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On the week it is anticipated McLaren and Honda will announce a split at the end of the season, both engine supplier and lead driver Fernando Alonso are targeting strong results at the Singapore Grand Prix.

The street circuit at Marina Bay is anticipated to be one of the final realistic opportunities the British team can compete for points as the emphasis will be on a strong chassis rather than power much like it was in Hungary at the end of July when the Spaniard led the midfield in sixth.

The trend has continued to be more positive for McLaren and Honda in recent races, with regular updates to the engine, however, grid penalties and, as Alonso pointed out, poor reliability meant results haven't backed up the better performance.

"We knew the double-header of Spa and Monza would be difficult for us, but three DNFs out of four was still really disappointing," said the double world champion. "Still, we showed better pace than we anticipated, even though we couldn't convert that into points."

Switching focus to this weekend, Alonso, who finished seventh in the city-state race last year, added: "We've now put the European season behind us and we turn our attention to the flyaways which signal the final chapter of the season.

"Singapore is a great place to start, as it's one of the circuits on the calendar that suits our package better than others, and gives us a real chance for a more positive result."

Though the lack of performance may be less of a disadvantage around Marina Bay, the unique challenges of Singapore will still provide a major test for Honda, particularly after recent problems.

"It's tough – hot and humid, and hard on the cars and drivers," Alonso commented. "It's really fun though: bumpy, tight and challenging, but exhilarating when you get it right. You need a car with good traction on the slower corners and a high downforce set-up, so we definitely have a better chance there.

"We just need to make sure we also have the reliability."

The Head of Honda's F1 operation, Yusuke Hasegawa also acknowledged his team still have a key role to play in allowing McLaren the chance to maximise their potential this weekend.

"The car’s overall balance between the power unit and chassis will be the key to a good weekend, so our engineers are hard at work preparing the ideal set-up," he said. "Hopefully we can provide the drivers with a good package so they can be in the hunt for much-needed points."

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Carlos Sainz and Pierre Gasly are refusing to be drawn on reports that both drivers could be on the move from the Malaysian Grand Prix in two weeks time.

Over the weekend, sources revealed Sainz has signed to join Renault for 2018 but that his move could happen as soon as Sepang in a deal that was agreed to compensate Renault for ending their engine deal with junior Red Bull team Toro Rosso and allow McLaren to acquire their power units from next season.  

The reports continued stating that should the Spaniard leave before the end of the year, Gasly, who won last year's GP2 championship, would get his chance at Toro Rosso with Honda junior Nobuhara Matsushita looking to acquire enough superlicence points to join next year.  

Though all this is currently being finalised, with an announcement expected this week, Sainz, who was rapped by Red Bull earlier in the year after speaking of his desire to leave Toro Rosso after three seasons with the Italian team, is not making the same mistake twice.

"Red Bull does its best for my career and so whatever they decide, I will accept it," the 22-year-old told Marca. "It is difficult for me because what I say may please one person and displease another, so I prefer to say nothing.

"All I know is that there are many people in Toro Rosso that I want to thank for making me the driver I am today."

Asked whether he has any knowledge about the current situation between McLaren, Toro Rosso, Renault and Honda, again the second generation racing driver didn't answer definitively.

"I don't know, but I think for the sake of the teams involved, they are going to have to decide sooner rather than later, because (preparation for) 2018 is already here," Sainz told EFE news agency.

As for Gasly, reports early on Monday claimed the Frenchman as admitting preparations were underway for a potential Toro Rosso seat as soon as Sepang, however, he later clarified the comments he made while racing in Super Formula in Japan this past weekend.

“[I] just said I was hoping to drive for Toro Rosso soon,” he tweeted in response to a journalist. “[I] never mentioned Malaysia. Just twisting my words.”

 

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Force India owner Vijay Mallya has said his team will continue development work on the 2017 car, as Technical Director Andrew Green reveals teams are currently delayed on starting 2018 preparations due to the Halo.

Typically, September marks the point in the year when those teams either on lower budgets or looking to get ahead with their car development switch focus to the following year's design, however, the FIA's decision to introduce the Halo cockpit protection for next season has left teams hanging.

"We got some information over the summer break which has allowed us to progress slightly," Green explained. "[But] we are still waiting for some critical information though, which is effectively holding up the chassis design.

"[The FIA] has given us a general layout of the car installation and racing installation but we are missing all the configuration for the chassis testing and that is the bit we design the chassis to."

Talking about the potential implications that arise from the delay, he added: "Our development time has been compressed into days. It is going to be a big struggle to get to winter testing. There's a big risk teams won't make it."

With the Halo the only significant change in the design regulations for next year, it makes sense for teams will continue development later into the season as the carryover from 2017 to 2018 will be considerable for most teams (but not all), as Mallya pointed out.

“We haven’t eased off. Development of the VJM10 continues and will bring benefits for the 2018 car too," he said ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix. "We are still bringing new parts to the track and both cars will have developments this weekend.”

As for Force India's performance, it has been a difficult few weeks for the Silverstone outfit with the fallout from their drivers colliding yet again in Belgium. Despite that, the team remains 58 points ahead of Williams in fourth in the Constructors' standings, a position they are desperate to keep.

“It feels pretty good for our team to be sitting in fourth place in the championship as we get ready for the Singapore GP,” he commented. “The strong showing in Monza brought us our 10th double points finish of the season, which is a tremendous effort by the entire team.

“With seven races to go, the season is rushing by quickly and we just need to keep doing what we’ve been doing all year long. It’s about being consistent, picking up the points and taking our opportunities.”

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Formula 1 Commercial Director Sean Bratches expects a number of city-based races to join the calendar in the future, as the sport looks to benefit from a model similar to that used in Formula E.

The former ESPN Executive has vowed a different approach will be taken regarding future race contracts, insisting the success of a proposal will be based on the value it brings to the sport rather than the financial benefit, which was a criticism many had of former CEO Bernie Ecclestone.  

However, since the arrival of Formula E three years ago, the success of the street-based races in that series has changed the game for countries looking to boost their profile by holding motorsport events as they provide the same benefits without the huge cost of building the ultra-modern facilities that F1 has grown accustomed to in the last 20 years.

"I don’t think you’re going to have too many more purpose-built tracks built," Bratches told Motorsport.com looking forward. “We’re going to have an apportionment between city tracks, heritage tracks, and purpose-built.

"The next objective is to put our shoulders behind more city races as we think that’s a very attractive proposition from our perspective," he continued. "Our strategy [is] hosting races where you can activate large fan bases, particularly in city centres.

"I think it’s representative of the brand and what people are trying to do locally for fans, drive visibility and scope for their business. We are very anxious to maximise the opportunities of these Grands Prix."

It is thought Liberty is willing to maximise the full allowance of 25 races in a season currently permitted by the Concorde Agreement with eyes on expansion in America and other key markets. 

Looking at where the remaining races could be, Bratches revealed there is certainly no shortage of interest.

“In the seven months I’ve been in this job I’ve probably had about 40 countries, cities, municipalities, principalities approach me about interest in hosting a Formula 1 race," he said. "Which is extremely encouraging!"

With such mass interest, however, does come the likelihood of several current races being dropped with Commercial boss admitting: "I think as we look at the apportionment of races by region, you’re going to see some fallout, and some added."

There have been concerns that an expanded calendar could be too much for some teams financially and put too much workload onto their staff, however, Liberty does have plans to try and address that.

"Right now we’re jumping all over the globe with no thoughtful cadence," he claimed. "In an ideal world, and forget the order, but you’d have kind of the first third of the races in Europe, the second third in the Americas, and the last tranche in Asia.

“What that does is allow you create efficiencies in terms of travelling this circus," he pointed out. "Creating efficiencies is I think a big opportunity."

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Motorsport boss Toto Wolff is sure Mercedes has made progress in addressing their weakness but still anticipates a "big challenge" from their rivals at the Singapore Grand Prix.

Despite Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas taking a dominant 1-2 at Monza in the previous race, previous form both at this race and this season mean many expect the current leaders of both championships to face a repeat of two years ago, where tyre problems and the strength of others saw Mercedes not set the pace for the first time in the hybrid era.

However, looking back on that race and what his team has done since Wolff believes what occurred that weekend led to a response which actually led to a massive improvement in how the Brackley outfit operates.

“Identifying clearly our strengths and our weaknesses have been a strength of our team in recent seasons,” he claimed. “As we have pushed to become better and stronger in every area, we have put the finger in the wound in order to understand the root causes of both our good performances and the bad ones.

“In 2015, Singapore provided us with one of the most painful experiences in recent seasons, so we rolled up the sleeves, learned from it and managed to bounce back with a great win last year," he pointed out.

“But notwithstanding that success, this is a circuit we have found difficult to master with its combination of short, sharp corners, relatively short straights and bumpy surface and we head to Asia this time round with the expectation that we have a big challenge ahead of us.”

What makes Singapore so difficult for Mercedes is every deficiency they have shown before is a strength needed around the city circuit whether it be optimising mechanical grip from the tyres in slow speed corners or managing the temperatures in hot conditions.

“On the surface, Singapore is the kind of circuit that should favour both Ferrari and Red Bull," Wolff admitted. “Both have shown strong performance on low-speed circuits demanding maximum downforce, and we have found life more difficult at those places in 2017.

“Sometimes, characteristics like this are simply in the DNA of a car, nevertheless we learned a lot from our struggles in Monaco, raised our level of performance significantly in Hungary and we have made good progress in understanding what we need to do in order to get the most from the chassis.”

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Mercedes Motorsport boss Toto Wolff believes efforts to reduce the cost of engines for customers means smaller teams can no longer use it as an excuse for financial problems.

The introduction of the current V6 hybrids in 2014 saw a sharp spike in the increase of costs both to suppliers and therefore to customers compared to the previous V8's and was blamed in part for the demise of both Caterham and Manor since. 

However, acknowledging this, the FIA and suppliers have been working together to try and reduce the prices while making it one of the key criteria of the talks currently underway to determine the engine formula from 2021.

"I think by making the future engine regulations less complex the development costs of the manufacturers are going to go down," Wolff told Motorsport.com recently. "The engine development costs big money, and the engine departments of all the current suppliers are loss making entities which shouldn't be the case, so we're trying to contain that.

"On the other side, we have found an agreement with the FIA to reduce the prices to all engine customers over the next years to levels that are the lowest ever in F1," he added. "I think if you get this kind of engine at prices like $12-14m, which is what we're trying to achieve, I have no understanding for somebody that claims the engines are too expensive."

One argument many have had for efforts to try and reduce cost and expenditure in F1 is the consequence will be a simple rediversion of money from one area to another.

And the Austrian buys into that, claiming: "The very opportunistic and one-sided argument of certain teams to push the engine prices further down, and on the other side to spend £200m plus on chassis development, isn't correct." 

He would then brush off the suggestion that the big manufacturers also only consider their best interest when considering rules and rule changes, pointing to Mercedes' commitment to the 2021 engine talks despite the success and advantage they have with the current power unit.

"I think we've proven in the past that we were not just opportunistic, and trying to push through regulations that fit us," Wolff claimed. "I'm very well aware that there are deficits in the current engine concept. Maybe we can make it less complex so that fans can really understand how engine recovery really functions. 

"And certainly how we perceive the engines in terms of the sound is something that is close to my heart as well, because I think it is an important factor."

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Romain Grosjean is hopeful his Haas F1 team can enjoy a more competitive weekend as the final series of flyaways begin with the "amazing" Singapore Grand Prix.

The American outfit has been struggling to maintain their form from earlier this year with just a single points finish in the last four races coming for Grosjean at Spa, however, similarly difficult results for their midfield rivals has kept Haas firmly in the battle for sixth in the Constructors' standings.

Tracing Haas' form has been tricky with no real pattern of results based on the type of circuit but, trying to anticipate where he expects to fight around the streets of Marina Bay, the Frenchman believes that's because their pace is dictated by tyre performance.

“I think it will,” he said on whether the VF17 will be stronger in Singapore. “Every time we run maximum downforce, the car seems to work better. We’ve got a better efficiency between drag and downforce, so that’s good.

“The key for us in Singapore will be to get into the tyre window. If we do so, we’ll be in a good place but again, that’s not easy to achieve.”

Much like technical partner Ferrari, Haas' pace at Monza tailed off during the weekend, although only the strong recovery of Max Verstappen stopped Kevin Magnussen from scoring a point in Italy.

Commenting on why his performance swayed from the strong seventh in Belgium to only 15th a week later, Grosjean added: “I think Monza was more just about the drag and the efficiency of the low downforce [while] at Spa-Francorchamps, there were a few more corners where we could exploit a bit more of the potential of the car.

“So yes, we struggled a bit more in Italy. The pace looked good on Friday, but over the Grand Prix it was a bit more complicated and difficult.”

Returning to this weekend, 2017 will mark the 10th running of the night race at Singapore and in that time it has quickly emerged as arguably the most popular race in Asia and among the most prestigious.

Giving his thoughts, the 31-year-old admits he too is a fan despite a poor record he has with just a single points finish there in his career.

"It’s pretty good fun. It makes some great footage and clearly, Singapore is one of the most beautiful races you can have by night. It’s pretty awesome," he said. "It’s actually easier at night because the lights never change. The luminosity is always the same. You stick with the same visor, and driving at those speeds in those conditions is absolutely fine.

"It provides something a bit different on the calendar.  Everyone loves it, especially the VIPs, who then go partying after the race. It’s a special one, for sure. It’s a race everyone waits for."

Singapore has also grown a reputation as one of the most challenging races of the year both for the cars and drivers.

“It can be very physical,” Grosjean conceded. “All week we never see the sunlight, so that takes a bit of energy away.

“Then it’s humid, it’s hot and it’s always a long race. We usually reach the two-hour limit. It’s very, very demanding. I remember back in 2013, I lost four kilos (nine pounds) of water during the race, which is quite a lot.”

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Controversial former Formula 1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve has questioned Renault's motive for offering Robert Kubica a number of tests during the summer to examine the possibility of a comeback.

The Polish driver completed two tests in a 2012 car in Valencia and Paul Ricard before moving up to the 2017 car as he participated in the post-Hungarian Grand Prix test in Budapest at the start of August.

Though it was always understood Renault offered the former Grand Prix winner the opportunity to run as an evaluation of his abilities six years after his near-fatal rally crash, that possibility has now been closed following the revelation that Carlos Sainz is to join the French manufacturer from 2018, potentially sooner.

"I honestly don't understand," the Canadian was quoted by F1i.com. "Who ever got a comeback offer after six years?

"At the end of his career, he was struggling against Petrov. He won his race like Maldonado, and what did he achieve after that? Add the fact that he hasn't recovered 100 percent of his ability, and one wonders how he could cope? Or perhaps the cars are just too easy to drive..."

What the tests did prove is the immense popularity Kubica still has with the media covering every angle and Polish fans filling the main grandstand on his test day. The buzz that was created is something Villeneuve believes was the main aim of testing the now 32-year-old all along.

"If he didn't have his problem, he wouldn't get a second chance," he claimed. "That's what shocks me! It's just a public relations thing, and it bothers me because there are many other drivers more worthy but who wouldn't get a second chance. That's hard to bear.

"It's great for him, however, he's lucky."

Finally, Villeneuve would recall his personal experience with Kubica and be highly critical of how the then young up-and comer-handled himself.

"He was our third driver when I was with Sauber BMW and to be honest, he was unbearable back then," he stated. "Socially it was very difficult. For me, it was a very difficult period.

"You know, you have to show respect in the paddock. You must respect what others have achieved in order to respect the environment you work in. So It's difficult for me to imagine anything positive in his F1 comeback."

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McLaren has sealed a split from engine partner Honda and will race with Renault engines next year, Autosport has revealed.

Confirmation is expected in the coming days, as teams gather this weekend in Singapore, and the divorce will mark the end of a reunion of the once dominant duo after three years which have been nothing shorter of a disaster, plagued by unreliability and a perennial lack of competitiveness.

The writing seemed on the wall when the Japanese manufacturer's woes extended into 2017, as an overhaul of their engine design proved flawed when testing began in February. McLaren resolved to find a new power unit supplier.

After increasing criticism early in the year, McLaren finally confirmed they were resolved to find a new power unit supplier before the Canadian Grand Prix as Honda missed another deadline for fixes and improvements.

Talks were seen with former partner Mercedes but ultimately their approach would end in rejection, an unthinkable switch to Ferrari was also quickly turned down before the team turned to Renault and it is understood a three-year deal has now been finalised.

According to Autosport, McLaren will enjoy engine parity with the works Renault team and fellow customers Red Bull but Honda will remain in Formula 1 after completing a deal to supply Toro Rosso.

The Red Bull junior team secured the switch by offering highly-rated Carlos Sainz to Renault as an effective sweetener, with the Spaniard certainly joining for 2018 and potentially as soon as Malaysia, although that is still to be seen. 

Though no comment has been offered, it is likely the Renault switch will also see Fernando Alonso remain with McLaren in 2018 and beyond but the Spaniard is still weighing up his options with his contract due to expire at the end of the year. 

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Williams could offer Robert Kubica a remarkable return to Formula 1 after current team Renault elected to sign Carlos Sainz, according to reports.

The Pole's promising career seemed to be over after a life-threatening accident in 2011, but he is now very much on the comeback trail.

Kubica proved he was capable of handling the 2017 machinery when he drove the Renault at the Hungary test earlier this summer. 

Renault's swoop for Sainz appeared to scupper his hopes of rejoining F1 next year, yet Motorsport Italia claim Williams could offer the 32-year-old a lifeline.

After coming out of a brief retirement at the end of 2016, Felipe Massa has not yet decided whether he will extend his career into a 16th season.

 

         

 

 

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