09/04/2011
NEWS STORY
Lewis Hamilton topped the timesheets in a dry final practice session on Saturday morning in Sepang.
Mark Webber had topped the timesheets for much of the session, but Hamilton pulled together an ideal lap on the soft tyre minutes before the chequered flag fell. The McLaren driver's 1.36.340s put him 0.290s ahead of the Red Bull driver who was fastest on Friday.
Jenson Button finished the morning third on the standings; the Briton's best time of 1.36.762s sees him within reach of the front row in this afternoon's qualifying session.
Nick Heidfeld managed to squeeze ahead of Sebastian Vettel in the standings; the former is out to prove his worth as a replacement for Robert Kubica after an Australian Grand Prix that saw him with the backmarkers after a first lap accident while his teammate finished on the podium.
Both Renault drivers had a difficult day on Friday. The front suspension uprights failed on both Renaults in FP1, due to a materials problem, and the team lost out on most of their FP2 running as a result. But with Heidfeld in P4, Vitaly Petrov in P7, and both men within a second of Hamilton's headline time, they should be in a good position for qualifying this afternoon.
Vettel ran into traffic on his final flying lap, and finished FP3 in P5. There have been persistent reports that Red Bull have been sandbagging in Sepang, trying to lull their rivals into a false sense of security. But it is worth remembering that, despite the RB7's single-lap speed, it is possible for the team to be beaten to pole by the unlikeliest of cars. Nico Hulkenberg's Interlagos pole was a perfect example.
The big surprise of the morning was the pace of the Ferraris. Fernando Alonso ended the morning in P6, 0.944s down on Hamilton, while Felipe Massa was 1.422s down in P8. While Ferrari were slower than expected in Melbourne, the team were confident they would see a better result in Sepang. The combination of hotter track and a traditional circuit race were thought to play to the strengths of the 150° Italia, which was consistently among the front runners in winter testing.
Alonso was one of the first drivers to lap on the soft tyre towards the end of the session, and enjoyed a brief spell at the top in consequence, but he was quickly shuffled down the order by the McLarens and Red Bulls. Renault will also be a threat to the team this afternoon.
Mercedes were another team to have a disappointing morning in Malaysia - Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg finished in P10 and P11 respectively, nearly 2 seconds down on Hamilton.
Kamui Kobayashi was ninth fastest for Sauber; he and Sergio Perez in P12 bookended the two Mercedes.
Williams, Toro Rosso, and Force India were all down in the Q2 elimination zone, while the back of the pack was made up by 2010's new teams, with Lotus fastest, followed by Virgin, and HRT bringing up the rear. Had these times been set in qualifying, both HRT drivers would have been disqualified from the race as a result of the 107 percent rule.
For a full blow by blow report, click here