Formula 1 is not a sport that is full with controversies. Since its establishment, the premier form of racing has hardly ever had significant scandals or controversies. The Singapore GP controversy in 2008, however, nearly destroyed the sport's basis.
The Crashgate controversy refers to the sports scandal that Renault instigated during the 2008 Formula 1 season. The term "Crashgate" was first used by the media when Nelson Piquet Jr. was accused of deliberately crashing at the Singapore Grand Prix, giving teammate Fernando Alonso a big advantage.
On September 28, 2008, Nelson Piquet Jr. of the Renault F1 team collided with the wall in turn 17 of lap 14 of the Singapore Grand Prix, setting the stage for night racing. The safety car was then deployed. Alonso had already pitted for newer tyres and refuelling before this accident. All the vehicles gathered behind the safety car as a result of the safety car.
Due to this, every other driver was forced to wait for the pit lane to open before making their pit stops, which caused a major commotion. In order to get an advantage over competing teams, teams had to double stack. Alonso, on the other hand, had already pitted and gained a significant advantage by effortlessly moving up to P1 as all the other vehicles followed suit and dropped behind.
Despite starting from P15 on the grid, the Spaniard maintained his lead until the very finish and eventually took home the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix. Nelson Piquet's son Piquet Jr. called the incident a "simple mistake."
The FIA disregarded the concerns as rumours, despite the fact that few people wanted to doubt the straightforward race conclusion. For the time being, the executives in control of Renault F1, Flavio Briatore and Pat Symonds, escaped without showing any signs of difficulties surrounding the race manipulation.
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