Nico Rosberg has revealed Mercedes suffered with higher than expected tyre degradation in Friday’s practices at the Sepang circuit.
Although the Mercedes driver finished Friday’s running at the top of the timesheets with a 1:39.909, like many of his rivals he struggled in the heat.
Following on from his hot lap, Rosberg embarked on a longer stint where the German soon found himself dropping with each passing lap as his tyres degraded.
“It was crazy conditions out there,” he said. “In the very, very warm temperatures, it’s a huge challenge to get everything right.