Bahrain GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Williams

Next quotes come from the Williams F1 Team!

Felipe Massa - "Bahrain will be different from last season, normally it’s a very hot race but it’s not humid like Malaysia, it’s really dry which helps from a driver’s physical point of view. It will be a change this year as it’s a night race so we expect the temperatures to be cooler. We’ve been testing there in the winter so all the teams will have an idea about what set-up to use; we know what we have to focus on and where we can improve as well. Bahrain is a really nice place; I’ve won there twice in the past so I’m looking forward to getting back there."

Valtteri Bottas - "We have had a lot of testing in Bahrain so we have more of an idea about our set-up which makes things easier. Obviously the weather will be different as it will be night, but I think it’s going to be a great sight to see the cars under the lights, so I’m looking forward to that. We didn’t look too bad in testing in Bahrain, so we are looking to the race as a potential for some good points."

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.
No Copyright Infringement Intended.
Quotes made by Drivers. 

Malaysian GP: Race - Re-Cap & Results

The Malaysian GP is now finished and done for the year. Thousands of people showed up despite the sadness looming over the country due to the recent Malaysian Airlines missing plane, which had hundreds of people aboard. May I just start by saying my thoughts and prayers are with the people affected by the situation. It is a true tragedy and I'm hoping they will soon recover the plane.

So, now, where shall I begin? Before the race even started there was problems. The Force India of Sergio Perez was having problems and then it was said he'd start from the pit lane. However, as things were about to get underway, Sergio climbed out the car, stuck in 4th gear and having no way to fix the problem, he was forced to retire before he'd even begun. People, (Including me) were absolutely shocked and saddened by this. One of the most disappointing things is when a driver can't even start the race and this unfortunately does happen.

The lights then went out and at the first turn, Kevin Magnussen tried to pass Kimi Raikkonen and in result, ended up hitting the World Champion Fin, damaging his car and his own McLaren as well. Around the same time, Jules Bianchi made contact with Pastor Maldonado and they both did a little spin. Luckily, both were able to continue for a bit, but after awhile, Maldonado had to retire as did Bianchi.

Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton, who started on pole, was now leading, with Vettel, Rosberg, Hulkenberg and Alonso all somewhere close behind him. The biggest battle during the whole race was that of Fernando Alonso and Nico Hulkenberg. It was really quite the show.

Later on it was Jean-Eric Vergne who had issues with the Turbo and was forced to retire from the race, while his team-mate, 19-Year-Old Daniil Kvyat was in the top 10 and gaining on the Williams' drivers. Both Saubers had to retire as well a bit later on, the first double retirement for the Sauber team in years. 

Daniel Ricciardo, who was called in for a pit-stop, had horrible luck when one of the mechanics was not done fastening his front-left tyre, and the crew released him, not noticing what was going on. Daniel had to be pushed back to get the wheel fastened before he could head back out, but due to all the commotion, when the Aussie got back out on the circuit, his front wing came loose and fell in a slanted position, cutting into his front-right tyre, making a deep cut, all around. He was called back into the pit-lane and had things fixed, but retired only a few laps later.

On the last few laps, there was BIG drama between the two Williams' drivers, when the team radioed Massa, telling him that Bottas was faster and to not hold him up. He was told multiple times to let Bottas pass, but did not obey orders. Something identical to what happened between Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber last year. Another case of Multi-21 disobeyed.

It was Lewis Hamilton who brought home the win of the Malaysian GP and dedicated his win to everyone affected by the flight MH370 tragedy. His Team-Mate, Nico Rosberg finished in Second while Defending-4-Time-World-Champion, Sebastian Vettel, came in Third. Here are the rest of the results.

RACE RESULTS:

1. Lewis Hamilton / Mercedes / Great Britain - +25 Points
2. Nico Rosberg / Mercedes / Germany - +18 Points
3. Sebastian Vettel / Redbull / Germany - +15 Points
4. Fernando Alonso / Ferrari / Spain / - +12 Points
5. Nico Hulkenberg / Force India / Germany - +10 Points
6. Jenson Button / McLaren / Great Britain - +8 Points
7. Felipe Massa / Williams / Brazil -  +6 Points
8. Valtteri Bottas / Williams / Finland - +4 Points
9. Kevin Magnussen / McLaren / Denmark - +2 Points
10. Daniil Kvyat / Toro Rosso / Russia - +1 Point
11. Romain Grosjean / Lotus / France - +0 Points
12. Kimi Raikkonen / Ferrari / Finland - +0 Points
13. Kamui Kobayashi / Caterham / Japan - +0 Points
14. Marcus Ericsson / Caterham / Sweden - +0 Points
15. Max Chilton / Marussia / Great Britain - +0 Points
16. Daniel Ricciardo / Redbull / Australia / RETIRED - Multiple Problems - =0 Points
17. Esteban Gutierrez / Sauber / Mexico / RETIRED - Gearbox - +0 Points
18. Adrian Sutil / Sauber / Germany / RETIRED - Power Unit -+ 0 Points
19. Jean-Eric Vergne / Toro Rosso / France / RETIRED - Engine - +0 Points
20. Jules Bianchi / Marussia / France / RETIRED - Collision - +0 Points
21. Pastor Maldonado / Lotus / Venezuela / RETIRED - Power Unit - +0 Points
22. Sergio Perez / Force India / Mexico / DID NOT START - Gearbox - +0 Points

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.
No Copyright Infringement Intended.

Malaysian GP: Qualifying - Re-Cap & Results

When Qualifying got underway, so did the rain! Originally scheduled for 11 PM my time, it did not actually start for around 45 minutes as the rain was coming down pretty hard and there was a lot of sitting water on the track that had to be cleared before the cars could come out and set times.

So, for those of you who are not familiar with how Qualifying works, let me take you through it! There is 3 rounds of Qualifying and they're all done within an hour or so. The first round, all 22 cars go out and set lap times, the 6 slowest are knocked out and start the race on their grid positions according to the speed of their times. In round 2, the rest of the cars go out and another 6 get knocked out, and they'll start where there times put them as well. That leaves the last 10 cars to go around for Round 3, those ten battle for pole position, which is the very front of the Grid. It's the starting position everyone wants. So, here's how it played out.

Round 1: Knocked out -Marcu Ericsson (Caterham), Max Chilton (Marussia), Kamui Kobayashi (Caterham), Jules Bianchi (Marussia), Adrian Sutil (Sauber) & Pastor Maldonado (Lotus).

Round 2: Knocked out - Romain Grosjean (Lotus), Valtteri Bottas (Williams), Sergio Perez (Force India), Felipe Massa (Williams), Esteban Gutierrez (Sauber), & Daniil Kvyat (Toro Rosso)

Results After Round 3:

1. (Pole Position) - Lewis Hamilton / Mercedes / Great Britain
2. Sebastian Vettel / Redbull / Germany
3. Nico Rosberg / Mercedes / Germany
4. Fernando Alonso / Ferrari / Spain
5. Daniel Ricciardo / Redbull / Australia
6. Kimi Raikkonen / Ferrari / Finland
7. Nico Hulkenberg / Force India / Germany
8. Kevin Magnussen / McLaren / Denmark 
9. Jean-Eric Vergne / Toro Rosso / France
10. Jenson Button / McLaren / Great Britain
11. Daniil Kvyat / Toro Rosso / Russia
12. Esteban Gutierrez / Sauber / Mexico
13. Felipe Massa / Williams / Brazil
14. Sergio Perez / Force India / Mexico
15. Valtteri Bottas / Williams / Finland
16. Romain Grosjean / Lotus / France
17. Pastor Maldonado / Lotus / Venezuela 
18. Adrian Sutil / Sauber / Germany
19. Jules Bianchi / Marussia / France
20. Kamui Kobayashi / Caterham / Japan
21. Max Chilton / Marussia / Great Britain
22. Marcus Ericsson / Caterham / Sweden

After qualifying, Valtteri Bottas was given a 3-Place-Grid-Penalty for impeding Daniel Ricciardo during Qualifying, in turn Bottas was demoted to 18th, moving Grosjean, Maldonado and Sutil each up a spot on the grid.

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.
No Copyright Infringement Intended. 

Malaysian GP: Free Practice 1 - Re-Cap & Results

Free Practice 1 just finished up about an hour and a half ago and I have all the times from the session. We had a few cars stopping and/or smoking out on track including Kevin Magnnussen, who lost power and Pastor Maldonado who had to be taken back to the pits when his car started smoking. Romain Grosjean was out for most of the session and neither Lotus ended up setting a time. Another driver to not set a time was Force India's, Sergio Perez, who was having a Fuel issue.

Here are the times:

TIMES:

1. Lewis Hamilton - 1:40.691 / Mercedes
2. Kimi Raikkonen - 1:40.843 / Ferrari
3. Nico Rosberg - 1:41.028 / Mercedes
4. Jenson Button - 1:41.111 / McLaren
5. Kevin Magnussen - 1:41.274 / McLaren
6. Jean-Eric Vergne - 1:41.402 / Toro Rosso
7. Sebastian Vettel - 1:41.523 / Redbull
8. Nico Hulkenberg - 1:41.642 / Force India
9. Felipe Massa - 1:41.686 / Williams
10. Valtteri Bottas - 1:41.80 / Williams
11. Fernando Alonso - 1:41.923 / Ferrari
12. Daniel Ricciardo - 1:42.117 / Redbull
13. Adrian Sutil - 1:42.365 / Sauber
14. Daniil Kvyat - 1:42.869 / Toro Rosso
15. Esteban Gutierrez - 1:42.902 / Sauber
16. Jules Bianchi - 1:43.825 / Marussia
17. Marcus Ericsson - 1:45.775 / Caterham
18. Max Chilton - 1:46.911 / Marussia
19. Kamui Kobayashi - 1:51.180 / Caterham
20. Sergio Perez / No Time Set / Force India
21. Pastor Maldonado / No Time Set / Lotus
22. Romain Grosjean / No Time Set / Lotus

Stay tuned for Session 2, takng place in about 40 minutes, and I will be doing live-commentary as always on my twitter @F1Insider78 - Come join and send in your Questions & Comments!

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.
No Copyright Infringement Intended. 
 

 

Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Marussia

Next preview quotes from the Marussia F1 Team!

Jules Bianchi - “There were some good signs for us in Melbourne, but also a few challenges which got in the way of our progress, which was obviously quite frustrating. Overall, it has been really good to have the maximum information to look at with the engineers and what we have learned from that will be really helpful for us. I’m looking forward to getting back in the car and hoping for a more straightforward weekend in Malaysia, and one where we can really push the car a little more to explore its potential. Having said that, this is by no means an easy race; a very different challenge to Melbourne. Sepang is hard on the team and the drivers, and also the car, with tougher circuit characteristics and of course the heat and humidity. So it is a difficult environment in which to push everything harder, but that is what we must do and bring home a good result.”

Max Chilton - “I left Melbourne feeling pretty positive about our 2014 debut. We have a few things to iron out to give ourselves a better run at qualifying and the race, but I’m confident that we will see the first signs of progress with that this weekend in Malaysia. Our early level of reliability is quite encouraging and we’ve had two cars’ worth of data from the race to work with to really help us to troubleshoot our systems, so there are some really good signs at this stage. We still have some way to go to be able to gauge the true performance level of the car and we need to keep making steady in-roads into that to ensure we maintain a good direction. I’m excited to see what Malaysia will bring.”

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.

No Copyright Infringement Intended.

Quotes made by Drivers.

 

Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - McLaren

New quotes from McLaren!

Jenson Button - “Australia was a really motivational race for the entire team - even though we still have work to do, it feels like we’ve turned a corner, and that we have a race car we can definitely work with this year. It’s important that we keep pushing hard on the development front - we brought some useful upgrades to Melbourne, and it was encouraging that they worked straight out of the box, but it’s essential that we keep pushing new items through the development pipeline, especially at these flyaway races, where it’s harder to bring new parts to the circuit. Sepang is a great driver’s circuit, and even if we don’t have the overall downforce we want, we should have the balance and driveability to make the car work. And that’s really encouraging, because it means we go into a race weekend knowing that we can usually get the maximum from the car during the sessions and the race. Even if we don’t yet have the pace to take the fight to the frontrunners, we should have a car that’s decent in every sector, and which we’ll be able to hustle through the race - and that definitely counts for something.”

Kevin Magnussen - “There’s been no chance for a break since our encouraging result in Australia. Jenson and I both went back to Europe and spent a couple of days at the MTC to assess our performance in Melbourne and to work on our preparations for Malaysia. Equally, the designers and engineers have been working hard. We showed in Australia that we can score good points if our car is reliable, and we need to consolidate that over the next few races - and one of the ways to do that is to make sure that we’re bringing new parts to the track as fast as, if not faster, than our chief rivals. Sepang is a very different type of track from Albert Park: Melbourne was all about slow-speed corners and mechanical balance, whereas Malaysia is a real high-speed circuit, the corners are much faster and there’ll be more of an emphasis on aerodynamic performance. I think it’ll be a tougher test than Australia - the ambient temperatures will make it tougher for the drivers; and the track temperatures will be higher too, which will make it harder on the tyres. My aim will be to score more points - consistency is going to be very important for the championship - and to keep learning, especially in such a different environment. I’m really looking forward to it - the car feels fantastic to drive, and I hope we’ll have another good weekend.”

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.
No Copyright Infringement Intended.
Quotes made by Drivers. 

Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Williams

Here are the quotes from the Williams F1 Team.

Felipe Massa - “Malaysia is a nice place to race, it’s a hot and humid race which makes it a physically tough one for the drivers. The heat also has a big effect on the tyres and how quickly degradation happens. These extreme temperatures means Malaysia is less like any other circuit we will race at. When you go to Malaysia you can never count out the weather either, there is always the chance of rain, its heavy rain too, and this can happen at the end of nearly every day. All of these factors mean the race is always exciting from a fans point of view but these changes are tough for the drivers. I’m looking forward to having a good race there.”

Valtteri Bottas - “Malaysia will be a real challenge for us, but also something the other teams will have to deal with too. Cooling will be a major factor as the temperatures are so high, there is also still a lot to learn about the new power units, so this heat adds to this learning curve. It could be the hottest race this season and having it at the start of the season when people are trying to develop what they have isn’t the easiest of tasks. Physically for the drivers it isn’t easy; we have to work hard in the off-season so we are ready for times like this. The track itself is very nice; it has some great high speed sections which are my favourite parts of the circuit.”

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.
No Copyright Infringement Intended.
Quotes made by Drivers. 

Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Mercedes

Here are the Preview Quotes from the Mercedes F1 team.

Lewis Hamilton - “Malaysia is a stunning country and I always enjoy coming here. The fans are fantastic and it also forms one of three home races for the team alongside Germany and Great Britain. We have some exciting events planned with Petronas during the days building up to the race weekend so it will be a busy week but a lot of fun. I finished second on my Formula One debut here in 2007 and have been on the podium at the last two Malaysian Grands Prix but I've yet to win here. It would be amazing to stand on the top step at one of our home races and I'm looking forward to bouncing back after a tough weekend in Australia. Although it was not the result we were hoping for, every setback is a chance to learn more about this new car, which is important as they're incredibly complex machines. I know the team at Brackley and Brixworth is pushing harder than ever and I'll be doing the same.”

Nico Rosberg - “The Malaysian Grand Prix is the home race for Petronas so it's always a busy and exciting weekend. Sepang holds some great memories for me too as I achieved my first podium for Mercedes here at the start of the 2010 season. Normally the weather is seen as the biggest challenge here but this season is different, with reliability the focus of everyone's attention. Of course, it will still be hot, humid and probably wet at some stage too, so it should be a fascinating weekend. Australia was the perfect start to my season, but it also highlighted that we're not 100 percent there yet in terms of reliability. We've had two weeks before this race to identify all the things that we can do better, so hopefully we can bring both cars home for a good result this weekend and continue our strong start to the year.”

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.
No Copyright Infringement Intended.
Quotes made by Drivers.

Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Force India

Next quotes from Sahara Force India's driver duo.

Nico Hulkenberg - “Malaysia is going to be a tough challenge with totally different track characteristics and higher temperatures, which always leads to higher tyre degradation. It should be a good test of the new cars because it’s much more open than Melbourne with a nice variation of high and low-speed corners, plus two long straights.”

Sergio Perez - “I think as a team we are moving in the right direction and there were lots of positives to take away from Australia. It was the first race and we, as everyone else on the grid, are still learning a lot about the new car. We have seen some encouraging signs and collected a lot of data that can be put to use for the next few races, starting in Sepang. “I believe Malaysia can be a very good race for us. Let's see how we can perform there. I think Melbourne was a more difficult one for us and with a hotter track and more rear tyre degradation for everyone we can be stronger. I'm counting the days to Malaysia to recover what we couldn't achieve in Australia. I have good memories of this track and I want to build on my previous results there.”

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.
No Copyright Infringement Intended.
Quotes made by Drivers.

Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Toro Rosso

 
Next quotes come from the Toro Rosso drivers!

Jean-Eric Vergne - “It’s not one of my favourite tracks to be honest, as I don’t feel it has any particularly challenging characteristics. The best thing about this race is its unpredictable nature, because of the weather: you can start on slicks and within a few laps, you need extreme wets because of a heavy storm and that can be fun for a driver. The fans are very enthusiastic when we meet them at the autograph sessions and that is a nice feeling to realise there is so much support there. I have a happy memory of Sepang as it was here that I scored my first Formula One points.”

Daniil Kvyat - “The second race of the season is also the first track that I have visited before. I took my first ever single-seater win here for BMW in 2010 and actually this is also where I drove my very first single-seater race, so I have plenty of memories of this circuit. It’s going to seem very different this time, because there’s a huge step from Formula BMW to Formula One. The track itself is quite interesting, while the heat and humidity make it unique in that respect. I am sure I can be more confident this weekend, after experiencing my first race weekend in Melbourne combined with the fact I know the track. I like Malaysia and did some touristy things when I was there, like going up the Petronas towers and going to some beach resorts.”

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.
No Copyright Infringement Intended
Quotes made by Drivers.

Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Lotus

Here are the preview quotes from Lotus.

Romain Grosjean - “The first challenge in Malaysia will be the heat, humidity and usual rain storms at 4pm! For us as a team, the target is to move forwards and improve. The race in Melbourne was basically a good, long test. It wasn’t easy for the guys but I’m happy we did a lot of laps in the race. We gathered some useful data and we will now improve using that data. The aim now is to have a straightforward weekend at Sepang, working through our proper schedule in free practice, then carrying the benefits from that over to qualifying and the race. Sepang is one of my favourite circuits and I’m looking forward to it. Other than the early finish, the Australian Grand Prix was positive. We learned more about the car in 44 racing laps than during the whole of winter testing! The team has done so much work and each of the changes have been in the right direction. It was looking good in the race and then we had the same problem as Pastor: the MGU-K shaft. But at least there is no mystery about what happened and we are working with Renault Sport F1 to solve the problem. Overall we are happy with the chassis, the aero balance for the changing fuel load, the driveability of the engine and the fuel economy. Of course there is work to do with energy management and recovery and we know Renault Sport F1 is responding to this. On our side we know more about the set-up and the direction we must go in order to make the car better. Braking for example was not perfect, but that is also to do with the tyres. The new tyres are really hard and their handling characteristics have changed. We are not getting the best out of them yet, but we will. There are plenty of areas for us to play with, but we now have a clear base set-up for Malaysia.”

Pastor Maldonado - “Sepang is a good track and I really like the challenges it presents us with. It’s very interesting from the car point of view, especially the aerodynamics, but also the tyres because the asphalt is very aggressive. Hopefully this event will go more smoothly for us compared with Australia. We know we need to work very hard to achieve our aims and objectives for the E22. We know where our main focus lies and as a team we are determined to get there. We know the weather at Sepang can change a lot; in fact it is usually either extreme heat or extreme rain, so very tropical and we’ll need to be ready for everything. Also the extreme temperatures are hard on the cars in terms of reliability and from the driving point of view it is quite stressful as well. All round, I would say Sepang is one of the toughest races of the year. We’ll need to be strong in all areas.”

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.
No Copyright Infringement Intended.
Quotes made by Drivers. 

Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Sauber

Second set of quotes comes from the drivers of the Sauber F1 Team!

Esteban Gutierrez - “The Sepang International Circuit is completely different in comparison to the track in Melbourne. It will be interesting to get a feeling for the car with such different track characteristics. It is a smooth track, and less bumpy. It can give us a better feeling when braking, which is where we were struggling quite a lot during the whole weekend in Melbourne. The track has several high speed corners where we will be able to evaluate our downforce and see what the balance of the car is like. Also, the set-up is quite different. It is a fact that we are not happy yet with our performance. We need to put our heads together, be united as a team and make progress in every little detail we can. We have a great team, and I am confident we can improve.”

Adrian Sutil - “Malaysia is one of the hottest races during the season, and, as a result, a challenge because of the high humidity. You have to be well prepared, as, especially at the end of the race, you notice the difference. Everyone should get through the race, but the drivers will be pushed to their limits. The track consists of many fast turns, long straights and a few hairpins, which make it quite an interesting one. I am curious to drive the car on this track where the aerodynamics play a huge role. This is important in order to get to know where we stand. If a car is good in Sepang, then it will be fast on other tracks as well. You need everything here - good aerodynamics, grip in the corners and high speed on the straights. The aerodynamic efficiency of the car is a key. Generally, my hope is that we improve from race to race. In Malaysia, the main objective is to get better and to make a step forward.”

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.
No Copyright Infringement Intended.
Quotes made by Drivers.

Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Caterham

First preview quotes for Round 2 come from the CaterhamF1 Team.

Kamui Kobayashi - “The second race of the year is Malaysia and it’s our team’s first home race of the year, so it’s going to be a good week! I’ve obviously raced there a few times before, and finished in the points in 2011, and this year it would be great if we were able to fight for a point, but we’ll have to make sure we have a better Friday than we did in Australia if we’re going to have a stronger weekend at Sepang. The way we bounced back in qualifying in Melbourne showed a little bit of what we can do, but without any real laps in FP1 or FP2 we only had a very small chance to fight. With a proper Friday and Saturday program we can give ourselves the opportunity to show the true pace of the car, and prepare much more for the race. Obviously, I’d like to also make sure I don’t have the same brake problems that caused the accident in turn one in Australia - without that I think we’d have had a strong race and we’ll work as hard as we can to give ourselves the chance to really perform. Off track we’re going to be busy, especially on Tuesday night when I’m at a Renault event at Sepang and on Wednesday when we have a very packed schedule meeting sponsors and fans. We’ll be at the Pavilion Shopping Centre in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday afternoon from about 2pm meeting our fans so if anyone is in KL that afternoon they should come along. We’re also going to see AirAsia’s head office on Wednesday afternoon and meet their staff, so it’ll be good to see one of (Caterham Group Co-Chairman) Tony’s (Fernandes) other teams in action!”

Marcus Ericsson - “I can’t wait to get back in the car, especially after having a really good race until the oil pressure problem forced us to stop in Australia. It’s been great to read so many nice comments about what we did in the race after such a bad Friday, but now I want to get on with it again and go straight back to work. Sepang’s a track I’ve already raced on, so that’s obviously an advantage over Australia. I really like the heat and have trained hard all through the winter to prepare for races like Malaysia, so I’ll be 100 percent ready physically, but I’m still just loving being in F1 and for race two to be a home race for Caterham and on a track I know and like, that’s just really good for me. It’ll be great to see how much Caterham means to the Malaysian fans, and I’ve been told the autograph session on Sunday will be one of the real highlights of the year, so there’s a lot to be excited about! We obviously need a stronger weekend on track overall, and I know they guys back at the factory and at Renault have been working flat out to help us do so. Our race pace in Australia was pretty good, but with a full Friday and not having to use FP3 to catch up, I think we can start to unlock the real performance of this year’s car. If we can do that, and with the work being put in by everyone, there’s no reason why we shouldn’t, I think Malaysia could be a strong weekend for our team."

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.
No Copyright Infringement Intended.
Quotes made by Drivers.

Malaysian GP: Circuit Preview

Welcome to my 2nd Circuit Preview of the year. The Second round is taking place in the beautiful Country of Malaysia and we're looking to see dry, hot weather this year.

Last year's race was rainy and cloudy. Sebastian Vettel took pole while Sergio Perez had the fastest timed lap. The podium? Vettel in First, while Webber finished Second and Hamilton in Third. It was a very controversial race when Vettel disobeyed team orders to not pass Webber. Webber was said to have won if it weren't for the events that took place between Vettel and the Redbull Team.

On to this year! The Sepang International Circuit is located in Sepang, Selangor, Malaysia and was opened in 1999. It draws in a crowd, as it's Maximum Capacity is 80,000! 

The circuit is 3.444 Miles in length and has a total of 15 turns. The drivers have a total of 56 laps to cover before a winner is announced. This year, with the Turbos, we could see a lot of people dropping out if it's a hot one. Last year, with the rain, it was slippery, but they didn't have to worry about overheating Turbo Engines. The circuit also runs Clockwise.

I have already posted the Schedule if you want to take a look at when the events take place.

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.
No Copyright Infringement Intended.  
(Photo Credit Belongs To Owner: www.wemotor.com)

Malaysian GP: Schedule

The second round of the 2014 season is almost here and I have the weekend schedule! Hope you all enjoy watching. All the times are in Malaysian Local Time, if you want it converted, just let me know!

March 27th - Thursday

15:00 - Press Conference (Located In Press Room.)

March 28th - Friday

10:00 - 11:30 - Free Practice 1
12:30 - 13:45 - Paddock Club Pit Lane Walk
14:00 - 15:30 - Free Practice 2
16:00 - 17:00 - Press Conference (Located In Press Room.)

March 29th - Saturday

10:35 - 11:20 - Paddock Club Pit Lane Walk
10:35 - 11:20 - Pit Stop Practice
13:00 - 14:00 - Free Practice 3
16:00 - Qualifying

March 30th - Sunday

12:00 - 13:00 - Formula 1 Drivers Autograph Signing
14:05 - 15:10 - Paddock Club Pit Lane Walk
14:30 - Drivers Track Parade
14:45 - 15:15 - Starting Grid Presentation
15:46 - National Anthem
16:00 - Race 

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.
No Copyright Infringement Intended.