Nico Rosberg quickest in FP1 in Malaysia

This morning or Friday afternoon in Malaysia, Nico Rosberg topped the timesheets ahead of Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel when Lewis Hamilton suffered engine troubles.

Laser cut circuit by www.grahamandleigh.co.uk

During FP1, Manor F1 managed to run on the circuit with Will Stevens and Roberto Merhi and it truly was a fantastic sight to see.

We did also see many drivers pushing the limits of the track such as Kimi Raikkonen, Felipe Massa, Sergio Perez, Pastor Maldonado and Fernando Alonso experiencing lock ups on the track. Carlos Sainz Jr had a moment at the final corner on one of his flying laps but was able to continue in the session.

Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton stopped on the track at Turn 9 with mechanical failure with Hamilton stating via team radio that something wasn't right with the rear and it was 'clicking'. The team asked him to stop the car however and did not take any further part in the session.

Before the session started, it was announced via his team radio that he had no telemetry working on his car and before FP1 ended, it was confirmed by the Mercedes team that they would have to change the power unit on Hamilton's car.

But it was Nico Rosberg that topped the timesheets with a 1.40.124 ahead of the Ferrari drivers of Sebastian Vettel who finished the session in second place ahead of his team mate Kimi Raikkonen in third place.

Romain Grosjean had a brilliant session and finished in fourth place ahead of Carlos Sainz Jr in fifth place, Daniel Ricciardo in sixth place and his team mate Max Verstappen in seventh place. Valtteri Bottas in his first outing since Q2 in Australia ended the session in eighth place ahead of Daniil Kvyat in ninth place and Marcus Ericsson in tenth place.

Felipe Massa ended the session despite locking up a few times in eleventh place ahead of Pastor Maldonado in twelfth place, Sauber debutee Raffaele Marciello in thirteenth place and Fernando Alonso who returns to racing for the first time since his crash in pre-season testing a month finished the session in fourteenth place.

As we head into the latter stages of the grid, Nico Hulkenberg ended the session in fifteenth place ahead of his team mate Sergio Perez in sixteenth place, Jenson Button in seventeenth place and the two Manor F1 drivers of Will Stevens and Roberto Merhi who ended the session in eighteenth and nineteenth places.

Also at the end of the session, we saw the FIA deploying the Virtual Safety Car system that has been introduced for this season as a result of their findings regarding the tragic accident that Jules Bianchi suffered in the Japanese Grand Prix last season. The FIA have created a “slow down” area where the drivers will have to slow down to 80kmph and will have to stick to that speed until the FIA are satisfied that they have slowed down enough.

The classification of FP1 of the Malaysian GP is as follows:-

1. Nico Rosberg, Mercedes, 1.40.124
2. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari, 0.373s
3. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari, 0.861s
4. Romain Grosjean, Lotus-Mercedes, 1.419s
5. Carlos Sainz Jr, Toro Rosso, 1.472s
6. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull-Renault, 1.663s
7. Max Verstappen, Toro Rosso, 1.679s
8. Valtteri Bottas, Williams-Mercedes, 1.758s
9. Daniil Kvyat, Red Bull-Renault, 1.931s
10. Marcus Ericsson, Sauber-Ferrari, 1.940s
11. Felipe Massa, Williams-Mercedes, 1.979s
12. Pastor Maldonado, Lotus-Mercedes, 2.443s
13. Raffaele Marciello, Sauber-Ferrari, 2.493s
14. Fernando Alonso, McLaren-Honda, 2.761s
15. Nico Hulkenberg, Force India-Mercedes, 2.789s
16. Sergio Perez, Force India-Mercedes, 2.930s
17. Jenson Button, McLaren-Honda, 2.776s
18. Will Stevens, Manor-Marussia, 6.562s
19. Roberto Merhi, Manor-Marussia, 7.559s
20. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, Did not set a time

Sarah Jones