Fisichella hails 'perfect' race

The Roman Renault driver, who started from pole position, took the third victory of his career and his first since the opening race in Australia last season.

Fisichella finished in front of Renault teammate Fernando Alonso, giving the French squad their fist 1-2 finish since the 1982 French Grand Prix.

It was also their second ever 1-2.

"Perfect race," said a delighted Fisichella. "It was a tough race physically and mentally but honestly I was quite confident, quite comfortable.

"The car balance was quite fantastic. There was a little bit of graining and after the pitstop a small problem, but apart from that it was great.

"It's great to have my engineer on the podium and I would like to thank all the Renault F1 team."

Fisichella fought the sweltering Malaysian heat to cross the finish line 4.5 seconds ahead of Alonso.

"It was really hot, very, very hot, already in the middle of the race you are tired and you can say I cannot go through the end of the race, so important to be concentrated and just keep pushing and don't lose concentration," added the Italian.

The 33-year old, who had retired from the Bahrain Grand Prix last Sunday, dedicated his win to Pietro Saitta, a close friend who had died in a road accident last weekend.

"It is emotional, it was more important to do my best because I lost a friend of mine one week ago and I would like to dedicate that race to him. Ciao Pietro."