The Malaysian Grand Prix (officially the Malaysia Grand Prix from 1963–1965 and 2011–2017 and Malayan Grand Prix in 1962) was an annual
auto race
Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition.
Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...
held in
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Mal ...
. It was part of the
Formula One World Championship from 1999 to 2017 and it was held during these years at the
Sepang International Circuit. The Malaysian Grand Prix was held annually from 1962 to 1964 in
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
, whilst it was a member of the Malaysian federation. Subsequent Grands Prix were held in
Peninsular Malaysia
Peninsular Malaysia ( ms, Semenanjung Malaysia; Jawi: سمننجڠ مليسيا), or the States of Malaya ( ms, Negeri-negeri Tanah Melayu; Jawi: نڬري-نڬري تانه ملايو), also known as West Malaysia or the Malaysian Peninsula, ...
.
History
Singapore and Shah Alam
From 1962 to 1965 an annual race weekend for motorcycles and
Formula Libre cars was held at the
Thomson Road circuit in Singapore, named the Malaysia Grand Prix. After Singapore gained
independence from Malaysia in 1965 the event was renamed the Singapore Grand Prix and continued until 1973.
Between Singapore's departure from the Malaysian federation and the opening of Sepang Circuit, Malaysia hosted a range of other racing categories in the Malaysian Grand Prix at
Shah Alam
Shah Alam () is a city and the state capital of Selangor, Malaysia and situated within the Petaling District and a small portion of the neighbouring Klang District. Shah Alam replaced Kuala Lumpur as the capital city of the state of Selango ...
's
own circuit between 1968 and 1995 including
Formula Libre (1968),
Tasman Formula
Tasman most often refers to Abel Tasman (1603–1659), Dutch explorer.
Tasman may also refer to:
Animals and plants
* Tasman booby
* Tasman flax-lily
* Tasman parakeet (disambiguation)
* Tasman starling
* Tasman whale
People
* Tasman ( ...
, (1969-1972),
Formula Atlantic (1973–1975),
Formula Two (1977)
Formula Pacific (1978–1982) and
Formula Brabham (1995).
Sepang International Circuit
As part of a series of major infrastructure projects in the 1990s under
Mahathir Mohamad
Mahathir bin Mohamad ( ms, محاضير بن محمد, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset; ; born 10 July 1925) is a Malaysian politician, author, and physician who served as the 4th and 7th Prime Minister of Malaysia. He held the office ...
's government, the
Sepang International Circuit was constructed between 1997 and 1999 close to
Putrajaya
Putrajaya (), officially the Federal Territory of Putrajaya ( ms, Wilayah Persekutuan Putrajaya), is a planned capital city which functions as the administrative capital and the judicial capital of Malaysia. The seat of the federal governm ...
, the then-newly founded administrative capital of the country, with the intent of hosting the Malaysian Grand Prix. Similar to other of the country's circuits, the circuit is known for its unpredictable humid tropical weather, varying from clear furnace hot days to tropical rain storms.
The inaugural Grand Prix at Sepang was held in , and saw
Michael Schumacher return to the sport after his absence due to a broken leg sustained at that year's
British Grand Prix
The British Grand Prix is a Grand Prix motor race organised in the United Kingdom by the Royal Automobile Club. First held in 1926, the British Grand Prix has been held annually since 1948 and has been a round of the FIA Formula One World Cha ...
. Ferrari dominated the race, with Schumacher handing the victory to title-hopeful teammate
Eddie Irvine
Edmund Irvine Jr. (; born 10 November 1965) is a former racing driver from Northern Ireland. He competed in Formula One between 1993 and 2002, and finished runner-up in the 1999 World Drivers' Championship, driving for Scuderia Ferrari.
He b ...
, only for both
Ferraris
Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988) in 1939 from the Alfa Romeo racing division as ''Auto Avio Costruzioni'', the company built its first car in ...
to be disqualified due to a technical irregularity, before later being reinstated.
From 2001, the Malaysian Grand Prix moved from the end of the season to the beginning, which has seen some topsy-turvy results as teams and drivers got to grips with their new equipment, with many races heavily influenced by the winners and losers of the scramble for position into the tight double hairpin bend at the first corner.
The 2001 event was hit by a heavy
rain
Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water f ...
storm in the middle of the race which made conditions very difficult. Conditions were so bad that the two Ferraris of
Michael Schumacher and
Rubens Barrichello
Rubens "Rubinho" Gonçalves Barrichello (, ; born 23 May 1972) is a Brazilian professional racing driver who competed in Formula One between and . He currently competes full-time in the Brazilian Stock Car Pro Series, driving the No. 111 T ...
spun off almost simultaneously at the same corner. Remarkably, they both recovered to score a Ferrari 1–2, because for a long time they were nearly 5 seconds faster than anyone else on the field. Elsewhere, the race was even led by
Jos Verstappen, surprisingly. However, as the track begun to dry, he fell back to seventh, but his efforts to keep positions were memorable.
On 8 April 2007, shortly before the
2007 Malaysian Grand Prix
The 2007 Malaysian Grand Prix (formally the 2007 Formula 1 Petronas Malaysian Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race, held on 8 April 2007 at the Sepang International Circuit and the second race of the 2007 FIA Formula One World Championship. ...
, Formula One president
Bernie Ecclestone
Bernard Charles Ecclestone (born 28 October 1930) is an English business magnate. He is the former chief executive of the Formula One Group, which manages Formula One motor racing and controls the commercial rights to the sport, and part-owns D ...
was quoted as stating that the circuit was getting "shabby" and "a bit tired" from the lack of care, describing it as "an old house that needs a bit of redecorating". He noted that the circuit itself is not the issue, but rather the surrounding environment; rubbish is said to be littered all over the place, potentially damaging the circuit's good reputation when it was opened in 1999.
The day before, Malaysian Prime Minister
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi
Tun Abdullah bin Ahmad Badawi ( Jawi: عبد الله بن احمد بدوي; born 26 November 1939) is a Malaysian politician who served as the 5th Prime Minister of Malaysia from October 2003 to April 2009. He was also the sixth president of ...
had met Ecclestone to discuss an extension of the Formula One contract beyond 2010.
While the government had been given an additional extension to host the Grand Prix until 2015, the government was still mulling the offer, as of 23 April 2007.
The circuit was given a renewed contract in 2006 to organise the Malaysian Grand Prix for another five years.
On 13 February 2008, the management of the Sepang International Circuit announced its aim to become Formula One's second night race from after
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
, following discussions about buying a floodlighting system.
Mokhzani Mahathir, the chairman of the circuit, was quoted as saying that the lights "might be custom made for the circuit." However, the organisers ended up settling for a late-afternoon start time.
The
2009 Malaysian Grand Prix was held around sunset, starting at 17:00 local time (09:00 UTC). This proved disastrous due to heavy rainfall. The race was red-flagged and ultimately not restarted due to the low light level making it through the clouds. The race ended on lap 33, and with the regulations requiring 42 laps for full points, both driver and constructor results were halved in relation to points.
On 7 April 2017, it was announced that the 2017 race would be the swansong of the Malaysian Grand Prix. The race's contract was due to expire in 2018, but its future had been under threat due to rising hosting fees and declining ticket sales. Malaysia's youth and sports minister at the time Khairy Jamaluddin said on Twitter: "I think we should stop hosting the F1. At least for a while. Cost too high, returns limited. When we first hosted the F1 it was a big deal. First in Asia outside Japan. Now so many venues. No first mover advantage. Not a novelty." The BBC reported that "Malaysia had struggled in recent years to attract a significant crowd, its appeal having been damaged by the more glamorous night-time event on a street track in Singapore."
Winners of the Malaysian Grand Prix
Repeat winners (drivers)
''A pink background indicates an event which was not part of the Formula One World Championship.''
''Drivers in bold are competing in the Formula One championship in the current season.''
Repeat winners (constructors)
''A pink background indicates an event which was not part of the Formula One World Championship.''
''Teams in bold are competing in the Formula One championship in the current season.''
Repeat winners (engine manufacturers)
''A pink background indicates an event which was not part of the Formula One World Championship.''
''Manufacturers in bold are competing in the Formula One championship in the current season.''
* Built by
Cosworth
Cosworth is a British automotive engineering company founded in London in 1958, specialising in high-performance internal combustion engines, powertrain, and electronics for automobile racing (motorsport) and mainstream Automotive industry, ...
** Built by
Ilmor
Ilmor is a British independent high-performance motor racing engineering company. It was founded by Mario Illien and Paul Morgan in November 1983. With manufacturing based in Brixworth, Northamptonshire, and maintenance offices in Plymouth, M ...
in 2003
*** Built by
Renault
Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinational automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company produces a range of cars and vans, and in the past has manufactured ...
By year
''A pink background indicates an event which was not part of the Formula One World Championship.''
Support races
Formula BMW Asia and
Porsche Carrera Cup Asia
Porsche Carrera Cup (sometimes abbreviated PCC) is a number of one-make racing by Porsche premier series competed with, initially Porsche 911 Carrera Cup, then later Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars. The cars are specifically built by Porsche for one ...
have supported the Malaysian Grand Prix since 2003.
References
External links
Sepang International Circuit official websiteMotorsport The Asian Wayby Roderick Eime
Malaysia statistics{{Formula_One_races
Formula One Grands Prix
National Grands Prix
Recurring sporting events established in 1962
Recurring sporting events disestablished in 2017
1962 establishments in Malaya
2017 disestablishments in Malaysia