Lewis Hamilton stops early as Nico Rosberg sets pace

The Mercedes drivers suffered a Practice One of sharply contrasting fortunes at the Malaysia GP as Nico Rosberg set the pace while Lewis Hamilton ran into engine problems inside four laps.

On the morning that McLaren’s Fernando Alonso returned to action for the first time since his still mysterious Barcelona testing crash 33 days ago, world champions Mercedes picked up from where they left off at the Melbourne season-opener as Rosberg set the pace from the Ferraris.

Hamilton, the race winner in Australia, would almost certainly have joined his team-mate at the head of the order but his session was over even before the Briton had a timed lap on the board when he was told to pull off the circuit after reporting hearing a “click” at the rear of his W06.

2015 Malaysia GP Practice One timesheet:

1) Nico Rosberg, Mercedes, 1:40.124

2) Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari, 1:40.497

3) Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari, 1:40.985

4) Romain Grosjean, Lotus, 1:41.543

5) Carlos Sainz, Toro Rosso, 1:41.596

6) Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull, 1:41.787

7) Max Verstappen, Toro Rosso, 1:41.803

8) Valtteri Bottas, Williams, 1:41.882

9) Daniil Kvyat, Red Bull, 1:42.055

10) Marcus Ericsson, Sauber, 1:42.064

11) Felipe Massa, Williams, 1:42.103

12) Pastor Maldonado, Lotus, 1:42.567

13) Raffaele Marciello, Sauber, 1:42.621

14) Fernando Alonso, McLaren, 1:42.885

15) Nico Hulkenberg, Force India, 1:42.893

16) Sergio Perez, Force India, 1:43.054

17) Jenson Button, McLaren, 1:43.100

18) Will Stevens, Manor, 1:46.686

19) Roberto Merhi, Manor, 1:47.683

20) Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, No time

...SkySports