Felipe Massa took a comfortable pole position in the 2008 Malaysian Grand Prix qualifying ahead of team-mate Kimi Raikkonen and Heikki Kovalainen in his McLaren on this day in 2008, but spun in the race as he tried to keep up with Raikkonen.
Malaysia was the second race of the season, and in the first from the pole position, Lewis Hamilton celebrated in McLaren. Ferraris were in much better shape in Malaysia, which they showed in the qualifications.
Fast Sepang and hot conditions suited Ferrari and their F2008 better, with Massa and Raikkonen taking the front row ahead of two McLaren Kovalainen and Hamilton who were subsequently penalized with a five-place lower starting position for obstructing Heidfeld and Alonso.
Kovalainen was surprisingly faster than Hamilton in third place, and Massa, also somewhat surprisingly, convincingly defeated current world champion Kimi Raikkonen by a staggering 0.482 seconds.
The Brazilian had less fuel than Finn, but as he entered pits in the 17th lap (Raikkonen in the 18th) it is clear that such a difference cannot be attributed to fuel (fuel for a lap is worth a maximum of a tenth per lap).
Thanks to a one lap longer opening stint, Raikkonen managed to overtake Massa through the pitstops and the Brazilian then held a convincing second place, a few seconds behind Raikkonen. Although he could not follow or threaten him, Massa had a eight points and drove towards a 1-2 victory for Ferrari.
But Massa, who was 4,940 seconds late in the 30th lap behind Raikkonen, loses control of the back end in a double right turn and ends up in the sand next to the track from which he failed to get out.
Kubica finished second in the BMW and Kovalainen in McLaren was third while his teammate Hamilton was only fifth, still retaining the lead in the driver standings.
STARTING GRID
| 1 | 2 | Felipe Massa | Ferrari | 1:35.748 | – |
| 2 | 1 | Kimi Räikkönen | Ferrari | 1:36.230 | 0.482 |
| 3 | 11 | Jarno Trulli | Toyota | 1:36.711 | 0.963 |
| 4 | 4 | Robert Kubica | BMW Sauber | 1:36.727 | 0.979 |
| 5 | 3 | Nick Heidfeld | BMW Sauber | 1:36.753 | 1.005 |
| 6 | 10 | Mark Webber | Red Bull/Renault | 1:37.009 | 1.261 |
| 7 | 5 | Fernando Alonso | Renault | 1:38.450 | 2.702 |
| 8 | 23 | H.Kovalainen | McLaren/Mercedes | 1:36.613 | 0.865 |
| 5 place grid penalty for blocking Heidfeld and Alonso | |||||
| 9 | 22 | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren/Mercedes | 1:36.709 | 0.961 |
| 5 place grid penalty for blocking Heidfeld | |||||
| 10 | 12 | Timo Glock | Toyota | 1:39.656 | 3.908 |
| 11 | 16 | Jenson Button | Honda | 1:35.208 | -0.540 |
| 12 | 9 | David Coulthard | Red Bull/Renault | 1:35.408 | -0.340 |
| 13 | 6 | Nelson Piquet Jr. | Renault | 1:35.562 | -0.186 |
| 14 | 17 | R.Barrichello | Honda | 1:35.622 | -0.126 |
| 15 | 15 | Sebastian Vettel | Toro Rosso/Ferrari | 1:35.648 | -0.100 |
| 16 | 7 | Nico Rosberg | Williams/Toyota | 1:35.670 | -0.078 |
| 17 | 21 | G.Fisichella | Force India/Ferrari | 1:36.240 | 0.492 |
| 18 | 14 | S.Bourdais | Toro Rosso/Ferrari | 1:36.677 | 0.929 |
| 19 | 18 | Takuma Sato | Super Aguri/Honda | 1:37.087 | 1.339 |
| 20 | 20 | Adrian Sutil | Force India/Ferrari | 1:37.101 | 1.353 |
| 21 | 19 | Anthony Davidson | Super Aguri/Honda | 1:37.481 | 1.733 |
| 22 | 8 | Kazuki Nakajima | Williams/Toyota | 1:36.388 | 0.640 |
| 10 mjesta kazne zbog sudara na VN Australije | |||||
Massa and Raikkonen secured the front row for Ferrari in the 2008 Malaysian GP (Photo: Ferrari)2008 MALAYSIAN GP RACE RESULTS
| 1 | 1 | Kimi Räikkönen | Ferrari | 56 | 1:31:18.555 | |
| 2 | 4 | Robert Kubica | BMW Sauber | 56 | 1:31:38.125 | 19.570 |
| 3 | 23 | H.Kovalainen | McLaren/Mercedes | 56 | 1:31:57.005 | 38.450 |
| 4 | 11 | Jarno Trulli | Toyota | 56 | 1:32:04.387 | 45.832 |
| 5 | 22 | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren/Mercedes | 56 | 1:32:05.103 | 46.548 |
| 6 | 3 | Nick Heidfeld | BMW Sauber | 56 | 1:32:08.388 | 49.833 |
| 7 | 10 | Mark Webber | Red Bull/Renault | 56 | 1:32:26.685 | 1:08.130 |
| 8 | 5 | Fernando Alonso | Renault | 56 | 1:32:28.596 | 1:10.041 |
| 9 | 9 | David Coulthard | Red Bull/Renault | 56 | 1:32:34.775 | 1:16.220 |
| 10 | 16 | Jenson Button | Honda | 56 | 1:32:44.769 | 1:26.214 |
| 11 | 6 | Nelson Piquet Jr. | Renault | 56 | 1:32:50.757 | 1:32.202 |
| 12 | 21 | G.Fisichella | Force India/Ferrari | 55 | 1:31:49.648 | 1 lap |
| 13 | 17 | R.Barrichello | Honda | 55 | 1:31:52.069 | 1 lap |
| 14 | 7 | Nico Rosberg | Williams/Toyota | 55 | 1:32:01.227 | 1 lap |
| 15 | 19 | Anthony Davidson | Super Aguri/Honda | 55 | 1:32:49.328 | 1 lap |
| 16 | 18 | Takuma Sato | Super Aguri/Honda | 54 | 1:31:26.134 | 2 laps |
| 17 | 8 | Kazuki Nakajima | Williams/Toyota | 54 | 1:31:37.131 | 2 laps |
| (12) | 15 | Sebastian Vettel | Toro Rosso/Ferrari | 39 | 1:04:56.494 | Engine |
| (2) | 2 | Felipe Massa | Ferrari | 30 | 48:59.371 | Spun off |
| (14) | 20 | Adrian Sutil | Force India/Ferrari | 5 | 8:38.801 | Hydraulics |
| (21) | 12 | Timo Glock | Toyota | 1 | 2:50.790 | Chrash |
| 14 | S.Bourdais | Toro Rosso/Ferrari | 0 | Spun off | ||
Fastest lap: Nick Heidfeld – 1:35.366 (lap55)
DRIVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP
| 1 | Lewis Hamilton | 14 |
| 2 | Kimi Räikkönen | 11 |
| 3 | Nick Heidfeld | 11 |
| 4 | Heikki Kovalainen | 10 |
| 5 | Robert Kubica | 8 |
| 6 | Nico Rosberg | 6 |
CONSTRUCTORS’ CHAMPIONSHIP
| 1 | McLaren/Mercedes | 24 |
| 2 | BMW Sauber/BMW | 19 |
| 3 | Ferrari | 11 |
| 4 | Williams/Toyota | 9 |
| 5 | Renault | 6 |
| 6 | Toyota | 5 |
