We spent this weekend in Sepang for the Malaysian Grand Prix (thanks to Uncle Eric for the tickets). On Friday, there were 2 practice sessions in which Lewis Hamilton came out on top. The McLarens were fast throughout Friday, as were the Mercedes. Sebastian Vettel showed the Red Bulls were still competitive, although their reliability issues were again highlighted when Mark Webber was forced out with an engine problem.
From our seats, you can see the second half of the lap, bar the final corner. We were sitting on the back straight, on the second tier, which provided a great vantage point. I have to say, the most surprising thing was the noise. F1 cars are loud! They also sound a bit different to when they are on TV, the engine noise seems deeper than on camera and you can really feel the sound through the seats. Be sure to bring earplugs, a decent camera and a list of the driver numbers. Also try to be near a screen during qualifying otherwise you will have very little idea of what’s going on!
There was a lot of action on Saturday during qualifying, which took place during (very) wet conditions. McLaren and Ferrari tried to play games with the weather, sending their cars out late in the first session. This backfired as the track became progressively wetter, with none of their cars making it out of Q1. Hamilton and Alonso both spun, while Jenson Button beached his car in a gravel trap. Q2 was relatively drama-free, as the teams seemed to adapt to the track. After Q3 was stopped briefly for a heavy thunderstorm, Mark Webber took pole, with Rosberg second and Vettel third. Michael Schumacher qualified disappointingly in 8th. Both Force Indias and Williams also made it into Q3, as did Kobayashi for Sauber and Robert Kubica for Renault.
On Sunday, we got upgraded to corporate seats on the pit straight, next to the second half of the grid. From there, we were less than 20 metres from Buemi, Kovalainen and Button! They also had loads of food inside the box, unlimited drinks and TV screens. Needless to say, it was pretty sweet. We got to the final preparations for the race and even Martin Brundle doing his pit walk for the BBC.
As for the race itself, Vettel overtook Webber on the first corner and never looked back. The Red Bulls managed to ease away from the field for a 1-2 finish. The real action came further back as the Ferraris and McLarens sliced through the field. Lewis Hamilton was particularly impressive, starting from 20th and finishing in 6th. His battle with Vitaly Petrov provided some of the tastiest action, as did Jenson Button’s duel with Fernando Alonso. The World Champion was going nowhere fast on degrading tyres and Alonso, even with a broken clutch, drove all over the back of the McLaren for about 10 laps. However, he couldn’t find a way past, as he was hampered by the clutch problem, and his engine blew up on the penultimate lap.
Overall, it was an unforgettable experience, and the race was surprisingly exciting, thanks to the ‘false’ qualifying positions of the McLarens and Ferraris. I can’t help thinking there wouldn’t have been nearly as much drama had qualifying been unaffected by the weather. That’s probably a topic for another day though.
We also got to go to the concert after the race, featuring the talents of Wyclef Jean and Fatboy Slim.
psymon001's Blog 
The Malaysian Grand Prix!
We spent this weekend in Sepang for the Malaysian Grand Prix (thanks to Uncle Eric for the tickets). On Friday, there were 2 practice sessions in which Lewis Hamilton came out on top. The McLarens were fast throughout Friday, as were the Mercedes. Sebastian Vettel showed the Red Bulls were still competitive, although their reliability issues were again highlighted when Mark Webber was forced out with an engine problem.
From our seats, you can see the second half of the lap, bar the final corner. We were sitting on the back straight, on the second tier, which provided a great vantage point. I have to say, the most surprising thing was the noise. F1 cars are loud! They also sound a bit different to when they are on TV, the engine noise seems deeper than on camera and you can really feel the sound through the seats. Be sure to bring earplugs, a decent camera and a list of the driver numbers. Also try to be near a screen during qualifying otherwise you will have very little idea of what’s going on!
There was a lot of action on Saturday during qualifying, which took place during (very) wet conditions. McLaren and Ferrari tried to play games with the weather, sending their cars out late in the first session. This backfired as the track became progressively wetter, with none of their cars making it out of Q1. Hamilton and Alonso both spun, while Jenson Button beached his car in a gravel trap. Q2 was relatively drama-free, as the teams seemed to adapt to the track. After Q3 was stopped briefly for a heavy thunderstorm, Mark Webber took pole, with Rosberg second and Vettel third. Michael Schumacher qualified disappointingly in 8th. Both Force Indias and Williams also made it into Q3, as did Kobayashi for Sauber and Robert Kubica for Renault.
On Sunday, we got upgraded to corporate seats on the pit straight, next to the second half of the grid. From there, we were less than 20 metres from Buemi, Kovalainen and Button! They also had loads of food inside the box, unlimited drinks and TV screens. Needless to say, it was pretty sweet. We got to the final preparations for the race and even Martin Brundle doing his pit walk for the BBC.
As for the race itself, Vettel overtook Webber on the first corner and never looked back. The Red Bulls managed to ease away from the field for a 1-2 finish. The real action came further back as the Ferraris and McLarens sliced through the field. Lewis Hamilton was particularly impressive, starting from 20th and finishing in 6th. His battle with Vitaly Petrov provided some of the tastiest action, as did Jenson Button’s duel with Fernando Alonso. The World Champion was going nowhere fast on degrading tyres and Alonso, even with a broken clutch, drove all over the back of the McLaren for about 10 laps. However, he couldn’t find a way past, as he was hampered by the clutch problem, and his engine blew up on the penultimate lap.
Overall, it was an unforgettable experience, and the race was surprisingly exciting, thanks to the ‘false’ qualifying positions of the McLarens and Ferraris. I can’t help thinking there wouldn’t have been nearly as much drama had qualifying been unaffected by the weather. That’s probably a topic for another day though.
We also got to go to the concert after the race, featuring the talents of Wyclef Jean and Fatboy Slim.
UPDATE: More videos can be found on my YouTube channel.
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