Fernando Alonso has the opportunity on Sunday to claim a Singapore GP victory in legitimate circumstances.
Two years ago Alonso won the inaugural race around the Marina Bay street circuit from 15th on the grid at a time when he was driving for Renault.
On that occasion there were critics who raised eyebrows when his team-mate Nelson Piquet Jnr's crash into a wall brought the safety car into play, which was ultimately the main contributory factor to the win.
A year ago that incident took on new meaning as the 'crashgate' scandal was in full swing, culminating in Flavio Briatore losing his job as team principal and the team being handed a two-year suspended ban.
Now with Ferrari, Alonso on Saturday won a qualifying shoot-out with Sebastian Vettel by beating the Red Bull star to pole position by 0.067 seconds.
It was Vettel who gently, and somewhat comically, reminded Alonso of his victory in 2008, making a point that tomorrow's showdown is still up in the air.
"It's a long race, nearly two hours, so it's very tough and a lot can happen," said Vettel.
"For sure it helps the further up you are on the grid, but the race can still change a couple of things.
"For instance, Fernando started here two years ago from..."
Turning to Alonso, the Spaniard solemnly replied: "Fifteenth."
With a cheeky smile, Vettel concluded his sentence by saying: "Fifteenth and he won the race."
Vettel admitted to a "pretty messy qualifying" which means he will start second for the second year in succession in Singapore.
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