TERRIBLE RACE FOR FERRARI - SINGAPORE F1 GRAND PRIX RESULTS

Looking through recent history, rarely (if ever) has Ferrari posted such terrible results as Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen managed today in Singapore.

Of all the races these two Scuderia Ferrari drivers have started together as Ferrari F1 drivers, last year's Canadian Grand Prix looks similarly dreadful.... but not as bad. At that race, despite Massa's disqualification, Raikkonen managed fifth and some points. The Australian Grand Prix of 2008 saw Massa retire before the finish, but again, Raikkonen grabbed eighth place, a point(s) position. Fourth and thirteenth in the British GP at Silverstone this year was bad. Eighteenth and first in Belgium was ironic. Ninth and sixth in Italy wasn't tragic. 

But this.... Singapore watched as Felipe Massa drive out of the pits with his fuel hose still attached, injuring a crew member and forcing the pole sitter to slide to thirteenth spot at the chequered flag. Kimi Raikkonen finished fifteenth after an accident on the 57th lap.

Ah, but look to the generously coiffed Fernando Alonso for the good news of the day. One year after his last F1 win, Alonso built on his Renault's excellent practice sessions (and rough qualifying) to cross the finish line first. And who's that in second place? Nico Rosberg? The Toyota-powered Williams was just a few seconds back. Even Kazuki Nakajima drove his Williams into the points - eighth place.

A Toyota engine didn't help Jarno Trulli, a factory Toyota driver. He failed to finish. Timo Glock, however, Trulli's teammate, finished eight seconds back of Alonso in fourth. BMW's Nick Heidfeld was sixth; Robert Kubica's BMW dropped from a well-qualified fourth into eleventh spot.

Opposite of race winner Alonso, the other Renault driver, Nelsinho Piquet, crashed out early on and was the first to suspend his Singapore campaign. Rubens Barichello's Honda lasted only one more lap. Mark Webber's Renault-powered Red Bull finished more than twice as many laps (29) but of course, failed to complete the race. Adrian Sutil, a Force India driver with Ferrari power on his side, lapped only 49 times.

Barichello's Honda teammate, Jenson Button, was ninth, only one place out of the points. Webber's Red Bull teammate, the soon-to-retire David Coulthard, grabbed seventh. The other Force India driver, Giancarlo Fisichella, started from the pits but ended up in 14th. 

Ferrari engines reside behind the drivers of Scuderia Toro Rosso: Sebastian Vettel, last race's victor, and Sebastien Bourdais. Vettel finished fifth, one spot up on his grid position. Bourdais turned his 17th-place qualification into 12th.

Heikki Kovalainen and Lewis Hamilton had a great opportunity, given Ferrari's lapse, to make great inroads in the constructor's championship. Alas, the Finn finished tenth, out of the points. Hamilton dropped one spot from his starting position of second. Inroads or not, McLaren-Mercedes now leads Ferrari by one point in the team standings. BMW is just 14 points behind Ferrari. Hamilton's 3rd and Massa's 13th helps the British McLaren driver to a seven-point lead in the driver's standings. Fernando Alonso is now seventh in that area.