Therefore expect Ferrari and
Kimi Raikkonen to be to the fore, although team-mate Felipe Massa will want to make an immediate impact following his disappointing opening round.
McLaren too will hope to be a little closer to the Finn, having only really being in touching distance on the podium. Whether
Lewis Hamilton can again trouble Fernando Alonso in the Woking camp could be determined by how he reacts to the unique conditions placed upon him by the local climate.
BMW will be expected to provide the next best thing to a frontrunner, while
Renault,
Williams and Toyota scrap over the crumbs.
Red Bull,
Honda, Toro Rosso and Spyker all have work to do to be in the hunt for points, while
Super Aguri remains a dark horse based on its Melbourne showing.
LAST SEASON:
Giancarlo Fisichella led a Renault 1-2 in the 2006 Malaysian Grand Prix, giving the team its second win of the 2006 season after leading all the way from pole position.
The Italian didn't put a foot wrong, only relinquishing the lead during his two pit-stops, leaving team-mate Fernando Alonso to take second place despite switching strategy after being incorrectly fuelled in qualifying.
That decision removed the anticipation that the two Renault drivers may go head-to-head on different strategies, allowing Fisichella to run out winner by just over four seconds.
Third place eventually fell to
Jenson Button, who had started on the front row but lost out to the pace of the R26s, particularly on fuller fuel loads. The Briton may even have finished further back, having been unable to pass Juan Montoya on the road as he had in Bahrain, but benefited from a mystery problem that affected the Colombian's top speed between pit-stops.
Montoya,
Felipe Massa, Jacques Villeneuve and both Michael and Ralf Schumacher featured in the points, but Kimi Raikkonen crashed out on lap one and both Williams-Cosworths - which had started on row two - succumbed to engine problems.
1.
Giancarlo Fisichella Italy
Renault-Renault 56 laps
01:30:40.529
2.
Fernando Alonso Spain
Renault-Renault +4.585
3.
Jenson Button Britain
Honda-Honda +9.631
4.
Juan Pablo Montoya Colombia
McLaren-Mercedes +39.351
5.
Felipe Massa Brazil
Ferrari-Ferrari +43.254
6.
Michael Schumacher Germany
Ferrari-Ferrari +43.854
7.
Jacques Villeneuve Canada
BMW Sauber +80.461
8.
Ralf Schumacher Germany
Toyota-Toyota +81.256
