Gateway’s F1 Magical Moments – 2008 Singapore

The 2008 Singapore GP was a very chaotic one and two people got banned from Motorsport for a number of years. It was the first night race to be held in F1 but also the scene of one of the most controversial moments in F1 history.

Before the race, Renault hatched a plan and asked Nelson Piquet Jr to crash to trigger a Safety Car to help his teammate, Fernando Alonso’s two stop strategy work and it paid off with Alonso leading during the safety car period. He went on to win the race after starting a lowly 15th on the grid due to rain in Qualifying. His race morale was boosted even more when Felipe Massa’s Ferrari suffered a terrible pit stop as the nozzle was still attached to his Ferrari F2008 when he was released from the pit box. Massa eventually finished 13th after starting on pole.

The top three drivers in the race classification were: 1st: Fernando Alonso (Renault), 2nd: Nico Rosberg (Williams), 3rd: Lewis Hamilton (McLaren).

Renault team Principal Flavio Briatore and Renault engineer Pat Symonds, were both banned from motorsport after hatching a plot for Nelson Piquet Jr to crash on purpose after a court hearing was stated.