Hamilton Back In The Mix

Lewis Hamilton confirmed his title-credentials with a dominant victory in the heat of Sepang, making up for the disappointment of a non-finish last time out in Australia. As the feared rain-showers failed to materialise, the Englishman was able to control the race with consummate ease from pole position – the 33^rd of his career to equal Jim Clarke’s British record – and managed his Pirelli tyres expertly in the sweltering 40 degree heat to head home team-mate Nico Rosberg in a Mercedes 1-2.  

Hamilton celebrates victory in the Malaysian Grand Prix
to confirm his title credentials. (Credit: Getty Images)

The win, achieved with a comfortable of 17 second margin, was precisely the reply the 2008 champion needed after the unfulfilled promise of Melbourne, where Hamilton again qualified on pole but suffered engine problems from the start, allowing Rosberg to romp away to victory. Nevertheless, the German retains his hold on the championship lead, despite coming under sporadic pressure from Sebastien Vettel’s Red Bull, the defending champion getting his title defence off to a belated start with a podium finish, his first points of the year.

Things didn’t go quite so smoothly for Red Bull’s number two however, as Daniel Ricciardo hit trouble for the second race in a row. Following his disqualification from second place in Australia for exceeding fuel flow rates, Ricciardo was again running strongly in fourth when his third and final pitstop went awry, the left-front wheel not fully attached by the time he pulled away and costing him a lap as he was pushed slowly back to his pit-box. In the knowledge that he would have to serve a penalty for the unsafe release, he then suffered a broken front wing which cut down a tyre and forced another visit to the pits, a scant reward for another encouraging drive. His luck can only improve in Bahrain.

Elsewhere, Nico Hulkenberg again starred for Force India, running an alternative two-stop strategy in an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to snatch fourth from Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso, his very-worn tyres leaving him with little chance in the closing laps to defend the position. Nevertheless, he still finished comfortably ahead of McLaren’s Jenson Button and the scrapping Williams pair of Felipe Massa and Valterri Bottas as the top Mercedes customer. The Finn had scythed his way from 18^th on the grid to run 10^th in the opening laps, but found himself stuck in a train behind a limping Kevin Magnussen, who had made contact with Kimi Raikkonen and and broken a front-wing endplate, costing him significant front-end downforce.

Hulkenberg excelled once again. (Credit: Sahara Force India)

After allowing team-mate Button through, Magnussen proceeded to hold up Massa and Bottas until his first pitstop, which allowed Button to build a gap he could manage until the end. Despite orders telling him to allow Bottas, on fresher rubber, to have a go at Button in the closing laps, Massa resolutely held firm, unwilling to repeat the 2010 German Grand Prix where he was ordered aside by Ferrari to help Alonso win the championship.

While Magnussen was able to recover and still score points in ninth ahead of fellow rookie Daniil Kyvat, Raikkonen would sustain a puncture in the collision, dropping him out of contention and on a hiding to nothing. The Ferrari returnee would eventually finish a disgruntled 12^th, right on the gearbox of Romain Grosjean’s Lotus, which finished a race for the first time this season.