Mercedes AMG PETRONAS’ Executive Director (Technical) Paddy Lowe is eager to find out whether the issues that blighted their Singapore Grand Prix in 2015 have been resolved as they return to the circuit this weekend.
Lowe admitted that the outcome of the race at Singapore last year was not what the team were expecting, and although he is hopeful that the issues they faced in 2015 will not resurface, the lack of opportunity to test out their theories makes it still a possibility that some of the underlying problems may remain.
“This was not a good race for us last year and a lot of work has been done during the intervening 12 months to understand why that was,” insisted Lowe. “It’s a matter of great interest for us as a team to see if we can come back and get it right this time around.
“Of course, we haven’t been able to test on the circuit, so all of our theories are just theories at this stage. We’ve got a lot more work ahead to get ourselves in a good position during practice, to qualify well and then to have a strong race.
“But we love a challenge and are looking forward to it. It’s an atmospheric venue with plenty of fans turning out, so we’re aiming to put on a good show and compete strongly.”
With the Grand Prix this weekend running on European time, Lowe admits it is a unique experience at the Marina Bay circuit, especially running some of the sessions under the floodlights, including Sunday’s race.
“Singapore is a unique race,” said Lowe. “With all sessions run at night under floodlights, everybody stays on European time throughout the weekend. This makes it a strange few days, getting up at lunch time in the local time zone and going to bed at breakfast.
“There seems to be a common feeling that there are more than 24 hours in the day when we’re in Singapore – but nobody is quite sure why!”
