Mercedes' non-executive chairman Niki Lauda: "Lewis was stuck in traffic. He thought he could get by quicker, he didn't but we got through and now everything is back to zero. There's no problem. He was stuck in traffic. He can recover everything.

"In the wet, everything is different. You have to think about tomorrow, will it be a wet race or a dry race? So it is a difficult decision to make - what do you work for?"

Image source, Mercedes

Headphones on as Lewis Hamilton gets himself in the zone. Any thoughts on what his motivational music of choice would be?

1) Rosberg 2) Vettel 3) Bottas 4) Ricciardo 5) Grosjean 6) Massa 7) Verstappen 8) Hamilton 9) Kvyat 10) Ericsson

11) Raikkonen 12) Maldonado 13) Hulkenberg 14) Perez 15) Sainz

Ignore the spots of rain on the camera, it now appears to have finally stopped. Here's a reminder of who went out in Q2 and who will contest in the top-10 shootout...

The rain continues to fall on the Sepang circuit, but could the weather be good news for Mercedes' competitors? It is, of course, a great leveller and it will now all be about who can best deal with the conditions.

That said, Lewis Hamilton took pole in the wet in 2014...

McLaren driver Fernando Alonso, who has qualified 18th: "We know we are struggling with the pace but we are much closer now and I don't think I will be [giving interviews] after Q1 for long."

McLaren driver Jenson Button, who qualified 17th: "It is a lot closer than in Australia and I think our race pace is better than our qualifying pace. We should be happy with the step taken, but there is still a long way to go."

Confirmation has come in that the start of Q3 has been delayed by 15 minutes, as we wait let's hear from Jenson Button...

Martin duck: A good lightening storm to create drama and Kimi is the loser from it.

Silje: Dude @therealdcf1 you're from Scotland, rain is in your blood. How you manage to get surprised by it is v impressive.

The rain has slowed down a bit but it looks like the start of Q3 could be delayed to let the track dry out a bit.

Image source, Lotus

Lotus F1 Team: Suspicion @RGrosjean might feel something of a washing-out sensation in #Q3

It is proper Malaysia weather as a Red Bull staff member sweeps rain water out of the garage.

With no-one going to go back out in Q2, fans make a dart for the cover of the trees.

1) Rosberg 2) Vettel 3) Bottas 4) Ricciardo 5) Grosjean 6) Massa 7) Verstappen 8) Hamilton 9) Kvyat 10) Ericsson

As it stands, we will be losing the below five drivers once the timer reaches zero. Six minutes to go as everyone seeks refuge from the weather in their respective garages.

11) Raikkonen 12) Maldonado 13) Hulkenberg 14) Perez 15) Sainz

Lewis Hamilton: "You got us out too far behind everyone, man."

The rain is hammering down as the drivers make their way back into the pits. Lewis Hamilton is safe, but it was very close and he is not happy.

Hang on? Kimi Raikkonen, who has looked like being Mercedes' biggest challenger throughout practice, posts a 1:42.173 and it is only good enough for 11th! He is set to be eliminated.

"Unfortunately Kimi we are P11 and with the rain it will be impossible to improve on that position," Raikkonen is told over team radio.

Drops of rain at Turns 7 and 8 according to Felipe Massa's race engineer. Nico Rosberg goes fastest as the potentially crucial timed laps arrive. Sebastian Vettel is second fastest but a bad lap from Lewis Hamilton after he got stuck in traffic sees him eighth. Tense!

Image source, AP

Allan McNish
BBC Radio 5 live analyst in Sepang on BBC One

"There's elbows out on this warming up lap - they know the rain is coming. The Lotuses are going at it like it's the last lap of a grand prix."