F1 News, Reports and Race Results

Vettel confident Ferrari can turn tables on Red Bull

Sebastian Vettel admits Ferrari expected to outqualify Red Bull at the Malaysian Grand Prix, but remains confident it has the race pace to turn the tables on his former team during Sunday’s 56-lap contest at Sepang International Circuit.

The German was fifth fastest behind Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo at the end of Q3, with team-mate Kimi Raikkonen set to line up alongside him in sixth on the grid.

“Obviously we expected [to be] one row higher up, P3, right behind Mercedes,” Vettel said.

"They were just a bit quicker, we expected it to be tight but we felt we had the upper hand. In the end there wasn't much missing but just enough, just over a tenth.

"As a driver you feel it was always somewhere there, so maybe I need to go and have a look later on, and see if I can pick it up.”

Having only secured one podium finish in the last seven races, Vettel believes Ferrari’s long-run speed can help the Scuderia recover near the sharp end of the field.

The four-time world champion, who won in Malaysia last year, also highlights the importance of strategy in securing a strong result in Sepang.

“There's a bit of room [to play], the fact that everyone has to use the hard [compound] at some point makes it interesting,” Vettel added.

“I think we should have good speed in the race, strategy will be important. Generally we should be quicker, but we weren't today – I hope we can be on Sunday.”

REPORT: Hamilton beats Rosberg by 0.4s for Malaysia pole

GALLERY: Magnussen's fire at the Malaysian Grand Prix

Silbermann says ... Bugged by Liberty

Romain Grosjean exclusive column: Haas can build momentum for 2017

Chris Medland's 2016 Malaysian Grand Prix preview

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Julien Billiotte

Recent Posts

Las Vegas GP: Thursday's action in pictures

The opening day of running at the Las Vegas GP was a smooth but chilly…

3 hours ago

Williams' headaches persist into Vegas practice

Williams is continuing to fight uphill battles this weekend in Las Vegas as a knock-on…

4 hours ago

Ferrari's Sainz 'not satisfied with where we are' in Vegas

It was a solid start to the Las Vegas weekend for Ferrari with Carlos Sainz…

5 hours ago

Norris labels McLaren long-run pace ‘shocking’ in chilly Vegas

Lando Norris didn’t hold back in his assessment of McLaren’s performance on the opening day…

6 hours ago

Hamilton delighted with ‘consistently strong day’ in Vegas

Lewis Hamilton was particularly happy with his opening day of running at the Las Vegas…

8 hours ago

Verstappen stuck with 'draggy' rear wing for Vegas

Red Bull fears that its prospects for this weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix - which…

9 hours ago