Report: “Getting back into the rhythm” of Singapore

Formula One cars have returned to the Marina Bay Street Circuit for the first time since 2019 and there was plenty of action on track during Friday’s two practice sessions.

Alex Albon was back behind the wheel for the first time since suffering respiratory failure after treatment for appendicitis. He and Nicholas Latifi completed 88 laps between them on this unforgiving street venue.

Our duo finished P16 and P20 across FP1 and FP2 respectively, and Dave Robson, Head of Vehicle Performance, was pleased with the progress both made as the sun set in Singapore.

“It has been good fun getting back into the rhythm of a Singapore race weekend,” Dave shared, adding: “The track hasn’t changed too much but getting the most out of these cars is a little different.

“We’ve made a reasonable start but there is a long way to go and a few more avenues to consider tonight. “There is potentially some weather around over the next few days that might also affect our plans.

“Even if the sessions remain dry, then we will need to ensure that we evolve the setup and the tyre management to match the track evolution.”

Alex recorded a best time of 1:45.144 during FP2, but understandably he was happy with getting through his first day back in his office, sharing: “I’m feeling okay out there today despite everything that’s gone on and think I’m coping better than I expected.

“We had a good amount of long runs but know it’s a quarter of what we’ll be doing come Sunday, so I’ll take advantage of the rest tomorrow.

“We know where we’re struggling with the car but think it has more potential in it, despite coming here knowing we’re a little more behind what we had in Monza.

“This is a downforce sensitive circuit which doesn’t tend to go in our favour, with 23 corners there’s not a lot of time to get that lap time back.

“We’ve got some research and homework to do tonight and think Q2 would be a big success tomorrow.”

Nicky is making his Singapore debut this weekend and offered his immediate thoughts on one of F1’s biggest tests, saying: “It’s definitely a challenge out there tonight with a lot of corners and no straights, whilst being pretty bumpy.

“I don’t have any reference points to this track before today but I think it’s going to be a challenge on Sunday, especially with the heat.

“We had a bit of a messy day starting with a telemetry issue in FP1, which cost a bit of lap time and offset our run, followed by a seatbelt issue in FP2, requiring me to come back in.

“There are some things we tried which didn’t work so well but know there are some improvements to be made from my side before the weekend.”

Jamie Chadwick headed into the weekend on the brink of securing a third-successive W Series title and topped practice around the streets of Marina Bay over half a second clear of her nearest competitor.