WET weather conditions could lead to safety concerns at the SingTel Singapore Grand Prix, says three-time Formula One champion Jackie Stewart.

The street race on Sept 28 is the first to be held at night. But the F1 legend believes that a combination of rain and floodlights could make driving difficult.

"We don't know how the lighting will affect the visibility of the drivers," he told The Straits Times.

"The spray behind a Formula One car is absolutely incredible, and the lack of visibility even in broad daylight is quite substantial."

Added the Scot: "When you're 30 metres behind an F1 car and there is spray, you cannot see the car."

However, Italian lighting experts Maioli, who were roped in for the Singapore GP and have tested wet weather racing at night under floodlit conditions, beg to differ.

They have insisted that hazards like glare, reflection and spray will not trouble drivers, because the lights will be shone at angles rather than vertically.

But Stewart, who won the world championship in 1969, 1971 and 1973, argues that there are no guarantees - until the actual race flags off.

He said: "There's nothing wrong with the concept or the idea, but you never know until you try. It's just common sense."

The 68-year-old was in town earlier this week to promote his autobiography, Winning Is Not Enough.

The book details his remarkable career, in which he overcame dyslexia to become one of the greatest drivers in motor racing history.

But his glory was also laced with tragedy.

Stewart lost two friends and a teammate in racing accidents. After his own brush with death at the 1966 Belgian GP, he became a vocal champion of safety standards in motor racing.

"It's been almost 14 years since there was a fatal accident in F1," said the Scot, who was knighted in 2001 for his contributions to the sport.

"But there's still danger lurking around every corner. When you have two cars in close proximity, there's always the risk of human error or mechanical failure."

On this year's championship race, he believes that Ferrari may have a slight edge over McLaren, who were rocked by the F1 spy scandal last season.

"There's every reason to believe that they could have lost a little focus during that period," he said. "That should be to the benefit of Ferrari."

Would McLaren star Lewis Hamilton - who limped to fifth place at the Malaysian GP last weekend - eventually defect to Ferrari, should he endure another title-less season?

Stewart - one of Hamilton's most vocal admirers - bristles at the thought.

"He's English-speaking and he's British. Unless Ferrari were going to provide him with a significantly better car or team, why would he leave McLaren?" he said.

"Money's not an issue. He will make a great deal of money wherever he is."

Money, however, is changing the geography of the sport, he noted.

Of the 18 stops on the F1 calendar this season, five are in Asia. But Stewart feels that blue-chip markets like the United States - which was axed from the calendar last year - and Europe should not be surrendered in favour of emerging ones.

He said: "Bahrain, for example, has a beautiful race track. But it draws only 40,000 fans. You go to Indianapolis, there'll be 200,000 people.

"By all means embrace the new world, but you cannot ignore what has established the sport."

This article was first published in The Straits Times on Mar 26, 2008.