The Malaysian Grand Prix was a pretty good one, wasn’t it? The start was chaotic, it calmed down a bit in the middle but then it all changed with 15 laps remaining. It all meant we saw a new driver on the top step of the podium for the 2016 season: Daniel Ricciardo.
Here’s a look at how he got to first place with the best moments from the Malaysian GP at the Sepang International Circuit.
Peak Williams
Felipe Massa’s race got off to a tough start when he failed to leave the grid for the formation lap. He got going again but had to start from the pitlane.
Vettel goes for the gap, and crashes
Lewis Hamilton got a good start from pole position and was clear of the chaos into Turn 1. Sebastian Vettel tried to go down the inside of both Max Verstappen and Nico Rosberg but three into one didn’t go. He ended up clipping Verstappen, tagging Rosberg around and retiring with broken suspension.
Chain reaction
With the spinning Rosberg sparking a chain reaction behind, it was no surprise there was further contact – the most severe of which was Kevin Magnussen’s Renault getting a hefty hit from Daniil Kvyat. Ouch.
Off he RoGro-es
Grosjean se queda SIN FRENOS en la última curva! #F1 pic.twitter.com/xSjqPSCCs0
— MrAlexF1 (@MrAlexF1) October 2, 2016
Another early retirement was Romain Grosjean after what looked to be a brake issue – not what you want to have as you approach a hairpin at over 200mph. He went straight on and into the gravel on lap nine to become the second DNF of the race.
Strategy playing its part
It’s not the sexiest topic in F1 but there was a fascinating strategy race playing out mid-way through, with Verstappen stopping for tyres under the first Virtual Safety Car and his nearest rivals staying out. He was closing in on the others, who had stayed out. But, of course, it soon changed!
Passing with a bang
LAP 38/56
CONTACT!
ROS forces his way past RAI to take P4 – but not without tagging the Ferrari man’s front wing on his way #MalaysiaGP pic.twitter.com/AMaFFX56r7
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 2, 2016
Rosberg’s become renowned for his lack of aggression in wheel-to-wheel contact but he dismissed this with some force when passing Raikkonen at Turn 2. He went wide at Turn 1 to set himself up for a late move into the next corner, clashing wheels with the Ferrari and snatching fourth. He was handed a 10-second time penalty for it (thanks, FIA) but ended up holding his position anyway.
Red Bulls go wheel to wheel
Just after that happened, we saw things get very close between the Red Bull drivers in the fight for second place. They even went side-by-side through Turn 5 and Turn 6, quite a fight and one that had us on the edge of their seats!
Fire, fire
With Titanic is better.. #MalaysiaGP #Hamilton pic.twitter.com/kaBEF0cieN
— Greta Bassi #JB17 (@greebassi) October 2, 2016
If only Kimi had been there to help, with his new firefighting skills. On lap 41 the race was turned on its head when Hamilton retired from the lead with a fiery engine failure. It catapulted the Red Bulls into first and second, while also proving HUGE for the title fight.
Bye, bye wheel
Esteban Gutierrez suffered a strange incident after Hamilton’s fire when his left-front wheel popped off on the run to Turn 9 and he was forced to retire. A nasty surprise!
Everyone gets a shoey
Ricciardo ended up going on to take victory, holding off Verstappen. Rosberg was third, despite his penalty for the Raikkonen crash. As promised, Ricciardo brought back the now famous “shoey” and made everyone on the podium do it too!