Sep 23, 2008 - 4:18 PM
2 shoutsSeptember 28, 2008 Singapore street circuit Singapore Race 14 of 17 in Grand Prix Series
Laps: 61 Track length: 3.15 miles Race length: 192 miles
DRIVERS TO WATCH ----------------
Fernando Alonso (Spain) Team: Renault 2008 Points: 28 (7th)
Two-time champion has struggled in return to Renault with just three top fives all season - fourth places at the season opener at Australia, Hungary and Italy; retired in Spain and Canada and has a pair of sixth and eighth place finishes; had a tumultuous 2007 season with McLaren, but still managed to finish third overall; had the same points as teammate Lewis Hamilton, but lost the tiebreaker for second place; won four times last season, but relationship with team and Hamilton deteriorated after Ferrari spy scandal affair and returned to Renault for 2008 season; won consecutive titles in 2005-06 with Renault; won six races in 2006 and seven in 2005.
Lewis Hamilton (Britain) Team: McLaren 2008 Points: 78 (1st)
Ran seventh at Italy and leads Felipe Massa by a mere point atop the standings; finished second at the Grand Prix of Europe and won the British and German Grands Prix; was involved in a pit road incident with Kimi Raikkonen and retired from the Canadian Grand Prix; opened the season with a dominant win at Australia then ran fifth at Malaysia and 13th in Bahrain; bounced back to finish second at Turkey; had a stunning rookie season, scoring podiums in his first nine races; won four times and captured six poles to outperform more heralded former teammate Fernando Alonso; was the favorite to win the championship last year until errors in final two rounds dropped him to second place behind Raikkonen; retired from the race at China to give his teammate and Raikkonen the chance to steal the crown; won at Japan to open a 12-point lead over Alonso with two races left; made history at Canada where he became the first black driver to win a Formula One race; followed that victory in Canada by winning the United States Grand Prix.
Nick Heidfeld (Germany) Team: BMW Sauber 2008 Points: 53 (5th)
Ran second to teammate Robert Kubica at Canada; finished 5.4 seconds behind Hamilton to claim second at Australia and was runner-up to Hamilton in Britain; was sixth at Malaysia, fourth in Bahrain and Germany, and fifth in Turkey; finished fifth at Italy and moved up to fifth in the standings; was the best of the rest behind the Ferrari and McLaren drivers last year after an impressively consistent season for BMW, finishing fifth overall; did not win last season as best race of the season was at Canada where he finished second; had consecutive fourth-place finishes at Italy and Turkey and was third in Hungary; opened the year with three consecutive fourth place finishes at Australia, Malaysia and Bahrain; forced to retire at Spain and the United States Grand Prix; has nine top-five finishes in 17 starts last year.
Robert Kubica (Poland) Team: BMW Sauber 2008 Points: 64 (3rd)
Won his first race at Canada and took over the top spot in the standings; win at Canada was made more impressive after he was injured in a scary crash at the same track a year ago; followed win by running fifth in France; finished third at the Grand Prix of Italy and currently sits third in the standings; finished sixth overall last year in his first full Formula One season; opened the season by retiring at Australia, but has finished in the top five in every race since; ran second at both Malaysia and Monaco; was third at Bahrain and fourth at both Spain and Turkey.
Felipe Massa (Brazil) Team: Ferrari 2008 Points: 77 (2nd)
Picked up his fourth win of the season at the Grand Prix of Europe then ran sixth at Italy to move within a point of leader Lewis Hamilton; rebounded from an awful start to the season by winning at Bahrain and Turkey; completed only 29 laps before retiring at Australia with engine issues; also retired at Malaysia by spinning out early; posted three wins and six poles last season, but reliability issues and a disqualification in Canada put him out of title contention and he wound up fourth; contract with Ferrari runs until 2010; retired from the Italian Grand Prix with suspension problems, dropping to fourth place in the standings; last year bounced back from a 13th-place finish at Hungary by winning in Turkey; had 11 top five finishes in 17 starts last season.
Kimi Raikkonen (Finland) Team: Ferrari 2008 Points: 57 (4th)
Retired from the Grand Prix of Europe with engine issues and ran ninth at Italy, falling to fourth in the standings; retired at Canada after a pit road incident with Lewis Hamilton then finished second at France, fourth in Great Britain and sixth at Germany; opened defense of his title by running eighth at Australia, completing just 53 laps before having engine problems; bounced back to win at Malaysia, ran second at Bahrain and third in Turkey; won first appearance for Ferrari in Australia last season then went on to win five more times; biggest win came at the season-ending event at Brazil, which gave him his first drivers title by a single point over Hamilton; trailed Hamilton by seven points entering final race; had 14 top-five finishes in 17 starts last season; joined Ferrari after spending five years with McLaren where he went winless in 2006.
From the Bleachers
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EasternPA
First ever F1 race in Singapore and first ever F1 race under the lights! Very exciting!
Sep 27 6:38 PM -
