2016 Malaysian Grand Prix
| 2016 Malaysian Grand Prix | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Race 16 of 21 in the 2016 Formula One World Championship
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| Race details[1] | |||||
| Date | 2 October 2016 | ||||
| Official name | 2016 Formula 1 Petronas Malaysia Grand Prix | ||||
| Location | Sepang International Circuit, Sepang, Selangor, Malaysia | ||||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||||
| Course length | 5.543 km (3.444 miles) | ||||
| Distance | 56 laps, 310.408 km (192.879 miles) | ||||
| Weather |
Sunny 33 °C (91 °F) air temperature 49 °C (120 °F) track temperature 2.8 m/s (9.2 ft/s) wind from the west[2] | ||||
| Attendance | 88,828 (Weekend) 45,000 (Race Day)[3] | ||||
| Pole position | |||||
| Driver | Mercedes | ||||
| Time | 1:32.850 | ||||
| Fastest lap | |||||
| Driver |
 Nico Rosberg | Mercedes | |||
| Time | 1:36.424 on lap 44 | ||||
| Podium | |||||
| First | Red Bull Racing-TAG Heuer | ||||
| Second | Red Bull Racing-TAG Heuer | ||||
| Third | Mercedes | ||||
|
Lap leaders | |||||
The 2016 Malaysian Grand Prix (formally known as the 2016 Formula 1 Petronas Malaysia Grand Prix)[1] was a Formula One motor race that was held on 2 October 2016 at the Sepang International Circuit in Selangor, Malaysia. The race marked the thirty-fifth running of the Malaysian Grand Prix, and the eighteenth time that the race has been run as a World Championship event since the first race in 1999.
Daniel Ricciardo won the race, with teammate Max Verstappen finishing second to secure Red Bull Racing's first 1–2 finish since the introduction of hybrid engines in 2014 and their last one until the 2022 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. Rosberg completed the podium, extending his championship lead to twenty-three points following the retirement of Lewis Hamilton. This was Ricciardo's first win since the 2014 Belgian Grand Prix.
Report
[edit]Background
[edit]The race was moved from its March date to October to allow organisers the opportunity to upgrade the circuit. The circuit was resurfaced, while drainage was improved to decrease the possibility of standing water from forming on the circuit. Nine corners were re-profiled, introducing negative camber to emphasise mechanical, rather than aerodynamic grip, and the drop at the apex of turn two removed.[4]
Championship standings before the race
[edit]Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg entered the race leading the World Drivers' Championship by eight points, having reclaimed the championship lead from teammate Lewis Hamilton at the previous race in Singapore. Mercedes lead Red Bull-TAG Heuer in the World Constructors' Championship by 220 points.
Race
[edit]
At the start, Sebastian Vettel collided with Nico Rosberg going into turn one, causing Rosberg to go into a spin to the back of the grid while Vettel damaged his front-left suspension in the process, retiring after getting to an escape road a few corners later. On lap 8, Romain Grosjean spun into the gravel trap due to brake failure once again, prematurely ending his race. Later on lap 41, Lewis Hamilton's engine failed while he was in the lead of the race, forcing him to retire. Esteban Gutiérrez also retired when his front-left wheel came off the car in the latter stages of the race. Daniel Ricciardo who inherited the lead of the race when Hamilton's engine failed went on to win the race. It was the fourth win of his F1 career. Max Verstappen finished second, giving Red Bull Racing their first one-two since Brazil in 2013, with Nico Rosberg recovering to finish third from the spin on lap 1. For the next race in Japan, Vettel was handed a three-place grid penalty for causing the collision with Rosberg.
Post-race
[edit]Nine Australian men, subsequently dubbed the 'Budgie Nine' by Australian media, were arrested for intentional insult and public indecency after celebrating Ricciardo's win by stripping to their 'budgie smuggler' swimming trunks, decorated with the Malaysian flag, and drinking beer from their shoes.[5] Ricciardo said that the nine had not realized the effect their actions would have,[6] and called for them to be released.[7] After three days in custody the nine were charged with the lesser offence of public nuisance and released. The briefs had been made in Australia, not Malaysia.[8]
Classification
[edit]Qualifying
[edit]| Pos. | Car no. |
Driver | Constructor | Qualifying times | Final grid | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | |||||
| 1 | 44 |  Lewis Hamilton
|
Mercedes | 1:34.444 | 1:33.046 | 1:32.850 | 1 |
| 2 | 6 | Nico Rosberg
|
Mercedes | 1:34.460 | 1:33.609 | 1:33.264 | 2 |
| 3 | 33 |  Max Verstappen
|
Red Bull Racing-TAG Heuer | 1:35.443 | 1:33.775 | 1:33.420 | 3 |
| 4 | 3 |  Daniel Ricciardo
|
Red Bull Racing-TAG Heuer | 1:35.079 | 1:33.888 | 1:33.467 | 4 |
| 5 | 5 | Sebastian Vettel
|
Ferrari | 1:34.557 | 1:33.972 | 1:33.584 | 5 |
| 6 | 7 |  Kimi Räikkönen
|
Ferrari | 1:34.556 | 1:33.903 | 1:33.632 | 6 |
| 7 | 11 |  Sergio Pérez
|
Force India-Mercedes | 1:35.068 | 1:34.538 | 1:34.319 | 7 |
| 8 | 27 | Nico Hülkenberg
|
Force India-Mercedes | 1:34.827 | 1:34.441 | 1:34.489 | 8 |
| 9 | 22 | Jenson Button
|
McLaren-Honda | 1:35.267 | 1:34.431 | 1:34.518 | 9 |
| 10 | 19 |  Felipe Massa
|
Williams-Mercedes | 1:35.267 | 1:34.422 | 1:34.671 | 10 |
| 11 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas
|
Williams-Mercedes | 1:35.166 | 1:34.577 | 11 | |
| 12 | 8 |  Romain Grosjean
|
Haas-Ferrari | 1:35.400 | 1:35.001 | 12 | |
| 13 | 21 | Esteban Gutiérrez
|
Haas-Ferrari | 1:35.658 | 1:35.097 | 13 | |
| 14 | 20 |  Kevin Magnussen
|
Renault | 1:35.593 | 1:35.277 | 14 | |
| 15 | 26 |  Daniil Kvyat
|
Toro Rosso-Ferrari | 1:35.695 | 1:35.369 | 15 | |
| 16 | 55 |  Carlos Sainz Jr.
|
Toro Rosso-Ferrari | 1:35.605 | 1:35.374 | 16 | |
| 17 | 9 |  Marcus Ericsson
|
Sauber-Ferrari | 1:35.816 | 17 | ||
| 18 | 12 | Felipe Nasr
|
Sauber-Ferrari | 1:35.949 | 18 | ||
| 19 | 30 | Jolyon Palmer
|
Renault | 1:35.999 | 19 | ||
| 20 | 31 | Esteban Ocon
|
MRT-Mercedes | 1:36.451 | 20 | ||
| 21 | 94 | Pascal Wehrlein
|
MRT-Mercedes | 1:36.587 | 21 | ||
| 22 | 14 | Fernando Alonso
|
McLaren-Honda | 1:37.155 | 221 | ||
| 107% time: 1:41.055 | |||||||
| Source:[9] | |||||||
Notes:
- ^1 – Fernando Alonso penalised 45 grid places for unscheduled power unit element changes.[9]
Race
[edit]
- Notes
- ^1 – Nico Rosberg had ten seconds added to his race time for causing an avoidable collision.[10]
- ^2 – Esteban Ocon received two five-second penalties for speeding in the pit lane.[10]
Championship standings after the race
[edit]- Bold text and an asterisk indicates who still had a theoretical chance of becoming World Champion.
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- Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.
See also
[edit]- 2016 Sepang GP2 Series round
- 2016 Sepang GP3 Series round
- 2016 TCR International Series Sepang round
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Malaysia". Formula1.com. Formula One World Championship Limited. 2016. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
- ^ "GP Malaysia in Sepang / Rennen". motorsport-total.com (in German). Archived from the original on 26 September 2017. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
- ^ NDTVSports.com. "Malaysia to Pull Out of Formula 1 After 2018 – NDTV Sports". ndtv.com. Retrieved 22 November 2016.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Malaysian F1 circuit upgrades nine corners". Speedcafe.com. Speedcafe. 27 September 2016. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
- ^ "Stripping at Malaysian Grand Prix: Nine Australians arrested". BBC News online. 3 October 2016.
- ^ "Daniel Ricciardo said Budgie Nine antics are 'harmless' but urges Aussies to be careful". Herald Sun. 6 October 2016.
- ^ "'Budgie Nine': F1 driver Ricciardo defends Malaysian GP strippers". BBC News online. 6 October 2016.
- ^ "Australian 'Budgie Nine' F1 strippers freed by Malaysia court". BBC News online. 6 October 2016.
- ^ a b "2016 Formula 1 Petronas Malaysia Grand Prix – Qualifying". Formula1.com. Formula One World Championship Limited. 1 October 2016. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ a b c "2016 Formula 1 Petronas Malaysia Grand Prix – Race Result". Formula1.com. Formula One World Championship Limited. 2 October 2016. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
- ^ a b "Malaysia 2016 - Championship • STATS F1". www.statsf1.com. Retrieved 19 March 2019.
External links
[edit]