Gil de Ferran is expecting another entertaining Singapore Grand Prix this weekend and is optimistic that his McLaren F1 Team can have a more competitive time of it after recent struggles on more high-speed circuits.
The Marina Bay Street Circuit is one of the slowest on the calendar and de Ferran, the sporting director of the Woking-based team, says it should offer both Fernando Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne the opportunity to fight for points,
Alonso has only scored only twelve points in the past nine races, while Vandoorne has failed to break into the top ten in any race since the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in April and has been struggling towards the back of the pack for much of the season.
“The Singapore Grand Prix has become one of the most popular events on the calendar for its incredible backdrop, fantastic atmosphere and unique setting,” said de Ferran.
“Racing under lights and in extreme temperatures and high humidity is a tough challenge for the drivers, but it really shows you how hard they have to work behind the wheel to get a good result.
“This race has produced hugely entertaining race weekends in the past and I hope this year it will be no different. We are optimistic that our package should perform better on this type of track, but of course nothing is guaranteed, especially at a grand prix as unpredictable as this.
“The race team, Fernando and Stoffel will all be working hard to find as much performance as possible this weekend with the aim of bringing home some valuable points.”
After appearances in free practice in both the Belgian and Italian Grand Prix weekends, Lando Norris will not run with McLaren in Singapore, with de Ferran revealing that the Briton will be performing simulator duties for them back in their Woking base instead.
“Although we confirmed our full driver line-up last week, we won’t have Lando with us in Singapore since he’ll be conducting valuable race simulation with the team back at the factory,” said de Ferran.
