Vettel recovered from mediocre times in the first two of the qualifying sessions, putting the hammer down on the third for a time of 1 minute 49.674 seconds. Massa came in second at 1:50.587, followed by his Ferrari teammate, Fernando Alonso.

Kimi Raikkonen of Lotus, who won the first race of the season, finished seventh in qualifying. However, he recieved a three-place grid penalty for impeding German Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg during qualifying.

"It was a great result after a chaotic qualifying [session]," Vettel said. "I am a bit surprised about the margin, but also happy. It was very difficult in the deciding phase. Some parts of the track were dry at the end, but others were wet."

The Malaysian Grand Prix is the second of the 2013 Formula One season after Australia, where Vettel also started from the pole position but had to settle for third place in the race itself.

Shortly after qualifying, the 25-year-old Red Bull driver already had his thoughts focused on Sunday's race and concerns about possible pitfalls.

"A lot will depend upon the tires. We know that our car is fast, but unfortunately the tires are not as fast as the car," Vettel said.

pd/mz (dpa, SID)