FELIPE Massa is expecting a challenging weekend at the Singapore Grand Prix but is confident Williams can score heavily under the lights in Asia.

Brazilian Massa earned a surprise podium in the Italian GP at Monza a fortnight ago, helping the Grove-based team tighten their grip on third place in the constructors championship.

With seven rounds left, the 34-year-old is expecting the night race around the streets of Singapore to be one of the toughest weekends remaining in the Formula 1 calender.

He said: “It’s not easy to get the set-up perfect and the tyres working in the ideal operating window, and these are challenges we will face from the start of the first session.

“Of the last remaining races this season this is probably the hardest track for our car, but that doesn’t mean we can’t deliver a good haul of points.”

Enstone-based Lotus head to the Far East after a disastrous weekend in Italy.

Neither Pastor Maldonado or Romain Grosjean made it past the second lap, but the former is in an upbeat mood.

Maldonado said: “We’re looking forward to doing our best and getting a good result.

“The entire team is focused on getting it and we can fight for good positions.”

SEAN Walkinshaw admitted his Chipping Norton-based SWR team experienced a tough penultimate round of the BRDC Formula 4 Championship at Donington Park.

Jordan Albert was adjudged to have jumped the start in the second race and was bumped back to eighth, while he also recorded eighth and ninth-place finishes over the weekend.

Teammate Zubair Hoque was 12th, 13th and 16th.

Walkinshaw said: “It was a tough weekend for Jordan and Zubair. Qualifying didn’t go according to plan and then the races were a challenge.”