THERE were no press releases or official announcements.

In fact, there was scarcely a whimper when the engine finally died on Singapore's A1 experiment.

Few noticed that the Republic were not among the 22 countries lined up for the new A1 Grand Prix season, which starts this month.

Fewer still were surprised that Singapore's maiden foray into the world of competitive motor racing failed after just 12 months.

Reports of bickering and financial woes plagued Team Singapore almost from the outset. Coupled with the lack of sponsorship interest, it seemed only a matter of time before the wheels came off.

'It didn't take me by surprise,' admitted lawyer Krishna Ramachandra, who initially co-funded the venture with former national footballer, R. Sasikumar.

'The sponsorship pie is limited, and Formula One coming here didn't help,' he said.

It had all seemed so promising last September, when the team were launched with much fanfare.

A glitzy event at the Shangri-La Hotel marked the team's inauguration, while public relations firm UP Media was roped in to spearhead the marketing effort.

Three drivers were also lined up: Denis Lian, Hafiz Koh and Australia-based Christian Murchison.

They would compete in the 25-nation A1GP, touted as the World Cup of motorsport.

The cost of putting Team Singapore on the starting grid was said to have been around US$7 million (S$10.71 million) for the season.

It took just two months for the financial strain to show.

The team could not afford to pay A1 Holdings, forcing the series organiser to step in and bankroll the outfit. Lian and Koh also left.

This came just two weeks after Murchison earned Singapore's first points with by finishing eighth in the season's third race in Beijing.

'We simply ran out of money,' said Murchison. 'And it was difficult to get results under such circumstances, because we had to cut back on both staff and equipment.'

To make things worse, he suffered an injury and missed four of the remaining seven legs in the series.

The battle on the tracks spilt over into the courtroom, with UP Media took legal action against Lian.

The company claimed it was defamed in an email which he sent to members of the local motor-racing fraternity after he was dropped.

The matter has yet to be resolved.

In the meantime, plans to stage an A1 race in the Republic never materialised. The team's search for sponsors also grew increasingly desperate.

Companies were just not ready to pay big bucks for motor sports, said Singapore Motor Sports Association president Tan Teng Lip.

'We've had no motor-sports culture here for the last 20 or 30 years,' he said. 'If Singapore companies are to take up a franchise, they need to know the rewards.'

The writing was on the wall in June, when UP Media parted ways with the team to 'chase the F1 dollar'.

Said Anand Vathiyar, the company's executive director: 'On hindsight, we would liked to have started a year later, so that the momentum and hype from F1 could help us.'

Singapore was not ready to support a motor-sports team, but this may change, said Krishna.

'I don't think this chapter is closed. It's just a matter of time until another team emerges - but I won't be a part of it any more.'

Timeline of Singapore's A1 venture

June 2005: Local racer Denis Lian expresses interest in forming a Singapore team to compete in the A1 Grand Prix.

Sept 19, 2006: A1 Team Singapore are launched amid much fanfare. The team boast drivers Denis Lian, Hafiz Koh and Christian Murchison. They are funded by lawyer Krishna Ramachandra and former national footballer, R. Sasikumar.

Nov 12, 2006: Murchison earns Singapore's first A1 points, finishing eighth in Beijing.

Nov 25, 2006: Series organiser A1 Holdings takes over control of the team after they run into cash-flow problems. Drivers Lian and Koh are dropped.

Feb 15, 2007 : Team Singapore's public relations firm UP Media sues Lian for defamatory remarks he allegedly made in an email to the local motor-racing fraternity.

July 1, 2007: UP Media parts ways with Team Singapore, saying that it wants to concentrate on Formula One-related businesses.

August 2007: Singapore are omitted from the list of 22 countries participating in the 2007-2008 season.