All eyes turn to Sepang as the second race of the 2011 season gets underway this weekend.

If the Australian Grand Prix two weeks ago set the scene for what is to come this year, then Malaysia will help develop some plotlines and form the leading men for the 17 races still to come once Sunday’s race is done and dusted.

Most of the talk in the build up to the race has surrounded one thing; the weather.  The scattered storms predicted for the race weekend could prove to be a great leveller, with the slippery, grip-less track negating the raw speed of the Red Bulls.

It is in these conditions that true driving ability come to the fore.  The 2009 race is a great example of how quickly things can change, and if similar conditions are present on Sunday it won’t be the quickest car that succeeds, but the team that is quickest to react, especially as the circuit begins to dry and grip is discovered.

Who will be brave enough to switch back from the wet weather tyres and take a gamble that the grip will be there? And what of the influence of the safety car if necessary in treacherous conditions? Who can take advantage? History dictates that both McLaren drives will thrive in the wet, but that is without reckoning with the ability of Messrs Vettel and Alonso.

Some nice off-track sub-plots are developing ahead of Sunday’s race, and it will be interesting to see who can keep on top of all these variables to take the chequered flag – anyone who wants to win this race will be forced to work hard for it.

“Sepang could be a different issue altogether for both Red Bull drivers, especially if a McLaren for example, finds itself behind Vettel or Webber with KERS and DRS at their disposal.”

It will also be interesting to see how the new Pirelli tyres react in the wet should conditions deteriorate. Talk before the season suggested the tyres would wear quickly and cost up to three seconds a lap once they went beyond the point of no return, but Sergio Perez’s efforts with only a single pit-stop in Melbourne moved the goalposts slightly. If conditions are hot, expect to see up to four changes where the norm was two or three at the Alberta Park circuit, while the Pirelli’s first wet run could throw up a few surprises.

Overtaking should be plentiful at the Sepang circuit, and expect plenty of action across the whole weekend. In Melbourne, Vettel was able to dominate by carrying huge amounts of speed into the fairly tight track, and should thrive in the high-speed corners in Malaysia. But if Christian Horner and Adrian Newey decide against using the KERS power boost system once more, it could leave them vulnerable, especially on the long straights either side of the Grandstand hairpin turn.

Newey is rumoured to be unwilling to change his sleek aerodynamic design to accommodate the notoriously temperamental KERS system, and while Vettel was not found wanting in terms of speed in Melbourne, Webber was, and Sepang could be a different issue altogether for both Red Bull drivers, especially if a McLaren for example finds itself behind Vettel or Webber with KERS and DRS (the newly introduced moveable rear wing device) at their disposal.

Of the middle order, both Sauber and Renault were the stand-out teams in Melbourne and will be looking to prove their success was not a one-off. Both Sauber drivers were disqualified for contravening the FIA’s rear-wing size rules, but Perez and Kamui Kobayashi were excellent, and will be in the hunt for points this weekend. Vitaly Petrov grabbed his first podium finish two weeks ago, and while his raw speed has always been present, doubts remain over his ability to keep his concentration for the season.

The Malaysian Grand Prix takes place on the 8th, 9th and 10th April. For all of the build-up, latest news and reaction stay right here on Formula 1 FanCast.

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