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Max Verstappen clinched just his second race win of his career and first of this season, at a track that witnessed its last Formula 1 race at least for the foreseeable future. Nineteen of the twenty-one drivers on the grid finished the race, at a track that is very demanding physically.
The 2017 Malaysian Grand Prix was very different from the race two weeks ago at Singapore; no safety car stints, no first corner incidents, no rain (which is rare at Sepang), hardly any yellow flags. Once again circumstances favoured the Mercedes, as they were able to extend their lead in the drivers and constructors championships, on a track that didn't necessarily favour their car set-up.
With the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka within the week, teams rarely had any time on their hand to think about the results too much. As they look ahead, we look back at the biggest talking points from the final race at Sepang:
#5 Pierre Gasly to replace Daniil Kvyat at Toro Rosso next year?
At the final race at Sepang, Pierre Gasly was driving his first F1 race for the Toro Rosso. And although his 15th place finish does not indicate a lot about his performance over the weekend, he's handled everything thrown at him over the three days quite well.
Gasly didn't get involved in any scuffle on the track and responded far better than many expected. He would have certainly had a strong support from the team if they went ahead and chose him over a more experienced Kvyat for the weekend. To his credit, under the gruelling physical demands, he didn't do anything to hurt his case.
More importantly, Daniil Kvyat has just been abysmal since being demoted from Red Bull. Since joining the team in Spain last year, Kvyat has scored just eight points in 31 races. Compare that to his teammate Carols Sainz (48 points in 2017 alone) and you begin to wonder how Kvyat has gotten such a long leash.
#4 Back-to-back strong finishes for Stoffel Vandoorne, McLaren
Over the last few races, McLaren Honda has been able to up their game and play a huge role in the middle pack of the grid. Although they were helped by the first corner crash in Singapore, Stoffel Vandoorne's performance in Malaysia proves the result a couple of weeks back wasn't just a flash in the pan.
Race pace and simply finishing races is something the team was struggling to accomplish early in the season, however, they seemed to have turned that around in past few races. If Fernando Alonso didn't have to be cautious to avoid traffic at the first corner, he also could have finished in the points.
Vandoorne has gone from not scoring a point in the first ten races of the season, he has scored 13 in the last five races. Add to that the incentive Honda will have to perform well at their home Grand Prix, we could expect another strong points finish from Vandoorne at Suzuka.
#3 Wierd unusual crash after Chequered Flag
Starting 20th and finishing fourth was a huge recovery for Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari, given their disastrous Qualifying session. However, they were forced to face another problem and weirdly, it was after the Chequered Flag had been waived.
Vettel on his in-lap was just picking up some rubber by taking the outside line at Turn 5. In the process, he going past a strolling Williams in Lance Stroll. The latter probably didn't see Vettel and collided into the back of the Ferrari, ripping away it's rear suspension.
It was no particular driver's fault and such incidents rarely happen. Thus, the stewards too ruled that no further action would be taken. However, going by the damage on the Ferrari, they could be forced to use a new gearbox which would mean a five-place grid penalty.
#2 Another lacklustre weekend for Ferrari
Ferrari could be happy with the way Vettel was able to salvage the most points possible or should they distraught with themselves that they were in that spot in the first place? Not to mention, the disaster with Kimi Raikkonen's car, who faced a similar to engine related issue that Vettel did on Saturday.
That problem forced Raikkonen to register his first DNS (Did Not Start) since the US Grand Prix in 2005. Being a top contender on the grid, Ferrari should have seen this problem coming and got a fix on it. If it was an unforeseen and unpredictable problem that hit Vettel during Qualifying, it's a shame that a similar problem forced them to pull their other car out of the race.
Dealing with problems aside, the biggest reason the team should be disappointed is that Malaysia and Singapore as well were tracks that favoured their car setup. And instead of taking advantage of that, they've tripped over their own toes both times.
#1 20-year old Max finally gets something to celebrate about
Winning an F1 race is a great way to celebrate your birthday weekend and that's exactly what Max Verstappen did. The 2017 Malaysian Grand Prix result was a huge one for Red Bull, not only because of the huge boost it gives to their 20-year old driver's confidence but it also solidifies their position alongside Ferrari and Mercedes with their double podium.
They were expected to do well here and in Singapore. While they couldn't make the most of it at the Marina Bay Street Circuit, the team has bounced back strongly with a double podium in Malaysia, their first since they recorded the same result at this very track.
While the result is huge as a team, everybody in the garage is bound to be genuinely happy for Verstappen. Of the 15 races so far, he's bore the brunt of the team's early-season reliability issues with seven DNFs.
