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Sepang's crumbling and highly abrasive track surface caused major set-up headaches for teams and drivers as Formula 1 returned to Malaysia after a nine-year absence.
Friday practice at the Malaysian circuit has always had the potential to spring surprises across the paddock. While the region's typical monsoon downpours held off, the track itself proved extremely treacherous to master. Oscar Piastri compared the tarmac to "sandpaper" during Thursday's track walk, giving an early warning of severe tyre degradation.
Conditions on the 5.35-kilometre layout deteriorated further as the asphalt began breaking apart during the sessions. Organisers were forced to send sweepers out after Free Practice 2 to clear loose aggregate and debris from the racing line.
Tyre supplier Pirelli revealed that Friday's representative lap times were up to 4.5 seconds off pre-event qualifying simulations, driven by bumps, heavy abrasiveness, and remarkably low grip levels.
“The conditions were far from ideal as the asphalt was breaking up. Loose stones scattered, and the FIA had to deploy sweepers several times. The surface degraded rapidly even within a single session, so the situation isn't completely under control. We were 4.5 seconds off simulation targets. We'll see how tomorrow unfolds, but you don't make up four to five seconds overnight. It all comes down to the condition of the asphalt. We haven't raced here in ten years, so teams also lacked a solid reference baseline,” explained Pirelli chief engineer Simone Berra.
Berra stressed that while surface degradation is expected to intensify over the race weekend, driver safety will not be compromised.
“This is not a safety concern or a puncture risk. The challenge is generating grip against such a high level of abrasiveness. It could get tougher in the race with high ambient temperatures and the entire field running together, which will accelerate track wear. It’s not the end of the world—the situation is manageable—but the grip level is certainly far from optimal,” Berra added.
Malaysia steps in for Sakhir this weekend in place of the Bahrain Grand Prix, with Sepang's aggressive track surface mirroring the extreme tyre wear traditionally seen at the Middle Eastern venue.
High tyre degradation per lap suggests a significant divergence between outright single-lap pace and long-run consistency. That dynamic is set to introduce plenty of strategic drama at a circuit that already offers excellent overtaking opportunities.
“The real challenge is striking the right balance—not just for one-lap speed, but for long runs to maintain consistency and manage thermal degradation without sliding or overstressing the tyres. In hunting for an optimal race set-up, teams could easily fall out of the operating window for qualifying. I noticed several teams struggling to warm up the front tyres, failing to have the front axle ready for Turn 1 after the long straight following Turn 15. We could see some surprises, with teams that struggle in qualifying displaying far stronger race pace,” Berra concluded.
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