ON REFLECTION: Singapore

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Mercedes can be challenged

Singapore was, perhaps, the biggest headscratcher in recent memory. How can a team which has dominated for two seasons be so comprehensively outperformed in one weekend?

The alarm bells started to ring on Friday when they struggled for pace, but no one expected them to be over one second behind Sebastian Vettel’s pole lap.

On race day, they were better but still a long way off Ferrari and Red Bull, who dominate the race. To cap off their misery, Lewis Hamilton suffered his first mechanical retirement in over a year, while Nico Rosberg scrapped his way round to fourth.

With the second of this back-to-back double header in Japan this week, Mercedes won’t have enough time to identify the problem and Hamilton has admitted that they are still I the dark over why they were so far off the pace.

Japan’s longer straights and sweep turns should suit the Mercedes more than Singapore, but one second per lap is a lot to bridge.

Either the silver arrows will return to form and secure a dominant one-two finish, or they’ll suffer a repeat of last weekend.

Whichever way it goes, it will be worth tuning in to find out.

Vettel is the best frontrunner in F1

Sebastian Vettel wins

So it’s official: 2014 was just a blip for Sebastian Vettel. Whether it was fatigue, the new cars, lack of confidence or just being outdone by Daniel Ricciardo, Vettel’s last season at Red Bull was an unmitigated disaster to the extent that his reputation was called into question.

Not anymore.

Vettel has been outstanding since day one at Ferrari, and his first win in just his second race in Malaysia hinted at how successful this partnership would be.

The German has cashed in on Mercedes’s woes at every opportunity and fended off a late Ricciardo charge to win again at Marina Bay for the fourth time.

Vettel is proving once again that he is the best frontrunner on the grid. When he’s out front there is a sense of inevitability that he will win the race. Japan is another favourite of his and now with the world title only 50 points away, he will feel he can win.

Mercedes better stop him from getting on pole, or the result will probably be a formality.

Button will be missed

Jenson Button give a thumbs up.

Jenson Button is about to put himself out of his own misery this weekend and announce his retirement from F1, according to reports.

The Englishman, who won the world title in 2009, has apparently not been wanted by the team for over a year while his relationship with Ron Dennis is understood to have broken down.

McLaren’s treatment of Button has been poor. He has stuck with the team through the dark days of the last three seasons while many others would have jumped ship.

In an age where F1 is becoming less glamorous and sexy, Button is an essential man to have around. He may not be the blockbuster driver McLaren desire, but he has shown over a long period of time that there is still life in him yet.

He will be sorely missed, by everyone.

Ricciardo shows his class

Just as last year was woeful for Sebastian Vettel, it was phenomenal for Daniel Ricciardo. But, as with Vettel, roles have reversed this year.

The slow Red Bull has frustrated Ricciardo, and young Daniil Kvyat has had the better of him at times.

But in Singapore, with his mojo back, he was back to his sublime best. When he has a sense of victory, Ricciardo is superb and showed how tough a competitor he is at Marina Bay with a commendable challenge to Vettel’s win.

Once again he proved that he shouldn’t be held back by a poor car. Fighting at the front is what is Aussie is all about.

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