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MOTOR SPORT SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX:AFTER THE harshest of spotlights had been shone in to the dark recesses of his predecessor’s desperate ego, new Renault Formula One boss Bob Bell afforded himself the smallest of wry half-smiles on the pitwall yesterday when practice for tomorrow’s second running of the Singapore Grand Prix threw up an almost comedic reminder of the scandal that has made his team sporting pariahs.

Midway through the opening session Romain Grosjean, the driver whose replacement of the disgruntled Nelson Piquet had kick-started the so-called “Crashgate” affair, lost control of his Renault and ploughed into the same wall, in exactly the same spot, as Piquet had last year deliberately exited the race in a bid to manipulate the race outcome.