Ricciardo, Verstappen Grab 1-2 Win For Red Bull Racing In Malaysia's Sepang Circuit

SEPANG (Selangor, Malaysia), Oct 4 (Bernama) -- After an outstanding performance in Saturday's qualifying, Red Bull Racing drivers clinched a 1-2 finish at the 2016 Petronas Malaysia Grand Prix, here Sunday. Australian Daniel Ricciardo clocked one hour 37 minutes and 12.776 seconds, 2.443 seconds ahead of his team-mate Max Verstappen of the Netherlands with 1'37:15.219s, while Germany's Nico Rosberg of Mercedes AMG Petronas finished third with a time of 1'37:38.292s. It was the second time that the team claimed a 1-2 finish at the Sepang Circuit since Sebastian Vettel (Germany) and Mark Webber (Australia) had achieved a similar feat in the 2010 edition. The win was Ricciardo's first of the season. "It's been pretty emotional. Two years since my last win. Huge thanks to everyone who has supported me. It's overwhelming," said the 27-year-old, who had won three races with the team in 2014. The two Red Bull Racing drivers started their race from the second row behind the Mercedes AMG Petronas drivers, Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg. They engaged in a lively tussle of their own in the second half of the race, racing side-by-side before Ricciardo gained an advantage, until they both pitted one last time after Hamilton's retirement. Ricciardo, who lost a certain victory to his Mercedes rival at the Monaco Grand Prix in May due to a bungled pit stop, was more than happy to accept his good fortune in Malaysia. "It obviously went the other way at Monaco, so I'll take this today (Sunday). No heart feelings to Lewis but I'll definitely take the win," added the Australian. Meanwhile, Verstappen, who just celebrated his 19th birthday last Friday, said: "We had a great pace and good stints, I enjoyed the race! Happy with second position and it was a perfect result for Red Bull Racing." Despite collecting a 10-second penalty after colliding with Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen, Rosberg extended his gap over his team-mate Lewis Hamilton to 23 points in the drivers' standings after completing 16 of 21 races this season. "I thought it was all over at Turn One. I'm delighted to have been able to come back from it," said Rosberg, who had to race from 21st position after first colliding with another Ferrari driver, Sebastian Vettel at turn-one after the start. "Of course I'm happy with the comeback, to get all the way back on the podium. I definitely didn't think that was going to be possible," he added. Due to the collision, Vettel, the Malaysia Grand Prix defending champion, had to retire from the race early while reigning world champion Hamilton, who was leading the race from the start, retired when entering Lap 41 at Turn-One when his engine burst into flames. The engine problem severely damaged his chances to take over the drivers' standings. "Something just doesn't feel right. It was a brand new engine, I'd done just one race with it. I just can't believe that there eight Mercedes cars, and only my engines are the ones that have been going this year. Something just doesn't feel right, but there's nothing I can do about it," said Hamilton. -- BERNAMA