opportunities invite drivers to make mistakes under the lights, and only the smartest will make it today… if it’s raced.