By Les Tan

Singapore Grand Prix

Just pretend it’s Schumacher. After all, you can’t really tell anyway. (Photo © Vanessa Lim/Red Sports file photo)

So Michael Schumacher is not coming to Singapore after all because his “neck pain”, according to BBC News.

“I am disappointed to the core,” BBC News reports him as saying.

Tickets for this year’s race are being sold at a slower pace than last year because of the economic crisis, with banks and investment firms finding it hard to spend big money this year even if they made profits.

The $7,500 per head Paddock Club, sold in bunches of 50 last year – that’s S$375,000 at one go – because that’s what the organisers demanded, are now being quietly sold in pairs to any takers.

A whole stand of seats at the final turn will not be built this year (compare last year’s map with this year’s below).

So all those who bought tickets in the last two weeks specifically because of Schumacher will feel a different soreness.

For them, their “wallet pain”.

2008 F1 Circuit Map

The 2008 map with the seats in red.

2009 F1 Circuit Map

The 2009 circuit map with fewer seats in red. Four large areas of seating available in 2008 are now gone. Zone 2 will see the largest block of seats not coming back.