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Oscar Piastri led home McLaren team-mate Lando Norris to get back into championship contention - Getty Images/Bryn Lennon
Oscar Piastri led Lando Norris home in a McLaren one-two at a largely uneventful Chinese Grand Prix.
Australian Piastri got away well from pole and never looked in any danger of losing the lead on a warm day in Shanghai in which tyre degradation was the biggest threat.
Norris, who started third, managed to jump Mercedes’ George Russell at the start and then manage a late brake wear issue which he described as “scary”, with Russell rounding out the podium ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
Elsewhere, Charles Leclerc broke his front wing in an early tussle with Ferrari team-mate Lewis Hamilton but was still able to pass the seven-time world champion on track, as the Scuderia took fifth and sixth respectively.
Hamilton ran a two-stop strategy as opposed to all those in front who ran one-stoppers.
09:55 AM GMT
The next race: Japanese GP
Here are the timings for the race at Suzuka, which takes place from April 4–6.
April 4
FP1 – 3.30am BST
FP2 – 7am
April 5
FP3 – 3.30am
Qualifying – 7am
April 6
Race – 6am
09:51 AM GMT
Oliver Bearman speaks after 10th place
09:42 AM GMT
Haas were bafflingly slow last weekend
Two cars in the points today and Ocon in P7, ahead of Antonelli.
“The car was really, really good today,” an elated Oliver Bearman said over the team radio.
09:36 AM GMT
Verstappen explains his better pace in the closing stages
“I just picked up tyre grip, not balance, whereas others plateaued a bit. The first part of the race was tough,” he says.
“That first stint was where we gave away all the time. On the hard tyre we were pretty competitive. Maybe we overcompensated based on the degradation we saw yesterday,” his team principal Christian Horner says. “We know we’ve still got plenty to do,” he adds.
09:30 AM GMT
What about Liam Lawson?
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Well, he finished 15th ahead of Doohan (who received a 10-second time penalty), Bortoleto (who spun on the first lap), Nico Hulkenberg and Yuki Tsunoda (who had a bizarre front-wing failure). A long way short of the expected standard. Next race weekend in Japan has to show improvement.
09:24 AM GMT
Doohan has been fighty this weekend
I don’t think anyone expects him to be in the Alpine at the end of the season, with Franco Colapinto thought of being a likely replacement.
He is not going down without a fight.
09:20 AM GMT
Ferrari’s Frederic Vasseur on their and Hamilton’s race
09:18 AM GMT
The celebrations...
09:15 AM GMT
Finishing margins of the top six, for reference
- PIA
- NOR +9.7
- RUS +11.0
- VER +16.6
- LEC +23.2
- HAM +25.1
Ferrari pretty much a pit stop behind by the end. Not sure if Leclerc’s front-wing damage would have cost him performance in the final reckoning but he was pretty fast early on. Obviously Norris would have finished much closer were it not for the brake issue.
16.6sec between the top three teams over the race distance is about 0.3sec per lap which is the gap Red Bull have been talking about. Verstappen was not very quick in the first stint but was much better in the final one.
09:11 AM GMT
Russell just quietly going about his business this year
Third in Australia, third in the sprint and third again today. Nine points the gap between himself and Norris in the lead. McLaren clearly the faster car at the moment but that may not be the case later in the season. And other factors may come into play, like non-finishes and McLaren drivers causing each other problems. Russell just needs to keep himself in the equation and see what happens.
09:05 AM GMT
Updated constructor standings
09:01 AM GMT
Updated driver standings
Very close at the top now. Piastri should be higher and with more points really, but spun off in Australia.
08:55 AM GMT
Norris quite funny in the cooldown room
“That reminds me of Schumacher on Barichello, that one,” he says referring to his overtake of Russell for second (below).
“With you Barrichello?” says Russell.
“Don’t tell Andrea [Stella] about that, because he’ll never stop talking about it,” Piastri chimes in, referring to the McLaren team principal who was at Ferrari for a while.
08:50 AM GMT
George Russell reacts to another podium
08:48 AM GMT
Norris on a strong second and his brake issue
On the brake issue:
08:45 AM GMT
Piastri reacts to his third grand prix win
First of the season after heartbreak in Australia last weekend.
08:39 AM GMT
Antonelli wins driver of the day
Started eighth, finished eighth, five places behind his team-mate and one place behind a Haas. Absolute nonsense. Voted for by the fans.
08:39 AM GMT
Chinese GP - Classfication
- PIA 25pts
- NOR 18pts
- RUS 15pts
- VER 12pts
- LEC 10pts
- HAM 8pts
- OCO 6pts
- ANT 4pts
- ALB 2pts
- BEA 1pt
It is then Gasly, Stroll, Sainz, Hadjar, Lawson, Doohan, Bortoleto, Hulkenberg, Tsunoda. Alonso retired.
08:37 AM GMT
Piastri reacts to his victory
“Yeah, mega job guys. Mega, mega job. Thank you very much, the car was very lovely. Great team effort and that is one satisfying weekend. Thank you everybody.”
08:36 AM GMT
OSCAR PIASTRI WINS THE 2025 CHINESE GRAND PRIX!
Norris holds on in the end by 1.3sec from Russell. The Mercedes driver takes the final podium spot. Verstappen fourth, Leclerc fifth and Hamilton sixth.
08:35 AM GMT
FINAL LAP
Norris is really having to lift off here. He is losing backs of time. Russell might even be able to get second here. There is a very heavy braking zone at the final hairpin...
He approaches that now but Russell is still a little further behind... this is dicey...
Piastri rounds the final few corners and takes the victory! But will Norris claim second?
08:33 AM GMT
Lap 55 of 56 - Piastri looks good here
Will close down significantly on Norris in the standings if it stays like this.
Norris is told that the brake situation has been getting critical. “Yeah, I think it’s going flat,” he says on the radio. That is not what you want. Russell is eight seconds behind and all Norris should worry about is getting the car home.
08:32 AM GMT
Lap 54 of 56 - Piastri leads Norris by 2.9sec
Can’t see Norris doing anything here to change the outcome of the race.
08:30 AM GMT
Lap 53 of 56 - Verstappen gets DRS on Leclerc on the pit straight
Verstappen is forced to the outside and carries a lot of grip there but Leclerc cuts ahead... Verstappen then has more grip as that long corner continues. Leclerc then goes back at him as the Red Bull gets a snap of oversteer but soon after that the move is done and dusted for good.
08:29 AM GMT
Lap 52 of 56 - Still Norris closes the gap
2.8sec now. Is Norris going to continue to push with a dodgy brake pedal?
08:28 AM GMT
Lap 51 of 56 - Top 10 and gaps
Norris’s race engineer says he knows he is quick but to not take risks. “I’d rather finish second rather than not at all... we know you’re quick,” he is told.
- PIA
- NOR +3.0
- RUS +10.5
- LEC +16.2
- VER +17.1
- HAM +28.4
- OCO +49.5
- ANT +51.5
- ALB +53.8
- BEA +58.4
Leclerc has his wing mirrors full of Verstappen’s Red Bull.
Lawson still the last car on track aside from the two Saubers and Tsunoda.
08:26 AM GMT
Lap 50 of 56 - Piastri leads Norris by 3.1sec
Norris marginally the faster man at the moment. Hadjar complains about Doohan moving late in the braking zone. They are fighting for 14th. Doohan then gets a 10-second time penalty for forcing another driver off track.
08:25 AM GMT
Lap 49 of 56 - More on Norris’s brake pedal
It will continue to get longer until the rend of the race, around 0.5mm per lap.
“Will it go to the floor,” he asks. “You just need to be really cautious on the brakes, no risks,” comes the response.
08:24 AM GMT
Lap 48 of 56 - Norris is reassured by his race engineer
Not a massive problem, he is not losing stopping power, it is just literally a problem with the pedal going “long”.
Anyway, 3.1sec the gap between Norris in second and race leader and his McLaren team-mate Piastri.
08:23 AM GMT
Lap 47 of 56 - Tsunoda’s front wing just broke on the straight
Under high load. Very strange.
Norris on the radio: “My brake pedal is going a bit long. Yeah, my brake pedal has gone a lot longer. And now it is a lot longer...” he says.
Hamilton, meanwhile, is the fastest man in the top six but is still 13.4sec adrift of Verstappen in fifth. Don’t think he is going to close him down, somehow.
08:21 AM GMT
Lap 46 of 56 - Verstappen going well here
Not massively quicker than Leclerc but a quarter of a second or so.
Tsunoda and Doohan come close to crashing at the hairpin and now Tsunoda’s front wing is partially hanging off at the right. He didn’t seem to connect. Not sure what happened. Shame. Another missed opportunity today.
08:17 AM GMT
Lap 45 of 56 - Better from Norris
A couple of tenths lost to Piastri and similar to Russell. Verstappen around 3.1sec behind Leclerc in fourth.
Could really do with that rain falling. You have to go down to P15 to find anyone within a second of the driver in front.
08:15 AM GMT
Lap 44 of 56 - Trouble for Norris?
Not serious trouble, but tyre trouble. He drops another half second to Piastri the last time around and the gap to leader is now 4.6sec. He lost plenty of time to Russell as well, who is pretty much as far behind him as he is Piastri.
08:13 AM GMT
Lap 43 of 56 - Verstappen getting himself on the pace
Just 3.9sec between himself and Leclerc. A podium could be on the cards if he can keep his pace up. We have not seen much of him today. Nor have we of Piastri.
08:12 AM GMT
Lap 42 of 56 - Piastri extends his lead again
It’s back and forth around 2.5-3.5 as the drivers manage their races. Russell is six seconds behind Norris and Leclerc is 4.5sec behind the lead Mercedes.
Waiting for this race to erupt. It has not been eventful.
08:11 AM GMT
Lap 41 of 56 - Hamilton the fastest man on track
He is chasing Verstappen, who is 18.6sec ahead. He was roughly one second quicker than the Red Bull driver.
08:10 AM GMT
Lap 40 of 56 - Top 10
- PIA
- NOR
- RUS
- LEC
- VER
- HAM
- OCO
- ANT
- ALB
- BEA
08:08 AM GMT
Lap 39 of 56 - Bearman and Gasly duelling for 10th
Switching back and forth. Good fighting.
Piastri says he thinks he can go to the end. Seems eminently sensible. Because it is so close in the top four (12 seconds at this stage is close), it is hard to see anyone else stopping again as they would lose a fair few positions.
08:07 AM GMT
Lap 38 of 56 - Piastri leads Norris by 2.4sec
0.4sec Norris took out of the lead last lap. No backmarkers in the way yet, though. Norris told to be patient again.
08:05 AM GMT
Lap 37 of 57 - Is this becoming a certain one-stopper?
Looks like it. Degradation has not been anywhere near as high as expected. Verstappen closing up on Hamilton, who then pits. Not a one-stop for Hamilton. Suppose he had little to lose from that position. Should still come out ahead of Ocon in seventh.
08:04 AM GMT
Lap 36 of 56 - Piastri leads Norris by 3.4sec
McLaren really showing their class now. That is assuming the others aren’t saving their tyres. They have just been able to control the race and edge ahead of Russell and Leclerc after things closed up to about 6.5sec between the lot of them.
Verstappen is currently the fastest driver of the top six apart from Piastri.
08:03 AM GMT
Lap 35 of 56 - Update down the order
Albon in 11th and then it’s Gasly, Sainz, Bearman, Doohan, Hadjar and Lawson. Great qualifying from Hadjar but this race has not yet worked out for him so far. That said he has stopped twice already so will probably move up the order.
Tsunoda, his team-mate, comes into the pits from P8. Bearman into 12th now as he gets Sainz.
08:01 AM GMT
Lap 34 of 56 - Norris told the current period is about patience
And if they’ve got the fuel at the end, they can give it a go. Piastri stretched his lead to 3.8sec.
Norris told of a small risk of rain, last three laps, up to class one. Not very heavy.
07:59 AM GMT
Lap 33 of 56 - Top 10 and gaps
- PIA
- NOR +2.9
- RUS +8.0
- LEC +10.3
- HAM +13.6
- VER +17.3
- STR +31.7
- TSU +34.2
- OCO +35.9
- ANT +38.3
McLaren have been told that it is Russell’s intention to go to the end. I think we do need some strategy divergence at the front to make this race a little more interesting.
07:58 AM GMT
Lap 32 of 56 - Norris wants Piastri to speed up
He is complaining that he is in the dirty air created by his team-mate’s car.
Bearman makeas further progress. Into 15th by overtaking Jack Doohan.
07:56 AM GMT
Lap 31 of 56 - Not much action at the moment
Hopefully that changes in the next 25 laps... things settling down and gaps increasing across the field. Apart from at the front, that is. Second pit stops upcoming, though, so might explain some of that.
07:54 AM GMT
Lap 30 of 56 - Piastri’s lead is cut
Down to 2.7sec now.
Bearman gets Lawson, who then dives into the pit lane.
07:53 AM GMT
Lap 29 of 56 - Leclerc now out of DRS range
Not by a great margin but just wonder if Leclerc is going to drop back a little and try the undercut here.
Lawson in 16th but looks likely to lose a place to a much, much faster Bearman behind. No real pace in that Red Bull. No real pace in the other Red Bull relative to the leaders in Verstappen’s hands, either. He is in sixth and 15.4sec off Piastri’s lead. 4.5sec off Hamilton ahead in fifth too.
Leclerc locked up at the final corner and ran wide, which cost him even more time.
07:51 AM GMT
Lap 28 of 56 - Piastri doing a great job today
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Norris told to push but he does not want to get into the dirty air of his team-mate and race leader. Russell is a threat for an undercut, but Norris has edged ahead now to 2.8sec ahead of Russell with another fastest lap.
07:49 AM GMT
Lap 27 of 56 - Approaching half-race distance
Bearman pits and comes out in 17th place. Almost a certain one-stopper for him. Might get him into the points contention as we enter the final stages.
Norris with the fastest lap of the race to bring the gap down to leader Piastri by half a second or so.
07:47 AM GMT
Lap 26 of 56 - Top six and gaps
- PIA
- NOR +4.0
- RUS +6.2
- LEC +6.7
- HAM +9.3
- VER +13.0
Hamilton and Verstappen becoming a bit lonely. Hamilton’s pace is not there, really. Not compared to his team-mate.
07:45 AM GMT
Lap 25 of 56 - Leclerc within DRS range of Russell
However, he is finding it a bit of a struggle to get much closer than that...
“The Mercedes is a dragster out of turn 12. Unbelievable,” Leclerc says. He gets a bit closer at the end of this lap, though.
07:44 AM GMT
Lap 24 of 56 - Hamilton wants feedback
“Give me some feedback guys, come on I need feedback of where I’m losing,” he says. Leclerc 1.2sec behind Russell for third but those lap times are now converging slightly.
Very similar pace between the top five or six in fact the last time around. McLaren have just dipped into the 1:36s, though, which is a few tenths faster than the chasing pack.
07:43 AM GMT
Lap 23 of 56 - Piastri leads Norris by 3.8sec
Bearman and Stroll, neither of whom have stopped, are duelling for seventh. A stronger showing from Haas here in China. Could hardly have been much worse than last weekend, though.
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07:40 AM GMT
Lap 22 of 56 - Lawson update
He is in 17th with just the two Sauber cars behind him.
Leclerc in fourth 0.8sec faster than Russell ahead of him the last time around. And of the two McLarens, too. Is the race coming to Ferrari? Or at least Leclerc? I wonder if that swap should have come a couple of laps sooner. Well, they wanted it to in fairness.
07:39 AM GMT
Lap 21 of 56 - Albon pits from third
Hamilton eventually lets Leclerc through.
“We want to swap this lap, now,” comes the request. “I’ll tell you when we’re gonna swap!” comes the reply. He does move aside at turn one, though. Leclerc into fourth and leads Hamilton. Only eight seconds separates the top five, and all of those cars are in contention for the podium if not the victory.
07:37 AM GMT
Lap 20 of 56 - Norris gets Albon for second
Russell is definitely staying in touch with Norris, though Norris has lost time behind Albon and is nearly four seconds behind Piastri.
Hamilton has not yet let Leclerc through. He says he is waiting for Leclerc to get closer.
07:36 AM GMT
Lap 19 of 56 - Top 10 and gaps
- PIA
- ALB +2.7
- NOR +3.2
- RUS +4.7
- HAM +7.7
- LEC +8.7
- STR +9.7
- VER +11.5
- BEA +12.3
- TSU +22.8
Albon, Stroll, Bearman have not yet stopped. Hamilton is struggling and says he thinks he should let Leclerc through. Sensible team play from Hamilton.
07:33 AM GMT
Lap 18 of 56 - Norris gets Russell back!
DRS aided on the main straight and up the inside he goes. Supreme grip and commitment there from the McLaren driver, who is now 2.8sec behind his team-mate who has retaken the lead from Albon.
07:32 AM GMT
Lap 17 of 56 - Albon leads the race
He has not yet stopped, though. Piastri has done a good first sector time, though, to put a bit more time between himself and George Russell behind. 1.9sec now. Norris is staying within DRS range of Russell.
Alex Albon’s 29th birthday today by the way. Nice for him to be leading the race, however briefly.
07:31 AM GMT
Lap 15 of 56 - Russell overtakes Norris!
Norris comes out side by side with Russell but the Mercedes man gets the move done in the first series of corners. Lance Stroll ahead and getting in the way a bit there and Norris has been compromised here.
Russell going well, actually. Piastri is only 1.6sec further up the road and Russell sets the fastest lap of the race.
Both Ferraris have stopped but Leclerc’s front wing was not changed.
07:29 AM GMT
Lap 15 of 56 - Piastri comes out ahead of Stroll
Another tenth or two and he would have been behind. Norris is surely coming in this lap. Wonder how much time that will lose him. Might it be enough for Russell to jump him? I am not sure, Russell has just had to deal with traffic.
Ocon gets Antonelli for 14th into the final hairpin and the Frenchman went onto the grass, probably half his car, and got the move done.
Leclerc comes in as Norris exits the pit lane. Where is Norris coming out?
07:28 AM GMT
Lap 14 of 56 - The hard tyres are strong now
I wonder whether Russell might come in now to take advantage of that to surprise McLaren? Russell says no. He thinks the graining is clearing up and that a one-stop strategy is the best bet.
Actually, he comes into the pit lane and so does Piastri. Norris stays out. Not a brilliantly fast stop for Piastri, mind you.
07:26 AM GMT
Lap 13 of 56 - Hadjar pits now
Leclerc closes in on Hamilton in fourth still. Antonelli stops but loses a place to Tsunoda with the Racing Bulls driver pitting earlier and getting on fresh tyres sooner.
“Aren’t we losing a bit of time now?” Leclerc asks on the radio after being told his laps are good.
Hamilton and Verstappen come into the pit lane.
07:24 AM GMT
Lap 12 of 56 - Full order
- PIA
- NOR
- RUS
- HAM
- LEC
- VER
- ANT
- HAD
- ALB
- STR
- SAI
- BEA
- LAW
- HUL
- TSU
- GAS
- OCO
- DOO
- BOR
OUT: ALO
Tsunoda, Gasly, Ocon, Doohan and Bortoleto have all stopped.
07:23 AM GMT
Lap 11 of 56 - Piastri leads Norris by two seconds now
Russell has fallen 2.4sec behind Norris. Hamilton two seconds behind him. This is very much the settling-down, tyre preservation phase of the race. Only lap 11 but still, tyre wear is critical.
Piastri has been asked if he can make plan C target lap. That could be a one-stop race for him, I would imagine. But we don’t know. A one-stop looked bold at the start of the race but Norris has just been told that tyre degradation is lower than expected. Probably helped by the cloud cover and cooling of the track.
07:21 AM GMT
Lap 10 of 56 - Leclerc on ‘plan B’
Who knows what that is? No me. “If it stays like this, I want plan A,” is what Leclerc says in response. He is driving with some (minor) front wing damage.
07:20 AM GMT
Lap 9 of 56 - Leclerc the quicker Ferrari
Well, he is at the moment. Nearly a couple of tenths faster the last time around.
07:17 AM GMT
Lap 8 of 56 - Lawson is still in 17th
He is within DRS range of Doohan ahead but is a long, long way from the points.
Piastri has increased his lead over Norris to 1.5sec with Russell a further two seconds behind. Norris says he is starting to struggle a little with his front left tyre.
07:15 AM GMT
Lap 6 of 56 - Top 10 and gaps
- PIA
- NOR +0.9
- RUS +2.6
- HAM +3.8
- LEC +5.1
- VER +8.2
- ANT +9.5
- TSU +11.0
- HAD +11.9
- OCO +12.8
Verstappen becoming detached from the top five. Ferrari are just about staying in contention here.
07:13 AM GMT
Lap 5 of 56 - Alonso back into the pits to retire
Very close at the front. 1.7sec separate the top three with Norris within DRS range of Piastri and Russell within DRS range of Norris.
Aston Martin have this to say about Alonso’s retirement: “We were managing an issue with rear brake temperatures on Fernando’s car so had to make a precautionary stop and retire the car.”
07:11 AM GMT
Lap 4 of 56 - Alonso’s race is cooked
As are his rear tyres. Gasly spotted it and radioed in and it comes to the inevitable conclusion. He should be able to make it back to the pit lane OK though it is never nice to drive a car with a brake fire into the pits.
07:09 AM GMT
Lap 3 of 56 - More yellow flags
Bortoleto has become even further detached from the back of the pack. Might it have been some debris?
Piastri extends his lead slightly and Russell sets the fastest lap of the race to close in on Norris. Hamilton a further 1.2sec behind.
07:07 AM GMT
Lap 2 of 56 - Piastri leads Norris by 0.7sec
Here is the top 10 as it stands:
- PIA
- NOR
- RUS
- HAM
- LEC
- VER
- ANT
- TSU
- HAD
- OCO
Replays show Leclerc took a different line to Hamilton and, in the end, Hamilton chopped across his team-mate’s front and he lost a bit of his front wing. Don’t necessarily think it was Hamilton’s fault. In fact I think it was not.
07:06 AM GMT
THE CHINESE GRAND PRIX IS GO!
It’s a good start for George Russell and he tries to claim the inside line but Piastri moves across and has better traction as they enter the braking zone. Piastri keeps the lead! A poor start for Verstappen and he moves back two places. Hamilton up to fourth...
Russell has slipped back into third, it’s a McLaren 1-2. Yellow flags with Bortoleto stopped at the back but he gets going again.
Verstappen says Leclerc has a broken front wing so maybe they came together. Or was it the two Ferraris?
07:02 AM GMT
They are away on the formation lap
Everyone on medium tyres apart from Stroll in 14th, Bearman in 17th and Lawson from the pit lane.
06:57 AM GMT
We are nearly ready to get going
Predictions? Hard to call. I think McLaren will probably end up prevailing but expect Ferrari to move forwards too. 1. PIA 2. NOR 3. HAM is the podium I will pick.
06:50 AM GMT
Christian Horner speaks to Sky Sports F1
He comments on the cement dust they have used to dry up oil on the line of the even numbered grid slots.
“The right-hand side is a little disadvantaged but hopefully they have managed to clear most of it up.”
He says that have taken Lawson’s car out of parc ferme conditions to change set-up to make it easier for him, hopefully.
He also says the race is “impossible to call” and says it will all come down to tyre degradation.
06:47 AM GMT
Starting grid: Chinese GP
1. PIA 2. RUS
3. NOR 4. VER
5. HAM 6. LEC
7. HAD 8. ANT
8. TSU 10. ALB
11. OCO 12. HUL
13. ALO 14. STR
15. SAI 16. GAS
17. BEA 18. DOO
19. BOR
PIT LANE: LAW
06:42 AM GMT
What might the strategies be for the Chinese Grand Prix?
Tyre manufacturer Pirelli have it as a certain two-stopper, which is no surprise. Could be medium to hard and then hard or medium to hard then medium. Nobody has run the hard tyres this week, it is a new surface too and degradation has been high all weekend. It will be interesting to find out.
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Zak Brown for McLaren has said it could even be a one stop race, but I would be surprised. That said the hards are an unknown. Brown says he is also worried about the Ferraris, despite them not having a great qualifying. Hamilton was strong in the sprint race, which he won, but did run in clean air for all of it.
06:37 AM GMT
Current constructor standings
As close as the top four teams are in ultimate pace it is highly unlikely to be a four-way fight for the constructors’ championship because of the second Red Bull seat, at least at the moment. Mercedes have not done anything flashy so far but seem to have a pretty consistent car from what we have seen. Antonelli has shown some promise but it very raw and often makes small mistakes. He certainly pushes the limits.
06:33 AM GMT
And what about next year? Might we see a sooner change...?
Tombazis added that that had opened up a second discussion about what to do with the new rules coming in for 2026.
Understandably, if there was a consensus from teams and manufacturers to switch to V10s in three or four years, it would not make much sense to spend a lot more development money on the new turbo hybrids coming for next year. One suggestion has even been for the new engines to be scrapped completely. F1 could continue with the current power units until the switch to V10s is made.
This would, though, present all sorts of problems, not least for Audi who don’t have an alternative. Other teams, meanwhile, have already switched over their programmes to the new 2026 designs. And still others, for selfish reasons, may prefer to stay on the current trajectory if they believe it offers them a competitive advantage (Mercedes HPP are thought to have the leading PU at the moment).
Whatever they decide, they need to decide quickly given 2026 is fast approaching. Tombazis also stressed that there was no intention to force anyone down a path they do not want to take.
“Above all, the obligation is to be fair, and people have invested a lot of money,” he said. “If nine people are in favour and one person is against and that one person is being treated unfairly, we will always also try to protect the one person.
“We won’t just go on majorities and say, ‘Okay let’s do it.’ We’re trying to build the consensus here, and if that fails, then we will stay where we are.”
06:30 AM GMT
Will F1 bring back V10s?
I attended a briefing this morning with Nikolas Tombazis, the FIA’s single-seat director, to try to clear up some of the rumours swirling around the potential return of V10s.
Momentum has been gathering for a return to old-school engines for various reasons (they sound cooler, they cost less than the turbo hybrids being developed for next year, the advances in sustainable fuels means F1 can still claim they are being green…).
Tombazis admitted it was something which was “being evaluated for 2028 or 2029”.
“Certainly, the progress with sustainable fuels has led to the view that maybe the engines could be simpler,” he explained.
“The world economy does lead to views that maybe we should try to cut costs a bit more, and the current power units are way too expensive.
“That is a fact. We would like them to be cheaper, and that’s why the president made the comments about the V10 engine in ‘28 and so on.
“That’s something we are evaluating, or for ‘29 or whatever, with the PU manufacturers. We are discussing openly with them the best direction for the sport.”
06:27 AM GMT
Average qualifying position - Top 10
06:24 AM GMT
A few more qualifying stats coming up...
First up is the raw pace rating, which basically how fast each team is in qualifying on average. It is expressed as a percentage of the overall quickest lap time of qualifying, which is represented as 100.000 per cent. So, the lower the better. To put it more simply, if the pole position lap time is 1min40 (100 seconds), a time that is half a second behind would have a rating of 100.5 per cent, a lap time one second behind would be 100.1 per cent and so on.
McLaren lead the way so far with two pole positions (sprint qualifying is also taken into account for this).
06:20 AM GMT
Current driver qualifying head to heads
We have had three sessions now, including the sprint. This is how it stands.
Some surprises there, notably that Bortoleto has the better of Hulkenberg at the moment. Sainz being 3-0 down to Albon can be at least partially attributed to it being his first few races in a new team.
06:15 AM GMT
Polesitter Piastri speaks before the race
His first pole (proper) in F1. Had a poor result last weekend in Australia when it should have been at least second. Looking to bounce back strongly in China.
06:05 AM GMT
Some great tributes to Eddie Jordan this weekend
The entire grid paid tribute to to the former F1 team owner earlier today. Martin Brundle, who drove for him in F3 and F1, just paid a lovely tribute to him on Sky Sports F1 just now. Very touching.
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He died earlier this week. You can read Damon Hill’s tribute here.
06:00 AM GMT
Hamilton (fifth on the grid) speaks on the drivers’ parade
05:58 AM GMT
Current driver standings - Top 10
05:54 AM GMT
It has been a difficult weekend (again) for Liam Lawson
Sergio Perez was getting knocked out in Q1, true, but Lawson’s three qualifying performances have been 18th, 20th and 20th. Whilst he took responsibility himself I don’t think he should shoulder the blame. The team should do that. They have put an inexperienced driver in a car that is not the easiest to drive with some specific characteristics. They should not be expected that he has found it difficult to deal with.
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The next race in Japan might offer him some opportunity to improve. In Bahrain he was disrupted because of a technical issue. In Australia he lost running because of similar. And this was a sprint weekend with just one hour of practice before the competitive running. Not the most forgiving environment. Mind you, neither is Red Bull.
05:42 AM GMT
Times and positions after qualifying
- Oscar Piastri (Aus) McLaren 1:30.641
- George Russell (Gbr) Mercedes GP 1:30.723
- Lando Norris (Gbr) McLaren 1:30.793
- Max Verstappen (Ned) Red Bull 1:30.817
- Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) Ferrari 1:30.927
- Charles Leclerc (Mon) Ferrari 1:31.021
- Isack Hadjar (Fra) RB 1:31.079
- Andrea Kimi Antonelli (Ita) Mercedes GP 1:31.103
- Yuki Tsunoda (Jpn) RB 1:31.638
- Alexander Albon (Tha) Williams 1:31.706
- Esteban Ocon (Fra) Haas F1 1:31.625
- Nico Hulkenberg (Ger) Kick Sauber 1:31.632
- Fernando Alonso (Spa) Aston Martin 1:31.688
- Lance Stroll (Can) Aston Martin 1:31.773
- Carlos Sainz Jr. (Spa) Williams 1:31.840
- Pierre Gasly (Fra) Alpine 1:31.992
- Oliver Bearman (Gbr) Haas F1 1:32.018
- Jack Doohan (Aus) Alpine 1:32.092
- Gabriel Bortoleto (Bra) Kick Sauber 1:32.141
- Liam Lawson (Nzl) Red Bull 1:32.174,
10:25 AM GMT
Good morning
Welcome to our live coverage for the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix from the Shanghai International Circuit. It is the first of six sprint race weekends on the Formula One calendar and so far it has delivered.
On Friday we had Lewis Hamilton taking pole for the sprint race and then yesterday he followed that up with a (fairly) comfortable victory in what was a significant moment in his short career at the Scuderia. He led home Oscar Piastri and Max Verstappen and claimed eight points for himself and his team. Lando Norris, championship leader, who started sixth, finished eighth after making a mistake on the opening lap and slipping out of the points.
Tyre wear was a significant issue in the race and as Hamilton led from the front in clean air, he escaped the more severe issues that faced those behind him. He came home seven seconds in the lead. The seven-time champion then hit back at the “yapping” critics who had spoken out after a poor opening weekend last race in Melbourne.
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It was a strong showing in the sprint for Hamilton, but less convincing in main qualifying - AP/Andy Wong
Unfortunately for Hamilton, he could not continue this form as we moved into qualifying for Sunday’s main event. In the end it was McLaren who came back strongly after showing signs of weakness on Friday. Both Norris and Piastri have said that whilst their car is the quickest, it is open to bite you when you push it. In fairness to Norris, he put it down to his own mistakes. Yet the car seemed to be easier to handle in main qualifying.
In the end, McLaren’s Piastri was the fastest man in Q3 and claimed his maiden grand prix pole position. George Russell snuck into an unexpected second place, within a tenth of Piastri to split the McLarens. Norris aborted his final run when it became clear he would not beat his previous best lap of the mini-session. Verstappen was fourth.
Sprint race winner Hamilton out-qualified Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc again and was just under three-tenths away from the ultimate pace. Hamilton, though, said the Ferrari was more unbalanced than the morning race and never thought himself in contention for pole.
Elsewhere, there was an excellent showing from rookie Isack Hadjar, who was in seventh ahead of Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli and Racing Bulls team-mate Yuki Tsunoda. Excellent resilience from the man who crashed out on the formation lap last week. Still, the car has looked strong all weekend and he will want to convert that start into points today.
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