Ferrari could hardly have responded better to their Melbourne disaster and the inevitable Italian press mauling that followed.
They always insisted that Australia was just an early stumble, and that the "real Ferrari" would return for Sepang.
It certainly did. A dominant one-two in opening practice, despite Kimi Raikkonen bizarrely running out of fuel in the first half-hour, set the tone for a weekend in which the red cars always had plenty in hand over their rivals.