Crash.net's team in the F1 paddock brings you a more irreverent view of the sport and the stories bubbling away during the Singapore Grand Prix

Red Bull vindicates Mercedes engine refusal

It's probably just as well Mercedes' big wigs decided against allowing Red Bull to secure an engine supply for 2016 as it wouldn't only be the oppressive humidity getting it a little hot under the collar in Singapore this weekend.

With the limitations of the Renault engine neutered by the corner-on-corner nature of the Marina Bay Circuit, which subsequently allows those with balanced package to shine under the night sky, Red Bull has not only shown how good its chassis, but also how far it has developed since the start of the year.

Red Bull's pace in Singapore is not strictly a surprise given its efforts in Monaco and Hungary, but while it was still largely 'best of the rest' there, this weekend it was arguably more roundly competitive than it was at any point in 2014.

It also serves to highlight the deficiencies of the Renault power unit, its minimal effect in Singapore enabling Red Bull to surge up the leaderboard. It's arguably another embarrassment for the French firm, not least as it comes bang in the middle of its increasingly messy divorce.

It also begs the question of what could be possible for Red Bull with the best engine in its car... could a Red Bull-Mercedes be a potential match for a factory Mercedes. Unfortunately we will never know, but Singapore shows Mercedes' reasoning is probably an understandable one.

Then again, Ferrari might be crinkling its nose at the prospect of supplying engines to Red Bull next season in a deal that appears to be all-but-signed, according to Dietrich Mateschitz. Indeed, it could be argued that Red Bull has shown its hand too early, because while there is little doubt that Ferrari will supply it with engines (probably with a little incentive from the powers that be), it has the leverage to play hard ball.

Even then, Ferrari is likely to make it clear that Red Bull won't be its priority when it comes to engine upgrades. Red Bull is good enough to make a customer engine supply work in its favour, but going forward surely a factory collaboration will be the way forward... Are you watching, VW?

The confidence of youth

Whilst many of the questions to Max Verstappen in the run up to his much anticipated Formula 1 race debut were focused on his age and whether he felt he was 'old enough' to handle the pressure associated with the pinnacle of motorsport, not once did he flinch - even when he found himself answering the same thing over and over.

Though he still gets the odd age-associated question two-thirds into what is turning out to be a stellar debut season for the young Dutchman, Verstappen has not only shown talent that belies his 17 years of age, but also a skill in the way he handles himself around the media.

If anything, driving the car is the easy bit for Verstappen. With countless media engagements, it would be very easy to say the wrong thing or struggle to get across a true meaning... but that is symptomatic of being a teenager, not a personality trait.

However, I can recall the moment I sat down with Max at the start of the season to discuss his hopes and expectations for the season ahead, where he was understandably shy and considered in the way he was presenting himself. When it came to discussing his driving, however, he was assured and confident, without being arrogant.

It's a confidence that has been unwavering throughout and is clearly evident on track, but what has evolved is Verstappen's personality and it is genuinely fascinating to watch someone growing up almost in real-time in the most unusual of surroundings.

Whether it was the way he flatly declared 'No' when he was asked to move over for Carlos Sainz in the Singapore Grand Prix, or his joke that he would have been 'kicked in the nuts' by his father Jos Versatappen had he gone ahead and done so, Verstappen Jnr is flourishing, not only as a driver, but as a witty, intelligent and sharp man.

In a sport not exactly brimming with what you would describe as 'characters', Verstappen's emergence as more than simply his age has been a joy to behold this season.

The price of Pastor

A couple of weeks ago a friend of mine politely attempted to engage me in some F1 chatter despite their knowledge of the sport being somewhat shaky to say the least. Things didn't get off to a good start when they asked if Murray Walker was still commentating and I was biting my tongue as they referred to Lewis Hamilton as a McLaren driver... However, they then asked me if 'that Maldonado' was still crashing a lot.

You know you've reached 'notorious' status when your reputation transcends to those who don't know their Michaels from their Ralfs.

Of course, Pastor's on-track scrapes and frequency of running into trouble have become something akin to F1 legend to the point that it has inspired a webpage in his 'honour' simply called 'Has Pastor Maldonado Crashed Today?' and even an informative Twitter account with almost 3,000 followers...

Yet with six races of the 2015 season remaining, far from his seat being under threat, Lotus has instead confirmed (at 3am Singapore time no less...) that Maldonado will be staying put in what will be his sixth season in F1.

However, it comes after yet another race in which he was involved in an on-track altercation with Jenson Button, who was aggrieved at a pass that 'nearly put him in the grandstand' before the pair clashed properly and ruined each other's evening anyway.

It marks another notch to add to Maldonado's statistics package, but while he must surely be painfully aware of his reputation as error-prone, his responses to questions to that effect during the pre-Singapore Grand Prix press conference proved frustratingly ambiguous, yet remarkably telling.

With eight DNFs from 12 races, twice Maldonado was challenged on his dismal finishing record in 2015, but each time the responses were not only vague, but apparently unbothered...

Q:You've retired from eight out of the 12 races and on many occasions you've been the first car to go out. How much bad luck can one man have? What's been going on?

Maldonado:We've been having a bit of problems and yeah, it was not, maybe from the really beginning of the season, the best start for us even if we improve the car compared to last year. It is how it is. We cannot change the past, we just need to work harder for the future and try to get better and better every race.

Q:I don't imagine there's a huge amount of spares at the Lotus team this weekend - is this a weekend for caution to be exercised or will you be giving it full beans. You're a very good street circuit racer but do you need to back off a little bit?

Maldonado:I think we need to approach the weekend as normal. We are looking forward to doing our best and to get what we deserve is to push very hard and to try to put the car in the best position we can.

A lesson in dodging the real question if ever a politician needed tips, Maldonado's blas? attitude is arguably as concerning as his on-track antics. Since five of his eight DNFs have occurred as a result of scrapes on just the first lap, whilst the sight of Maldonado getting in trouble simply tends to elicit a knowing groan now, the fact we now simply barely register a response is worrying in itself... How have we reached a stage of acceptance?

For a team not exactly flush with cash, whilst Maldonado's PDVSA backing is part of the reason Lotus remains on the grid, it probably didn't expect to be using a significant portion of it fixing rather than developing the car.

Whilst Lotus has been careful not to bite the hand that feeds it and the huge cash influx PDVSA offers would be tempting for any team, discontent had crept into its rhetoric... at least it had until his re-signing announcement, where Gerard Lopez declared 'Pastor is a terrific person to work with and we all know the performances he is capable of on track.'

Whilst you can't doubt the raw potential of a driver that, after all, is a race winner in F1, but after five seasons in the sport, it still remains to be seen just how good a value Maldonado is...