The changes make Singapore's street circuit better and safer

The Straits Times, September 29, 2007
By Steve Slater



SAFETY is the main reason for the changes in Singapore's Formula One race route.

It is, of course, paramount in the design and subsequent approval of a track by the sport's governing body, the International Automobile Federation (FIA).

The biggest change in its design is the fact that the race will run anti-clockwise. That makes it just one of three tracks on the Formula One calendar to run in that direction.

Singapore will stand alone as the only anti-clockwise street circuit. Turkey and Brazil are both permanent facilities.

This change allows larger run-off areas - sections of either tarmac or speed-absorbing gravel, which 'catch' an out-of-control car before it hits the crash barriers.

It will mean that the corner next to the Singapore Flyer becomes the last turn of the lap, where a bigger run-off area will be available.

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It also means better run-off areas at the end of the Esplanade Bridge and on Stamford Road, where the cars will be almost passing in opposite directions.

That has got to be one of the best places to watch the race. Cars will be coming and going in four different directions. No other circuit in the world can offer that experience.

For the drivers, there are going to be two corners that set this track apart. The first is on Raffles Boulevard, where the kink in the road in front of the Pan Pacific Hotel is going to be a flat-out, top-gear, 300kmh challenge.

The other is where the cars sweep from Stamford Road onto St Andrew's Road.

That corner is a beauty. Long and flowing, it will be taken at well over 200kmh and will be vital to maintaining speed along a critical straight by the Padang.

The area in front of the Old Supreme Court will make as good a backdrop for photographers as Monaco's famous Casino Square. Of course, there will be the unique images of the cars racing across the Anderson Bridge.

It makes the Singapore race special even before we factor in the strong likelihood of a night race, which would make the track truly unique.

As a street circuit, it is natural to make the comparison with Monaco but, from a driver's point of view, this will be a very different track.

Monaco is narrow, tight and twisting, with almost no margin for error if anything goes wrong and little likelihood of overtaking.

Singapore will offer different challenges. The narrowest parts of the Singapore circuit, at the Anderson Bridge and the Floating Platform, are both wider than the best bits of Monaco.

As for overtaking, the right turn at the end of the Esplanade Bridge, the left turn at the top of Raffles Boulevard and Turn One, the first corner after the purpose-made pits, all look likely spots for a daring out-braking manoeuvre.

Two weeks ago, Damien Smith, editor of Autosport, one of the world's premier motor racing magazines, visited Singapore.

This is what he told his readers: 'On paper, Singapore and F1 are a perfect fit. As a spectacle, the mix of Grand Prix car on a challenging street circuit - in a city that combines ultra-modernity with classic colonial grandeur, all lit dramatically at night - should make this race the best on the calendar.'

Well said.

That's why yesterday's announcement is so important. It marks the clear signal that work can now start in earnest of turning the track into a winner with drivers and spectators alike.

There have been a few small changes to the track design since its original announcement in May, but certainly no more than you might expect, with a project still in its design stages.

The great thing is that the changes have made the track both safer and better.


Steve Slater is the colourful half of the popular F1 commentary duo on STAR Sport