Malaysian GP: Race - Re-Cap & Results

MALAYSIAN GP - RACE - RE-CAP & RESULTS

    After Vettel missed out on qualifying due to an engine issue, it didn't look like things could get much worse for Ferrari, but they did. Kimi Raikkonen was unable to start the race due to a battery malfunction. The team did what they could but it wasn't a quick fix and Ferrari's only hope was Vettel, who started last on the grid.

    As the final Malaysian GP got underway, after the start, Max Verstappen quickly moved up to the front and it only took him a handful of laps to get past Hamilton for the lead of the race. It was no secret that Mercedes were lacking pace and were out of their usual performance, but not many expected Verstappen, who just turned 20 days earlier, to take the lead of one of the toughest races of the season.

    It ended up being a solid race for the Force India duo despite Ocon having an early puncture from a collision with Massa at the start of the race and another collision with Sainz later on. Not to mention, team-mate, Perez, was suffering from a stomach virus all week and was treated with an IV drip pre-race. Perez still scored 8 points by bringing home the car in 6th and Ocon grabbed the last point in 10th.

    Carlos Sainz was the only driver to retire from the race. The Spaniard suffered from an engine problem, which left him out halfway through. Pierre Gasly, who replaces Kvyat for multiple races at the team, finished his 1st F1 race in 14th. 

    Sebastian Vettel managed to catch up quite quickly and was in 5th place by Lap 22. He ended up finishing 4th, keeping the title fight close between him, Hamilton and Bottas. Bottas finished in 5th, making it once of his worst performances this year after multiple podiums. 

    After being left out by the Renault team, in favor of Sainz, Jolyon Palmer found himself having another horrible race. He spun, ended up colliding with Magnussen and ended up spinning again. He was left pointless again, finishing in 15th, just ahead of team-mate, Hulkenberg in 16th.

    Wehrlein and Ericsson finished 17th and 18th respectively. While Sauber has struggled this year, things are keen to look up next year as the team works on it's 2018 car in hopes of finishing better in both the Drivers and Constructors championships.

    Max Verstappen brought home the win for Red Bull and was able to celebrate on the podium with Hamilton who finished 2nd and Verstappen's own team-mate, Ricciardo, who managed to stay ahead of Vettel long enough to secure third.

    While all seemed good, it wasn't until after the race, on the cool-down lap, that Vettel had a collision with Lance Stroll. No action was taken, but on the radio, they were quick to point the blame on one another. Vettel ended up getting out of his damaged Ferrari and hitched a ride on Wehrlein's Sauber.

    Vandoorne, Stroll and Massa all also scored points for their teams.

    

RESULTS:

1. Max Verstappen / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Netherlands / + 25 Points

2. Lewis Hamilton / Mercedes-Mercedes / Great Britain / + 18 Points

3. Daniel Ricciardo / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Australia / + 15 Points

4. Sebastian Vettel / Ferrari-Ferrari / Germany / + 12 Points

5. Valtteri Bottas / Mercedes-Mercedes / Finland / + 10 Points

6. Sergio Perez / Force India-Mercedes / Mexico / + 8 Points

7. Stoffel Vandoorne / McLaren-Honda / Belgium / + 6 Points

8. Lance Stroll / Williams-Mercedes / Canada / + 4 Points

9. Felipe Massa / Williams-Mercedes / Brazil / + 2 Points

10. Esteban Ocon / Force India-Mercedes / France / + 1 Point

11. Fernando Alonso / McLaren-Honda / Spain

12. Kevin Magnussen / Haas-Ferrari / Denmark

13. Romain Grosjean / Haas-Ferrari / France

14. Pierre Gasly / Toro Rosso-Renault / France

15. Jolyon Palmer / Renault-Renault / Great Britain

16. Nico Hulkenberg / Renault-Renault / Germany

17. Pascal Wehrlein / Sauber-Ferrari / Germany

18. Marcus Ericsson / Sauber-Ferrari / Sweden

RETIRED - Carlos Sainz / Toro Rosso-Renault / Spain / Engine

DID NOT START - Kimi Raikkonen / Ferrari-Ferrari / Finland / Battery

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Malaysian GP: Qualifying - Re-Cap & Results

MALAYSIAN GP - QUALIFYING - RE-CAP & RESULTS

    Lewis Hamilton took his 70th Pole Position while Sebastian Vettel was unable to set a time due to an engine issue. Vettel was allowed to race with permission from the stewards. He also received a 20-Place-Grid-Penalty for multiple component changes.

HOW IT WORKS:

Q1 = 18 minutes. All cars allowed to go out. At the end of the session, the five slowest are eliminated.

Q2 = 15 minutes. The remaining cars go out. At the end of the session, the five slowest are eliminated.

Q3 = 12 minutes. Final 10 cars go out. The final order at the end of the session is how the grid will line up. Fastest car starts from Pole Position.

GRID LINE-UP:

1. Lewis Hamilton / Mercedes-Mercedes / Great Britain

2. Kimi Raikkonen / Ferrari-Ferrari / Finland

3. Max Verstappen / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Netherlands

4. Daniel Ricciardo / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Australia

5. Valtteri Bottas / Mercedes-Mercedes / Finland

6. Esteban Ocon / Force India-Mercedes / France

7. Stoffel Vandoorne / McLaren-Honda / Belgium

8. Nico Hulkenberg / Renault-Renault / Germany

9. Sergio Perez / Force India-Mercedes / Mexico

10. Fernando Alonso / McLaren-Honda / Spain

11. Felipe Massa / Williams-Mercedes / Brazil

12. Jolyon Palmer / Renault-Renault / Great Britain

13. Lance Stroll / Williams-Mercedes / Canada

14. Carlos Sainz / Toro Rosso-Renault / Spain

15. Pierre Gasly / Toro Rosso-Renault / France

16. Romain Grosjean / Haas-Ferrari / France

17. Kevin Magnussen / Haas-Ferrari / Denmark

18. Pascal Wehrlein / Sauber-Ferrari / Germany

19. Marcus Ericsson / Sauber-Ferrari / Sweden
20. Sebastian Vettel / Ferrari-Ferrari / Germany / DNQ - Engine Issue*

* - (Vettel) 20-Place-Grid-Penalty for multiple engine component changes

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Malaysian GP: Free Practice #3 - Re-Cap & Times

MALAYSIAN GP - FREE PRACTICE #3 - RE-CAP & TIMES

    Ferrari was once again the dominant force in the final free practice session ahead of the Malaysian Grand Prix, but it was a far from perfect session for the Italian squad as engine problems hit Sebastian Vettel in the closing stages of the session.

    Kimi Raikkonen topped the times, a tenth of a second faster than his team-mate and half a second faster than the closest Mercedes.

    Vettel was told to slow down in the final minutes of the session and cruise back to the pits. Ferrari is now changing the engine, which it had hoped not to use until Suzuka next weekend.

    Daniel Ricciardo claimed third fastest whilst team-mate Max Verstappen also ran into trouble. Renault’s Jolyon Palmer was on a hot lap, behind the Red Bull on track. He dived down the inside of Verstappen at the final corner, but locked up and collided. Verstappen was sent into a spin and reported a puncture whilst Palmer damaged his front wing. Both were sent to the stewards over the incident.

    Verstappen ended the day sixth fastest whilst a generally scruffy session for Palmer put him 17th.

Mercedes again couldn’t compete with Ferrari at a track that is supposed to work in its favour. The team brought a new front wing to the race, but it doesn’t seem to be giving its drivers the pace it had hoped for.

    Valtteri Bottas, running the new aero package, was fourth fastest, less than two tenths of a second quicker than Lewis Hamilton, who took fifth.

    Sergio Perez won the best of the rest title, taking seventh fastest ahead of Felipe Massa, Esteban Ocon, and Stoffel Vandoorne.

    After some impressive times in Friday’s free practice session, Fernando Alonso could only manage 11th quickest, beating Lance Stroll and Kevin Magnussen. Magnussen’s running was limited when he was called back to the pits with a suspected engine problem. He was sent back out and took the 13th best time, nearly two seconds slower than Raikkonen.

    There was more misery for Romain Grosjean. After he hit the barriers in FP2 yesterday it was a race against time for the mechanics to repair his car. They worked into the early hours of the morning but Grosjean was able to get back out in FP3, only to spin on a flying lap. He finished 18th fastest, ahead only of Marcus Ericsson and Pascal Wehrlein.

    Nico Hulkenberg was 14th quickest, with Carlos Sainz beating Pierre Gasly in 15th and 16th.

TIMES:

1. Kimi Raikkonen – 1:31.880 / Ferrari-Ferrari / Finland
2. Sebastian Vettel - 1:32.042 / Ferrari-Ferrari / Germany
3. Daniel Ricciardo - 1:32.091 / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Australia
4. Valtteri Bottas - 1:32.329 / Mercedes-Mercedes / Finland
5. Lewis Hamilton - 1:32.539 / Mercedes-Mercedes / Great Britain
6. Max Verstappen - 1:32.579 / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Netherlands
7. Sergio Perez - 1:33.209 / Force India-Mercedes / Mexico
8. Felipe Massa – 1:33.240 / Williams-Mercedes / Brazil
9. Esteban Ocon - 1:33.290 / Force India-Mercedes / France
10. Stoffel Vandoorne - 1:33.321 / McLaren-Honda / Belgium
11. Fernando Alonso - 1:33.530 / McLaren-Honda / Spain
12. Lance Stroll - 1:33.538 / Williams-Mercedes / Canada
13. Kevin Magnussen - 1:33.787 / Haas-Ferrari / Denmark
14. Nico Hulkenberg - 1:33.871 / Renault-Renault / Germany
15. Carlos Sainz - 1:33.924 / Toro Rosso-Renault / Spain
16. Pierre Gasly - 1:34.206 / Toro Rosso-Renault / France
17. Jolyon Palmer - 1:34.475 / Renault-Renault / Great Britain
18. Romain Grosjean - 1:34.914 / Haas-Ferrari / France
19. Marcus Ericsson - 1:34.936 / Sauber-Ferrari / Sweden
20. Pascal Wehrlein - 1:35.045 / Sauber-Ferrari / Germany

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Malaysian GP: Free Practice #2 - Re-Cap & Times

MALAYSIAN GP - FREE PRACTICE #2 - RE-CAP & TIMES

    Ferrari took over the top of the time sheets in the second free practice session of the Malaysian GP Weekend. Vettel topped the session with a 1:31.261, while team-mate, Raikkonen was close behind with a 1:31.865. Ricciardo, Verstappen and Alonso followed to complete the top 5.

    While many drivers were seen sliding off track and/or having minor spins, Romain Grosjean became the unlucky one to suffer a huge crash due to a loose drain cover on the circuit. Cars before him were seen running over the area, causing the cover to lift up vertically. Grosjean tagged it with his rear tyre and was sent spinning multiple times before plowing into the barriers.

    The session was Red Flagged and wasn't restarted with 7-8 minutes remaining. Charlie Whiting and other FIA members inspected the circuit and the drain cover was replaced later on, causing a delay of the Formula 4 race, which ended up happening the following morning.

    Mercedes showed a surprising lack of pace, with neither driver in the top 5. Hamilton was closest, finishing 6th with a 1:32.677. Bottas was 7th with a 1:32.720

    Pierre Gasly, making his debut race weekend, finished the session in 15th with a 1:34.043, just ahead of new team-mate, Carlos Sainz, who ended with a 1:34.104.

TIMES:

1. Sebastian Vettel - 1:31.261 / Ferrari-Ferrari / Germany

2. Kimi Raikkonen - 1:31.865 / Ferrari-Ferrari / Finland

3. Daniel Ricciardo - 1:32.099 / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Australia

4. Max Verstappen - 1:32.109 / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Netherlands

5. Fernando Alonso - 1:32.564 / McLaren-Honda / Spain

6. Lewis Hamilton - 1:32.677 / Mercedes-Mercedes / Great Britain

7. Valtteri Bottas - 1:32.720 / Mercedes-Mercedes / Finland

8. Sergio Perez - 1:32.862 / Force India-Mercedes / Mexico

9. Nico Hulkenberg - 1:33.060 / Renault-Renault / Germany

10. Esteban Ocon - 1:33.096 / Force India-Mercedes / France

11. Jolyon Palmer - 1:33.381 / Renault-Renault / Great Britain

12. Felipe Massa - 1:33.394 / Williams-Mercedes / Brazil

13. Stoffel Vandoorne - 1:33.673 / McLaren-Honda / Belgium

14. Lance Stroll - 1:33.818 / Williams-Mercedes / Canada

15. Pierre Gasly - 1:34.043 / Toro Rosso-Renault / France

16. Carlos Sainz - 1:34.104 / Toro Rosso-Renault / Spain

17. Romain Grosjean - 1:34.118 / Haas-Ferrari / France

18. Kevin Magnussen - 1:34.343 / Haas-Ferrari / Denmark

19. Pascal Wehrlein - 1:35.246 / Sauber-Ferrari / Germany

20. Marcus Ericsson - 1:35.697 / Sauber-Ferrari / Sweden

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Malaysian GP: Free Practice #1 - Re-Cap & Times

MALAYSIAN GP - FREE PRACTICE #1 - RE-CAP & TIMES

    Max Verstappen led a Red Bull one-two in the first free practice session ahead of the Malaysian Grand Prix. He and team-mate Daniel Ricciardo spent the later part of the 90 minutes swapping times at the top of the order, but it was Verstappen who ended fastest with a 1m48.962s lap around the wet Sepang track.

    The start of FP1 was delayed by half an hour due to the weather, and it was close to the one hour mark when the first time of the morning was set by Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel. The track dried over the course of the morning but never enough for a driver to venture out on slick tyres.

    Fernando Alonso finished third fastest, despite only completing six laps. The McLaren driver spent a long time in the pits after running the halo early in the session, but ventured back out without the head protection device later to set his fastest lap. The lap put him two tenths of a second fastest than Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen in fourth.

    After setting the first timed lap of the day, it was Vettel’s last minute lap that put him fifth in the timings. The 1m51.009s was more than two seconds slower than Verstappen, but faster than Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas behind him.

    Lance Stroll took eighth quickest whilst team-mate Felipe Massa failed to set a time. Hydraulics problems confined Massa to the pits for most of the morning, and he only managed three laps in total.

    Making his F1 debut this weekend, Pierre Gasly was ninth fastest in the Toro Rosso. Not only will Gasly be competing in his first race on Sunday, replacing Daniil Kvyat, the practice session was the first time the Frenchman has driven in an F1 race weekend. He was more than two seconds quicker than Sean Gelael, who was running in the other Toro Rosso for the session and finished the morning 14th.

    Sergey Sirotkin, running in the Renault, was 10th fastest, a tenth of a second quicker than Jolyon Palmer.

    Stoffel Vandoorne was 12th fastest ahead of Esteban Ocon. Ocon was seven tenths of a second quicker than team-mate Sergio Perez, who ended the morning 15th.

    Charles Leclerc, getting his first taste of a Sauber, was 16th fastest. The 1m55.280s lap was just enough to put him ahead of Sauber regular Pascal Wehrlein in 17th.

    Romain Grosjean and Antonio Giovinazzi completed the order.

TIMES:

1. Max Verstappen - 1:48.962 / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Netherlands
2. Daniel Ricciardo - 1:49.719 / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Australia
3. Fernando Alonso - 1:50.597 / McLaren-Honda / Spain
4. Kimi Raikkonen – 1:50.734 / Ferrari-Ferrari / Finland
5. Sebastian Vettel - 1:51.009 / Ferrari-Ferrari / Germany
6. Lewis Hamilton - 1:51.518 / Mercedes-Mercedes / Great Britain
7. Valtteri Bottas - 1:52.007 / Mercedes-Mercedes / Finland
8. Lance Stroll - 1:52.295 / Williams-Mercedes / Canada
9. Pierre Gasly - 1:52.380 / Toro Rosso-Renault / France
10. Sergey Sirotkin - 1:53.521 / Renault-Renault / Russia*
11. Jolyon Palmer - 1:53.625 / Renault-Renault / Great Britain
12. Stoffel Vandoorne - 1:53.771 / McLaren-Honda / Belgium
13. Esteban Ocon - 1:53.896 / Force India-Mercedes / France
14. Sean Gelael - 1:54.610 / Toro Rosso-Renault / Indonesia*
15. Sergio Perez - 1:54.669 / Force India-Mercedes / Mexico
16. Charles Leclerc - 1:55.280 / Sauber-Ferrari / Monaco*
17. Pascal Wehrlein - 1:55.652 / Sauber-Ferrari / Germany
18. Romain Grosjean - 1:56.211 / Haas-Ferrari / France
19. Antonio Giovinazzi - 1:56.339 / Haas-Ferrari / Italy*
20. Felipe Massa – NO TIME SET / Williams-Mercedes / Brazil

* - Driving in FP1 only.

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Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Red Bull

DRIVER PREVIEW QUOTES - RED BULL RACING FORMULA ONE TEAM

Daniel Ricciardo - “I’m looking forward to the back-to-back races and our next stop is Sepang for the last Malaysian Grand Prix. My victory last year in Malaysia was definitely unexpected. I really didn’t think our car was well suited to the track, but Lewis’ problem opened the door and then I held off Max in the closing stages to take the win. It just goes to show you never know what can happen. Set-up is always a compromise in Malaysia as you need a good car in the middle sector, but you also can’t afford to lose too much time on those long straights.”

Max Verstappen - “Last year we had a one-two in Malaysia. Daniel and I had a good wheel-to-wheel battle, we gave each other just enough room which provided some good action for the crowd and a great result for the team. Both Singapore and Malaysia are very hot and humid races, being one after the other means you can at least tailor your training for those conditions, but it will still be physically tough. It’s also challenging for the pit crew in their overalls, they get very hot and I’m sure they also lose a few kilos over the weekend!”

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Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Haas

DRIVER PREVIEW QUOTES - HAAS F1 TEAM

Romain Grosjean - “I think it’s pretty much the hardest race of the year. Singapore is a slower track with slower corners, whereas Malaysia has high speed with high loads. Again, it’s a great challenge, a great track, and when you have a good car, it’s an amazing experience.

    I’ve always loved the track. It’s been my favourite track for a very long time. I just love the layout. There’s no one particular race that I remember significantly, except maybe Alonso’s race when he won and couldn’t stand on the podium because he was completely dehydrated. For me, I just love the track.

    I remember GP2 Asia in 2008. I had the pole position in Sepang by around a second or something like that. It was a very fast time. I stalled on the grid, came back from last and almost climbed back up to first, but I was pushed out by a backmarker. I finished ninth, while the top-eight were then reversed on the grid for the second race. I started the second race from ninth and finished second. It was a weekend where I should’ve won both races but, unfortunately, didn’t. I love the track though.”

Kevin Magnussen - “It’s pretty hot there. What makes it easier is that you’ve got longer straights to help you recover and get some wind on your body. In Singapore, everything is very low-speed and you’re constantly working on the steering wheel, braking, then getting back on power. You work a lot harder in Singapore than you do in Malaysia. The temperature is worse in Malaysia but, somehow, the race is a little bit easier. I don’t really do anything particular for mental preparation. It’s physical training, then your mental performance improves accordingly.

    I’ve always enjoyed the track. It’s not a bad circuit. It’s got some high-speed corners and that’s always what drivers enjoy. I’m a little bit sad to see it go as it’s been on the calendar for so long. Turns 5 and 6 (are my favourite parts), as they’re quite quick, and then 7 and 8, the double right-hander as well. Any high-speed corner in a Formula One car is always exciting. Into Turn 1 is a good (overtaking opportunity). The hairpin after the double right-hander is another one. The last corner as well, but usually it’s into Turn 1.”

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Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Renault

DRIVER PREVIEW QUOTES - RENAULT SPORT FORMULA ONE TEAM

Nico Hulkenberg - “It’s one of the hottest Grands Prix of the year and we are tested and pushed to the limits. We have to drink a lot of fluids because we lose so much during the race. The track is challenging with lots of high speed corners and fast combinations. I enjoy going to Malaysia. The weather is always different to Europe and takes a bit of getting used to. When you fly there you can see the rainforest which is cool. Rhythm is important around Sepang and it’s a nice feeling when it goes right.

    Turn 1 goes on forever, it’s quite tricky to get right. It’s important to find a good flow and keep a good rhythm. The final sector is slightly slower and a bit more technical with long, sweeping corners. This year’s cars will mean some of these bends will be very, very quick. It’s always hard to find the right balance and tyre degradation is usually quite high. You need to be early on the throttle for both the back straight and then the start and finish straight.”

Jolyon Palmer - “It’s always nice and warm there and I tend to do well in these humid races; Malaysia last year, Singapore this year so I’m looking forward to it. It’s a cool track with a good atmosphere to match. It’s a flowing circuit with some long straights, fast corners and hard braking zones. We have a bit of confidence going there. The car keeps getting better, I’m certainly improving too so we’ll aim to get another good result.

    I raced in Sepang twice when I was in GP2 but for various reasons at the time I didn’t have any memorable finishes, although one year I came up to ninth from the back of the grid. Last year I got my first Formula 1 point; there are plenty of overtaking opportunities on the track so I’ll be looking to make the most of it and add some more points.

    Kuala Lumpur is a really cool city to explore and downtown you can visit the very modern areas with the big famous towers and then you have the more traditional areas and the markets. The city’s got a great vibe.”

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Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - McLaren

DRIVER PREVIEW QUOTES - McLAREN HONDA FORMULA 1 TEAM

Fernando Alonso - “After Singapore, I’m already eager to get back into the car and hopefully make it further than the first corner in Malaysia! Of course, what happened was disappointing and it’s difficult to hide your frustration when you’re the victim of someone else’s incident. I felt we had the potential to be really competitive – one of our only opportunities of the year – and it’s a shame we couldn’t bring home the points to prove it, but these things happen.

    The conditions in Malaysia will be very similar to Singapore – hot, humid and challenging for the drivers and the car. The configuration will work less in our favour, but of course we will still fight for everything. There are six races left and we are still putting all our energy in finishing every race in the best possible position we can.

    Sepang will be more difficult for us in terms of set-up since the straights require good straight-line speed and power, but this track is a mixture of a lot of different characteristics, so we’ll see how much we can make up on the slower-speed corners. The 2018 cars will definitely be faster through there, which will surely be fun to experience, and I hope we can avoid any drama and have a solid race.”

Stoffel Vandoorne - “After Singapore, I’m looking forward to heading to Malaysia on the back of a positive weekend on my side of the garage. I felt strong all weekend and we were able to put in consistent performances in every session. It’s a shame we couldn’t score points with both cars as we all felt it was really deserved; Fernando was very unlucky, but we head to Kuala Lumpur with a bit more confidence and the objective of keeping this momentum going.

    Like Singapore, Malaysia will be a first for me as I’ve never raced there before. It’s a shame it’ll be the last time we’ll be racing there for a while, but that’s all the more reason to make the most of it. It looks to be a pretty cool track – challenging and similar conditions to Singapore – but hopefully potential to show what our car can do.

    It definitely won’t suit us as much as the Singapore track did, so we still need to be cautious about what’s possible, but having watched races there in the past, there’s always some kind of drama and the risk of a shower or two, so we’ll have our fingers crossed for an opportunity for us to mix it with cars a little bit further up the field.”

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Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Toro Rosso

DRIVER PREVIEW QUOTES - SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO F1 TEAM

Carlos Sainz - “I'm still buzzing from our P4 finish in Singapore last time out and it will give me a big boost in Malaysia, for sure! It was an amazing feeling to achieve my best F1 result up until now with the team, we worked very hard and we definitely deserved it! I've seen many videos on social media this past week reminding me about it and my favourite is the one where I cross the line and celebrate it over the radio with my race engineer… Boomshakalaka! And now I'm ready for Malaysia. I have good memories, especially of the 2015 race weekend as I performed my first comeback in F1 – I started from P15 and finished P8… The weather conditions in Sepang are always special. The rain showers are always close and it's not strange for the sun to be out one minute and then, all of a sudden, it starts to pour down with rain, especially in the afternoons! Having said that, it's never rained for me yet when racing there, maybe I will experience it this year?!”

Pierre Gasly (Driving in place of Kvyat during the full Malaysian GP Weekend) - “I am not worried, I am excited about making my debut in Sepang this weekend. I have worked hard to prepare for this and to get to F1. I am very happy to have this opportunity. I know it will be different to anything I've done before and the other drivers have been racing all season, so I will have a lot of things to get used to and learn about. It's a super challenge and I can't wait for it to start. I have raced in Sepang. It was last year, when I took pole position for the GP2 race, so clearly it's a track I like. It is very tough with the high level of humidity but I am well prepared physically.”

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Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Force India

DRIVER PREVIEW QUOTES - SAHARA FORCE INDIA F1 TEAM

Sergio Perez - “Malaysia is a place that means a lot to me. It’s where I got my first ever podium in Formula One, in 2012. After Singapore, it’s another very hot race. I think last year’s was the hottest race I’ve ever experienced during my whole career, so I expect to sweat a lot on Sunday!

    The weather is so unpredictable, you can have a big storm all of a sudden and then it can dry up again in five minutes, because it’s so warm and humid. Every year, Malaysia has been a special race because of the heat and the characteristics of the track. I’ll be really sad to see Sepang disappear from the calendar. I hope to see all the Malaysian fans at some other race and I hope they keep following us online.”

Esteban Ocon - “Sepang is such a beautiful track. I really love it. I enjoy chicanes and there are quite a few in Malaysia, with some nice combinations of fast and medium-speed corners. When you have a good car in qualifying, you can just feel the grip; it’s very enjoyable. On the other hand, it’s a very tough race because of the heat and humidity. The rain can play a big part – at least I am told! Last year everyone kept telling me that, but it was just mega sunny and warm all weekend. It’s sad we will be racing here for the last time because it’s such a cool track. I am going to miss it.”

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Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Sauber

DRIVER PREVIEW QUOTES - SAUBER F1 TEAM

Marcus Ericsson - “Another tough race ahead of us, with very hot and humid conditions in Malaysia. The track is a challenging one – it has both fast and slow corners, so it will be critical for us to get the tyres to work properly. I used the past week to recharge, and will do my best to come back stronger at the Malaysian Grand Prix. As for Japan – it is a very special race for me, as I lived and raced there in 2009. I have great memories of my time there and the atmosphere is always great. I feel like I am in my second home.”

Pascal Wehrlein - “I look forward to the Malaysian Grand Prix. Like Singapore, the temperatures as well as the humidity are quite high, so it will be challenging both physically, in terms of enduring the heat in the car, and technically in terms of managing the tyres. Another special aspect of this race weekend is the unpredictable weather. After Malaysia we are heading to Japan – I am excited to go back there. The fans at Suzuka are real racing enthusiasts, so that makes it even more fun to race there.”

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Article Posted By: Amy Hawk
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Malaysian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Williams

DRIVER PREVIEW QUOTES - WILLIAMS MARTINI RACING

Felipe Massa - “The race in Malaysia is another one held in very hot and humid conditions, but for this we go back to racing in the daylight. Without doubt it will be very difficult physically and us drivers will lose a lot of fluids. It is a shame that this will be our last F1 race there, as I like racing there and have some friends who live around Kuala Lumpur. I really hope we can enjoy this and it is a great last race for the fans.”

Lance Stroll - “The second of our three Asian races should be fun, as I like the look of the track in Malaysia and certainly seems a great one from a driver’s point of view. The area that looks like a lot of fun, especially in this year’s cars, is that S and a couple of high-speed corners, which are turns five/six or six/seven. The other thing I have noticed is it tends to rain a lot there, and it often comes down suddenly and heavily, so we are going to have to be prepared for everything. Also, as this is the last time we shall race there, I want to make the most of this opportunity.”

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Article Posted By: Amy Hawk
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Malaysian GP: Circuit Preview

MALAYSIAN GP - CIRCUIT PREVIEW + 2016 STATS

Name: Sepang International Circuit

Location: Sepang, Selangor, Malaysia

Opened: March 7th 1997

Length: 3.445 Miles

Capacity: 80,000

Runs: Clockwise

Turns: 15

Race Laps: 56

2016 STATS

Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton

1st Place: Daniel Ricciardo

2nd Place: Max Verstappen

3rd Place: Nico Rosberg

Retirements: Sebastian Vettel (Collision), Romain Grosjean (Brakes), Kevin Magnussen (Power Loss), Esteban Gutierrez (Wheel), Lewis Hamilton (Engine) & Felipe Nasr (Brakes)

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Article Written By: Amy Hawk

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Malaysian GP: Track Schedule

MALAYSIAN GP: TRACK SCHEDULE

September 28th / Thursday

12:00 - 12:30 - Petronas Taxi Ride - 12 People

15:00 - Drivers Press Conference

15:00 - 15:45 - Track Tour - Coach

15:45 - 16:45 - Pit-Lane Walk

17:30 - 18:00 - Pit-Lane Walk (F1 Experiences) (F1 Experience Guests Only)

18:00 - 18:30 - Track Tour (F1 Experiences) (F1 Experience Guests Only)

September 29th / Friday

08:00 - 08:45 - Paddock Club Pit-Lane Walk

11:00 - 12:30 - Free Practice #1

13:30 - 14:00 - Truck Tour

13:30 - 14:30 - Pit-Lane Walk

15:00 - 16:30 - Free Practice #2

17:00 - 18:00 - Press Conference

September 30th / Saturday

11:00 - 11:30 - Team Pit-Stop Practice

12:00 - 13:00 - Drivers Fan Forum

12:30 - 13:30 - Pit-Lane Walk

14:00 - 15:00 - Free Practice #3

15:55 - 16:30 - Pit-Lane Walk

17:00 - 18:00 - Qualifying

19:10 - 19:40 - Truck Tour

October 1st / Sunday

10:35 - 11:20 - Pit-Lane Walk

11:00 - 12:00 - F1 Drivers Autograph Session (TBC)

13:05 - 14:10 - Pit-Lane Walk

13:15 - 13:45 - Truck Tour

13:30 - Drivers Track Parade

13:45 - 14:15 - Starting Grid Ceremony & Opening Ceremony

14:46 - National Anthem

15:00 - 17:00 - Race

(Subject to change)

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Written By: Amy Hawk

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Malaysian GP: Race - Re-Cap & Results

MALAYSIAN GRAND PRIX - RACE

    Daniel Ricciardo lead a Red Bull one-two in the Malaysia GP, with an incredibly recovery drive from Nico Rosberg ending with the Germany third in the podium. Rosberg leads the championship ahead of the Japanese GP next weekend.

    Everything seemed to be over for Rosberg after the first corner. Sebastian Vettel, starting fifth, shot down the inside of Max Verstappen going into the tight hair pin. Vettel managed to get past, but couldn’t turn his car fast enough and hit Rosberg.

    Rosberg was sent spinning to the back of the pack, Vettel out of the race. Verstappen managed to get away with minimal damage, but had still lost a handful of places.

    Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton was in a race of his own, once again. He’d managed to get a clean get away from the grid, and had left Ricciardo far behind him.

    The virtual safety car was virtually brought out, pausing the race whilst the debris from the collision was cleared.

    Further back, Daniil Kvyat had hit the back of Kevin Magnussen’s car and the Russian dived into the pits to replace his damaged front wing.

    As soon as the green flags returned to the track, Verstappen was on the move. The Dutch driver made quick work of Kimi Raikkonen and Sergio Perez ahead of him, moving back up to third.

    Further back in the field, Fernando Alonso was on the move. After starting twenty second on the grid after taking an engine penalty, the Spaniard was set for a strong recovery drive. Alonso was already up into the points by the time the virtual safety car was deployed, and he wasn’t about to stop there.

    The McLaren driver moved up into ninth, then stuck to the back of Valtteri Bottas’ car. His attack would have to be put on hold though, when the virtual safety car was deployed again.

    A big puff of smoke signalled a problem with Romain Grosjean’s left rear break and the Frenchman was sent hard into the gravel track.

    Verstappen took the opportunity to head to the pits, putting soft tyres onto his Red Bull machine. The virtual safety car meant he would head out only sixteen seconds behind Hamilton.

    By this point, everybody had guessed Rosberg’s race was over, but the German was still on track, and he wasn’t about to give up without a fight. As the virtual safety car ended, the German was pushing against Nico Hulkenberg for thirteenth. It didn’t take long for Rosberg to pick of Hulkenberg, then Felipe Nasr.

    The opening lap damage wasn’t over yet. Magnussen was struggling in his Renault, the down force levels not where they were supposed to be. Seventeen laps into the race, the Danish driver was told to come into the pits, retiring his car.

    Rosberg had managed to get up into the points and was running up in sixth before the leaders dived into the points. Verstappen’s early stop guaranteed him the lead of the race, with Hamilton, Ricciardo, and Raikkonen behind him. When Raikkonen came out of the pits, he found the familiar silver car of Rosberg right behind him.

    The alternative strategy Red Bull had put Verstappen on didn’t seem to be working quite the way they planned. Hamilton was catching the teenager, setting the fastest lap of the race.

    Verstappen was told he could push, but the soft tyres were beginning to run out and he dived into the pits. With hard tyres on, he came out only just ahead of Raikkonen, behind his team mate.

    It was expected the leaders were going to try and keep their hard tyres until the end of the race, but that just wasn’t going to work for Rosberg. The German pitted, putting more hard tyres on and coming out behind Perez. Ferrari moved to cover the stop, pitting Raikkonen for hard tyres and coming out ahead of the German.

    Alonso was still on his recovery drive, though. The Spaniard was swarming over the back of Carlos Sainz’s car, trying to find a way past the Toro Rosso car. With a purple first sector, Alonso passed his fellow Spaniard.

    Rosberg was close to the back of Raikkonen’s car, sending the Finn into as much of a panic as you can send Raikkonen into. He could be heard complaining on the radio, saying he needed as much power as he could get with the Mercedes within DRS range.

    The German headed up the inside of Raikkonen, but it wasn’t clean. The two came together, Raikkonen hitting the side pod of Rosberg’s car. Both managed to keep going, though, Rosberg ahead, but it was a move Rosberg would be investigated for.

    Ricciardo was now having to defend against Verstappen, Red Bull long ago learning not to tell your drivers not to race in Malaysia. The Dutchman got up alongside his more experienced team mate and it looked like Verstappen might get ahead, but Ricciardo fought hard and managed to keep the teenager at pay.

    Hamilton had been on fire earlier in the race, setting fastest laps to get a good run on Verstappen when he was in second. Now he was actually on fire, smoke and flames pouring from the engine.

    The virtual safety car was deployed as the stricken Mercedes was cleared from the track. Both Red Bulls, Raikkonen, and Rosberg pitted for new tyres, but all came out in the same order.

    Esteban Gutierrez’s tyre was also seeing some action, but not in the pits. His first left tyre had come away from the car, and the Haas driver pulled to the side of the track, the second Haas to retire from the race.

    Just as the virtual safety car was cleared, Rosberg was handed a ten second penalty. That dropped him to a net fourth place, with Raikkonen not too far behind him. There weren’t too many laps left, and he would have to get a move on if he wanted to get the podium.

    With only six laps to go, Raikkonen slipped just out of the top ten, meaning there would once again be a Mercedes on the podium.

    Verstappen was beginning to fall away from Ricciardo a bit and this time there was no need for team orders in the Red Bull camp for their Australian driver to take the race win.

RESULTS:

1. Daniel Ricciardo / Red Bull-TAG-HEUER / Australia / + 25 Points

2. Max Verstappen / Red Bull-TAG-HEUER / Netherlands / + 18 Points

3. Nico Rosberg / Mercedes-Mercedes / Germany / + 15 Points

4. Kimi Raikkonen / Ferrari-Ferrari / Finland / + 12 Points

5. Valtteri Bottas / Williams-Mercedes / Finland / + 10 Points

6. Sergio Perez / Force India-Mercedes / Mexico / + 8 Points

7. Fernando Alonso / McLaren-Honda / Spain / + 6 Points

8. Nico Hulkenberg / Force India-Mercedes / Germany / + 4 Points

9. Jenson Button / McLaren-Honda / Great Britain / + 2 Points

10. Jolyon Palmer / Renault-Renault / Great Britain / + 1 Point

11. Carlos Sainz / Toro Rosso-Ferrari / Spain

12. Marcus Ericsson / Sauber-Ferrari / Sweden

13. Felipe Massa / Williams-Mercedes / Brazil

14. Daniil Kvyat / Toro Rosso-Ferrari / Russia

15. Pascal Wehrlein / Manor-Mercedes / Germany

16. Esteban Ocon / Manor-Mercedes / France

RETIRED - Felipe Nasr / Sauber-Ferrari / Brazil / Break-By-Wire

RETIRED - Lewis Hamilton / Mercedes-Mercedes / Great Britain / Engine Fire

RETIRED - Esteban Gutierrez / Haas-Ferrari / Mexico / Mechanical Failure

RETIRED - Kevin Magnussen / Renault-Renault / Denmark / Collision Damage

RETIRED - Romain Grosjean / Haas-Ferrari / France / Break Failure

RETIRED - Sebastian Vettel / Ferrari-Ferrari / Germany / Collision

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Article Written By: Bethonie Waring 

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