Ferrari: Vettel expects to be very strong in the race

It’s been exactly two years since a Ferrari qualified on the front row (Felipe Massa in 2013) and even less at 74 thousandths of a second from a Mercedes. In Q3, on the wet track of Sepang, Sebastian Vettel achieved this performance and can therefore be delighted with his second position on the grid: “I think we had a good pace at the end. It was very close with Lewis. This result certainly puts us in a good position for tomorrow.”

A question is on everyone’s lips in the paddock: can the German challenge Mercedes in the race? The four-time world champion doesn’t consider such a scenario « impossible ». He explains: « The nature of the circuit suits us very well. I expect nothing less than to be very strong tomorrow, but you can never predict the conditions in Sepang. (…) Mercedes is very strong and has an advantage, but it would be nice to make them suffer a bit tomorrow, as they’ve had it too easy these past few months ».

James Allison, the designer of a very well-born Ferrari, confirms that the Scuderia could still surprise observers: « The Mercedes cars, of course, have a faster pace. However, tire wear will be crucial during the race. Our car is really much faster than it seems! ».

For his part, Kimi Räikkönen was unfortunately caught in traffic during Q2. 11th on the grid, but very consistent in free practice, he should make a strong comeback in the race: « Today, we simply went out at the wrong time: we should have gone out earlier. I really tried to overtake Ericsson, but he was trying to do his job. It’s not an unlucky situation, it was a mistake. Tomorrow, we’ll try to gain a few places; we certainly have the speed, but we’re quite far from the front spots, and when you start from that position, your race is never easy. »