After an unusually long gap between the opening two races of the season,
Formula One returns to the familiar surroundings of Kuala Lumpur's Sepang circuit for the Malaysian Grand Prix this weekend.
The circuit will be more familiar than ever after the decision to stage one of the year's 'in-season' tests there last week, the first time that an
F1 test has taken place in Malaysia, but will still provide one of the toughest tests of the 17-race campaign as the heat and humidity of March combine to produce strength-sapping conditions for all involved. Although testing with have given the ten teams in attendance - Spyker sat out the four-day session - the ever-present threat of a tropical downpour still gives Sepang an unpredictable air.
The season-opening Australian Grand Prix lived up - and down - to expectation, with
Ferrari and
McLaren battling it out at the front, and
BMW,
Renault and
Williams providing the closest thing to opposition.
Toyota exceeded much of what observers had predicted by scoring points, but there was precious little excitement on track as the single tyre supply removed the vagaries of rival brands going head-to-head. Also on the downside, Spyker's Colin Kolles lived up to expectation by protesting both
Super Aguri and Toro Rosso in what appears likely to be an on-going row over so-called 'customer cars'.
Testing did little to suggest that the pecking order will be any different this weekend, although the two-week gap has given teams the chance to work on updates for their package since Melbourne. Spyker's absence from the test was to enable it to complete a 'substantial' overhaul of its aerodynamics, while other teams up and down the grid are expected to arrive back at Sepang with tweaks little and large.
FIA F1 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP NEWS:
Aside from the usual positive messages coming from the teams, most of the news during the three-week break between grands prix came from
Bernie Ecclestone and various circuits.
