Vettel shocked Mercedes with a win at the Malaysian grand prix. Giving Ferrari their first win since 2013, he beat Lewis Hamilton to victory. After Mercedes dominated the season-opener at Melbourne, many predicted they would comfortably win here as well. But a great strategy from the Ferrari team and a trouble-free drive for Vettel, proved us wrong. Are Ferrari going to be a threat to Mercedes this year?
Vettel managed to keep second place at the start, preventing Rosberg overtaking him on the long straight leading up to turn 1. Hamilton managed to maintain his lead but came in to pit when the safety car was deployed after Ericsson spun. Rosberg also pitted but Vettel stayed out, allowing him to take a 2-stop strategy.
Meanwhile, Kimi Raikkonen recovered from a puncture, in the early stages of the race, managing to fight his way though the pack to finish 4th. Bothers came 5th, just beating Massa, after a crash with Maldonado on lap 1.
The Red Bulls struggled and both were beaten by the Toro Rosso drivers, Verstappen and Sainz, who finished 7th and 8th.
But, ultimately, a great day for Vettel and Ferrari who received crucial points this weekend. Vettel is 2nd in the drivers’ championship, just 3 points of Lewis Hamilton.
Mercedes
Lewis Hamilton P2, Nico Rosberg P3
After dominating the Australian grand prix, Mercedes would have been hoping for another 1-2. However the three-stop strategy didn’t work for Mercedes, letting the chances of victory slip away from them. Hamilton said:
“I did everything I could. I think as a team there’s areas we can improve on. But you can’t win them all and it’s nice for the sport to see another winner.”
He also said that Mercedes are unlikely to dominate in the same way as they did last year and could be under threat from Ferrari.
Ferrari
Sebastian Vettel P1, Kimi Raikkonen P4
Vettel took his first win for Ferrari, beating both Mercedes drivers after tyre strategy let them down. Vettel said the win was “very, very emotional” and that he is “especially proud” to have beaten the Mercedes drivers. Kimi Raikkonen also recovered from a puncture early in the race and he finished in 4th, behind Nico Rosberg.
Williams
Valtteri Bottas P5, Felipe Massa P6
After a collision with Pastor Maldonado on lap 1, Bottas managed to work his way back through the field. On lap 55, he overtook Felipe Massa to finish in 5th. Rob Smedley said: “We made a good recovery from a difficult Saturday and it was good to have both cars racing each other at the end.”
Red Bull
Daniil Kvyat P9, Daniel Ricciardo P10
A disappointing day for Red Bull, both cars suffered from contact and struggled to finish in the points. This means Toro Rosso are ahead of them in the Constructors’ championship. Ricciardo sustained damage to his front wing on lap 1 and Kvyat was hit into a spin by Hulkenberg.
Toro Rosso
Max Verstappen P7, Carlos Sainz Jr P8
A great day for Toro Rosso, after a good qualifying both drivers were in the battle for points from the start. Verstappen became the youngest ever points scorer in F1 with 6 points for 7th.
Force India
Sergio Perez P13, Nico Hulkenberg P14
Both Force India drivers received 10-second penalties for the collisions caused on track. This spoilt their chances of finishing in the top ten and they had to settle for 13th and 14th.
Sauber
Felipe Nasr P12, Marcus Ericsson retired on lap 4
After the success in Melbourne, the race in Sepang was disappionting for the team. Ericsson made a mistake on lap 4 which put him in the gravel, ending his race. Nasr had contact on lap 1 with Raikkonen and failed to challenge for points.
Lotus
Romain Grosjean P11, Pastor Maldonado retired – brake issue
Romain Grosjean was spun by Sergio Perez after making contact during an overtake. This lost him a lot of time but he recovered to finish 11th, so close to a points finish. Maldonado was also involved in a collision and dropped to near the back, however a good strategy helped the recovery. Unfortunately, a brake issue put him out of the race.
McLaren
Jenson Button retired – turbo issue, Fernando Alonso retired – ERS cooling issue
The performance of the McLaren certainly had made some positive steps and Button was surprised when he found himself catching cars in front. Alonso was running in a solid 9th when he was forced to retire. Despite failing to finish, McLaren have certainly made some big improvements since Melbourne.
Manor
Roberto Merhi P15, Will Stevens did not start
Merhi was 3 laps down and finished last of those who made it to the end, but it was a good result for the Manor team. After failing to compete in Melbourne, it was amazing they managed to finish. Unfortunately, the team were unable to repair Will Stevens’ car after the issues on Saturday.
See full race results here.