27/03/2007
NEWS STORY
According to Singapore's Straits Times, Mark Webber is do a trial run of the city-state's proposed street circuit this weekend.
Singapore is currently in talks with Bernie Ecclestone regarding the possibility of a Grand Prix, the F1 supremo stopping off en-route to Melbourne for the recent Australian Grand Prix.
If the race goes ahead, it would be a night race and take place on a street layout suggested by Herman Tilke.
According to the Straits Times, Webber will drive the 'circuit' in a Porsche 911 GT3 on Saturday night, keeping "within the legal speed limit".
Red Bull brand manager in Singapore, Jyn Wee, is quoted as saying: "We didn't have enough time to get the clearance for a high-speed run".
Singapore has been linked with a possible Grand Prix for some time, with the Singapore Motor Sports Association (SMSA) claiming back in 2004 that it would cost the country around $12m-$15m (US) annually to host a race. Just a few days later the SMSA denied reports that it had held talks with Singapore Tourism Board (STB), with the SMSA's president Matthew Lee saying: "Singapore is a small country and hosting a Formula 1 race is not cheap. So I am not too sure if it would be in Singapore's interest to do so".
Previously, Bernie Ecclestone appeared to dismiss the idea, stating: "Singapore is just too close to Sepang. I don't think it is possible."
In April 2006, the country's Minister for Trade and Industry, Lim Hng Kiang, admitted that the country's tourism board was "actively" looking at hosting a round of the Formula One World Championship. Then, in January this year, it was revealed that Ecclestone had held talks with the relevant parties and Herman Tilke, who visited Singapore last year, had already had his (street) track approved.
Earlier this month, Ecclestone stopped off in Singapore en-route to Melbourne, just days after Singapore's Minister of State for Trade and Industry, S. Iswaran said that the Government was willing to fund the country's bid to join the Formula One World Championship.