Three-time defending Formula One champion Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull won pole position at the Malaysian Grand Prix on Saturday, edging out the Ferraris of Felipe Massa and Fernando Alonso just as the rain-affected qualifying session ended.
It was the second pole in a row and 38th overall for the German, who finished third at the season-opening Australian GP last week after struggling with his tires. Vettel took top spot on the grid by almost a second, causing him to scream “Yes!” in celebration when told by his team. “I’m a bit surprised by the gap. I had a decent lap and was very happy, obviously,” Vettel said. “It was quite tricky because some parts of the track were still wet and others were dry. Overall, a very good session.”
Australian GP winner Kimi Raikkonen’s day went from bad to worse after he could only qualify seventh and was later penalized three spots for impeding Force India’s Adrian Sutil. last year at this race, the lotus driver was relegated five spots for making an unscheduled gear box change.
Raikonen complained to his team over the radio during the third practice session that he was unhappy with his car’s setup, telling them “I don’t understand how the car can change so much.”
Massa struggled for most of last year but has now qualified ahead of Alonso, his more famous teammate who has twice won the F1 title, for the second straight race.
Sunday’s race is expected to be held in wet and humid conditions, similar to when Alonso won in Malaysia last year after Sergio Perez ran off the track just as he was attempting to pass the Spaniard following a 51-minute delay for rain.
Tire management will also be crucial with teams still struggling to understand how to get the most out of the new Pirellis, which are designed to degrade faster than last year’s version in order to push teams to pit more often.
lewis Hamilton extended his promising start since switching to Mercedes from Mclaren during the offseason. After a fifth-place finish in Melbourne, the Briton qualified fourth fastest Saturday despite struggling in practice to twice finish ninth. Jenson Button, the 2009 F1 champion, qualified eighth after complaining his car was oversteering, while Perez came 10th.
The circuit was hit by afternoon showers during qualifying but the rain stopped as the final session began. The worst of the showers came in the second session, affecting several drivers who were challenging to make the top 10.