Our drivers got their race weekends underway with a ninety minute session in the sweltering heat of Sepang. Mercedes were fast, although Ferrari showed increased pace. At one point, the McLaren duo of Jenson Button and Kevin Magnussen were trading fastest laps with Fernando Alonso. Kimi Räïkkönen got in on the act, posting the fastest time of the morning, just as his teammate spun off track backwards.

Magnussen didn't end the session as well as he'd have liked, stopping out on track after lowing power. Romain Grosjean also came to a halt out on the circuit before setting a time. Lotus were really struggling again, with Pastor Maldonado failing to post a complete lap, and coming back into the pits with smoke pouring from the back of the car.