Vettel refusing to read into Mercedes' Friday struggles in Malaysia

Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel is refusing to read too much into Mercedes' Friday struggles in Malaysia despite finishing over 1.4 seconds clear of Formula 1 title rival Lewis Hamilton in FP2 at Sepang.

Vettel entered the Malaysian Grand Prix weekend trailing Hamilton by 28 points at the top of the drivers' championship after retiring last time out in Singapore, but bounced back by finishing six-tenths of a second clear of the field in FP1.

Mercedes had been expected to dominate at Sepang, only for both Hamilton and teammate Valtteri Bottas to struggle for grip, suffering off-track excursions and ultimately finishing sixth and seventh respectively.

"There are still some things where I think we must improve, but other than that, it was OK," Vettel said, reflecting on his day.

"I don't know what people did this morning, but they looked pretty fast in mixed conditions this morning in the sort of damp/wet with the intermediate tyres. But there wasn't an awful lot of running.

"Overall I think it's been a decent day, a bit mixed, the morning a couple of things to understand, the afternoon a little bit better. But as I said, this evening we'll have time."

When asked if Mercedes' struggles offered Ferrari a chance to bounce back from Singapore, Vettel said: "If that's the case, then yes, but it's Friday afternoon, so things can change. We'll see what tomorrow brings."