Mercedes was unlucky during the race
While Hamilton held the lead at the start of the race, Rosberg suffered a poorly controlled attack from Vettel, which condemned him to restart in last place at the end of the first corner. Just as the German was moving up the field, his British team-mate suffered an engine failure in the final third of the race, forcing him to retire. At the chequered flag, Rosberg salvaged 3rd place and took the lead in the drivers' championship.
At the start of the first corner, the tension was extreme, Lewis Hamilton maintained the advantage over Nico Rosberg, who unfortunately was hit by Vettel’s Ferrari coming on the inside. The impact was harsh, Vettel’s front left suspension broke while Rosberg spun out. There was a lot of concern at Mercedes. “Everything okay, Nico?” “Not sure, it was a big hit!” the German responded on his radio.
Bruised.
Battered.
Brilliant.Warrior’s words 👉 https://t.co/CUXlxkxo14#F1 #MalaysiaGP pic.twitter.com/I1Fop4UhUv
— MERCEDES AMG F1 (@MercedesAMGF1) 2 octobre 2016
Ultimately, the latter was able to leave and begin an attacking race to climb back up the ranks. The start of the comeback was laborious, but by the 14th lap, Rosberg had definitively entered the top 10 after the first wave of pit stops.
LAP 14/56: After being as low as P21 on the opening lap, ROS is already back in the top ten and is flying 🚀 #MalaysiaGP 🇲🇾 pic.twitter.com/n1lz7p8eWG
— Formula 1 (@F1) 2 octobre 2016
Continuing his comeback, Rosberg now faced Räikkönen and, at the cost of a very aggressive maneuver in the S of turn 2, overtook him. For this overtake, the German received a 10-second penalty to be added to his final time for leaning on the Finn to pass. Hamilton was pushing his Mercedes just as much as his teammate and was clocking fast laps.
Except that… Dramatic turn of events at the start of the 41st lap, the car No. 44 was seen approaching the first corner with a plume of smoke behind it and flames coming from the exhausts. On the radio, we could only hear the distress of the Briton. He got out of his Mercedes and stayed for a moment on the side of the track.
« *I cannot believe there are 8 cars powered by Mercedes and only my engines have given up the ghost this year. Something is wrong but I can’t do anything about it* »
WATCH: The moment when HAM’s #MalaysiaGP ends in engine failure and heartbreak
VIDEO> https://t.co/4OJVuwhGrd pic.twitter.com/gFFfBRU8fK
— Formula 1 (@F1) 2 octobre 2016
At the finish, Rosberg saves Mercedes and himself by recovering 3rd place despite his 10-second penalty, the race was not easy at all for the German team but he still managed to set the fastest time in the race. In the post-race interview, he stated, “I was hit by a four-time world champion driver” before adding, “I thought everything was over after turn 1. I didn’t think the podium would be possible, so I’m really happy.”
A superfast lap 44 gets @nico_rosberg the DHL Fastest Lap Award for Malaysia #F1 pic.twitter.com/MPrQ3rcJyQ
— Formula 1 (@F1) 2 octobre 2016
For the more English-speaking among you, here are the words of Lewis Hamilton following his retirement this Sunday
