Sebastian Vettel won the Malaysian Grand Prix in a time of 1:41:05 this morning, eight seconds ahead of Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton.

Nico Rosberg finished behind his teammate in third, with Vettel's Ferrari colleague Kimi Raikkonen in fourth.

The safety car was out within the first three laps as Sauber's Marcus Ericsson was forced to retire following a collision with Toro Rosso's Max Verstappen.

Vettel set the pace early, creating a 10-second gap between he and Hamilton, and a quick pit stop in lap 17 saw the German exit in third.

He quickly retook the lead and looked to be favourite to win when Hamilton changed to slower, hard tyres with 16 laps remaining.

Meanwhile, Rosberg was in pursuit in third, with both Mercedes drivers gaining on Vettel in the closing stages, but the Ferrari held on for an impressive victory.

Elsewhere, both McLaren drivers Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button failed to finish, and Red Bull's Daniil Kvyat's race was ruined when he was sent spinning by Nico Hulkenberg.

Pastor Maldonado also retired, while Manor Marussia's Dan Stevens failed to start the race.

Full standings:

1. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari)
2. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
3. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes)
4. Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari)
5. Valterri Bottas (Williams)
6. Felipe Massa (Williams)
7. Max Verstappen (Toro Rosso)
8. Carlos Sainz (Toro Rosso)
9. Daniil Kvyat (Red Bull)
10. Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull)
11. Romain Grosjean (Lotus)
12. Felipe Nasr (Sauber)
13. Sergio Perez (Force India)
14. Nico Hulkenberg (Force India)
15. Roberto Mehri (Manor Marussia)
DNF Pastor Maldonado (Lotus)
DNF Jenson Button (McLaren)
DNF Fernando Alonso (McLaren)
DNF Marcus Ericsson (Sauber)
DNF Dan Stevens (Manor Marussia)