2025 Chinese Grand Prix – Shanghai Showdown

The Shanghai International Circuit buzzed with excitement as the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix weekend unfolded. After a thrilling Australian opener, the F1 circus landed in China for the first Sprint event of the year. The track had been freshly resurfaced for 2025, promising fast lap times but also unknown tyre wear on the new asphalt. Warm, dry weather was forecast for the weekend, with no rain expected on Friday or Saturday and just a slight chance late Sunday. Coming into China, McLaren’s resurgence was a major talking point – the papaya cars had been quick all season – while Ferrari aimed to regroup after a rocky start. In between, everyone was eager to see how the new rear-wheel-drive challenger Racing Bulls (formerly AlphaTauri) and revamped Kick Sauber would fare. All of these storylines set the stage for four days of intense practice, sprint qualifying, and racing.

Free Practice: Lando Norris topped the only practice session on Friday morning. In the sole hour of running, Norris put McLaren on top with a 1:31.504 (set late on the soft tyres). He was 0.454s ahead of Charles Leclerc in the Ferrari, while teammate Oscar Piastri was a strong third. RacingNews365 noted that Norris “ended the sole practice session … as the fastest driver”. The session saw one red flag when Alpine’s rookie Jack Doohan stopped on track with a suspected power-steering issue. Aside from that, teams focused on learning the new surface and tyre behaviour. (As a Sprint weekend, there was no second practice session – so teams headed straight into Sprint Qualifying later that day.)

Sprint Qualifying (Friday)

Sprint Qualifying set the grid for Saturday’s Sprint Race. With only one practice done, teams went straight into Sprint Q1–Q3 on Friday afternoon. In a fiercely close session, Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton took the Sprint pole with a 1:30.849. He edged out Max Verstappen in the Red Bull by just 0.018 seconds (Verstappen’s 1:30.867). McLaren’s Oscar Piastri followed close behind in third (1:30.929). Charles Leclerc was fourth (1:31.057) and Mercedes newcomer George Russell fifth (1:31.169). The rest of Q3 saw Racing Bulls’ Yuki Tsunoda sixth, Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli seventh, and Norris down in eighth – a wide moment had dropped him down towards the end, though he clawed back to claim the last point on offer. The top 10 was rounded out by Lance Stroll (Aston Martin, 9th) and Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin, 10th). Notably, Mercedes and Ferrari had one car each in the top five: Hamilton and Leclerc in the Ferraris, Russell in the Mercedes. Norris’s championship lead would have to withstand starting outside the top 5 for the Sprint.

Sprint Race (Saturday Morning)

Under clear blue skies on Saturday morning, Lewis Hamilton made the most of his Sprint pole. He led lights-to-flag over the 19-lap sprint distance, posting a convincing win and scoring 8 championship points. Hamilton “put in an assured drive” to claim victory – in fact, it was his first win for Ferrari and added to his tally of wins at Shanghai. He handled some tyre graining early on but built a commanding lead anyway. Behind him, the sprint order changed in the closing laps. Oscar Piastri charged to second, snatching the position from Verstappen near the end. Verstappen settled for third in the Red Bull. Mercedes’ George Russell finished a solid fourth, having fended off late pressure from Ferrari’s Leclerc, who was fifth.

Racing Bulls driver Yuki Tsunoda impressed with sixth place, while Kimi Antonelli scored points in seventh – making it the second points-finish in two races for the young Briton. Lando Norris managed to recover from an early mistake to take the final point in eighth. Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso rounded out the top 10, albeit off the podium. Jack Doohan (Alpine) finished last but was later hit with a 10-second time penalty for a last-lap collision with Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto at Turn 14. Doohan apologised afterwards, admitting “it didn’t exactly go as planned” when he tried the move. In the Drivers’ Championship, Hamilton earned 8 points from the sprint, putting him back in contention, while Piastri and Verstappen scored 7 and 6 respectively.

 

Grand   

Prix   

Qualifying   

(Saturday Afternoon)

 

 

Later on Saturday, Qualifying for the main Grand Prix took place. Oscar Piastri continued McLaren’s charge by taking pole position – the first of his F1 career. He set 1:30.703 in his first Q3 run and improved to 1:30.641 on his second flyer, edging out Mercedes’ George Russell by just 0.082s. Lando Norris again finished third, 0.152s off pole (1:30.793). Red Bull’s Max Verstappen was fourth (1:30.817), marginally ahead of Lewis Hamilton’s 1:30.927 for fifth. Charles Leclerc was sixth. Racing Bulls continued to shine: Isack Hadjar put his RB Honda seventh on the grid, and Yuki Tsunoda ninth. Rookie Antonelli slotted into eighth in the sister Mercedes, while Williams’ Alex Albon completed the top 10. Notably, Fernando Alonso in the Aston Martin was eliminated in Q2 (he started 13th) along with Stroll and Alpine’s Pierre Gasly – all three fell short of the top 10. In summary, McLaren locked out the front row, Mercedes and Red Bull lined up behind, and Ferrari’s drivers slipped back compared to the Sprint.

Sprint Qualifying Results (Top 10)

• 1st: Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) – 1:30.849
• 2nd: Max Verstappen (Red Bull) – +0.018s (1:30.867)
• 3rd: Oscar Piastri (McLaren) – +0.080s (1:30.929)
• 4th: Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) – +0.208s (1:31.057)
• 5th: George Russell (Mercedes) – +0.320s (1:31.169)
• 6th: Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) – +1.439s (1:31.288)
• 7th: Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) – +1.709s (1:31.608)
• 8th: Lando Norris (McLaren) – +2.622s (1:31.471)
• 9th: Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) – +3.067s (1:31.982)
• 10th: Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) – +3.369s (1:32.121)

(Note: Points were awarded to P1–P8 in the Sprint – Hamilton earned 8, Piastri 7, etc.)

Grand Prix Qualifying Results (Top 10)

• 1st (Pole): Oscar Piastri (McLaren) – 1:30.641
• 2nd: George Russell (Mercedes) – +0.082s (1:30.723)
• 3rd: Lando Norris (McLaren) – +0.152s (1:30.793)
• 4th: Max Verstappen (Red Bull) – +0.176s (1:30.817)
• 5th: Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) – +0.286s (1:30.927)
• 6th: Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) – +0.380s (1:31.021)
• 7th: Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls) – 1:31.079
• 8th: Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) – 1:31.103
• 9th: Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) – 1:31.638
• 10th: Alex Albon (Williams) – 1:31.706

(Quali set Sunday’s race grid. Gasly, Alonso, and Stroll were 16th–18th after Q2 exits; Haas drivers failed to advance to Q2 and started 19th and 20th.)

Chinese Grand Prix (Sunday)

Sunday’s Grand Prix unfolded under mostly sunny skies (26°C at the start, rising to mid-20s later) with a light breeze. The one-lap jump off the line saw Oscar Piastri hold the lead into Turn 1 from pole, with team mate Norris slotting into second. From the start, it was clear McLaren had the measure of the field. Piastri built a cushion over Norris during the opening stint, largely unaffected by the chasing pack. Lando defended well behind Oscar, despite a spring in his step and reported brake troubles in the latter stages. With both McLarens controlling the race pace, George Russell in third applied the pressure but could never quite close to the leaders. Over 56 laps, tyre wear dictated a one-stop strategy for the front runners, switching from the prime Mediums to Hards around lap 14–15.

Hamilton (who had spun at Turn 6 on lap 1 and dropped to 11th) made progress to sixth place mid-race, and Charles Leclerc – who had collided with Hamilton at Turn 5 on lap 1, shattering his front wing – fought back up to fifth. In the pits, it became a tense intra-team moment: Ferrari asked Hamilton to let Leclerc through, reflecting a long-standing practice when one driver has a mechanical issue. Hamilton “chafed” at his own advice being given back to him, but he eventually ceded the place for team orders. However, Leclerc was soon reeled in and passed by Verstappen on lap 17.

Meanwhile, in clean air, McLaren managed tyres expertly. Oscar kept Norris at bay by about 2–3 seconds, but late in the race Norris’ brake pedal issue briefly gave Russell a sniff of second. By the last lap Norris’ car pulled just enough to keep George behind. Across the finish, Oscar Piastri won by 9.748 seconds, securing McLaren’s first 1-2 finish since the 2021 Austrian GP and the 50th 1-2 in the team’s illustrious history. Teammate Lando Norris took second, making it a perfect weekend for papaya, with McLaren complete domination. Their team principal Andrea Stella beamed that Oscar had been “very impressive all weekend” and that both drivers managed Lando’s late issue to bring home the result.

George Russell scored Mercedes’ first podium of 2025 in third (adding 15 points to the team’s tally). He had held off Max Verstappen in the latter stages, with Verstappen finishing fourth. Verstappen had run a longer first stint, only switching to Hards on lap 24, which left him chasing up the order. In post-race comments, Verstappen noted the car was tough on tyres early and said the final stint felt “more positive” as he matched the leaders’ pace. He also admitted the straights were a weakness: Red Bull’s low drag set-up meant he lost time to the quicker Ferrari and McLarens on the straights. Team boss Christian Horner described the day as “a race of two halves” – acknowledging the lost performance early and praising Verstappen’s late pass on Leclerc to claim fourth. Meanwhile, Liam Lawson (who started from the pitlane after missing parc fermé) struggled in the Alpine-like RB car and could do no better than 12th.

Esteban Ocon delivered Haas’s best result of 2025 by finishing fifth, taking 10 points for the team. Remarkably, Ocon had qualified only 19th (a Q1 exit) due to a floor damage issue in Sprint Quali. He made up 14 places in the race, crediting tyre management in the cold early laps as key. Ocon’s teammate Oliver Bearman also scored (4 points) in eighth place – his first points in F1 – running almost the entire race on one stop. Williams secured two points for Alex Albon in seventh, while Logan Sargeant finished 16th. Aston Martin scored 2 points as Lance Stroll took ninth, capitalising on others’ misfortunes.

The final finishing order (after post-race penalties) was:

1. O. Piastri (McLaren) – 1:30’55.026 (56 laps) – 25 pts
2. L. Norris (McLaren) – +9.748s – 18 pts
3. G. Russell (Mercedes) – +11.097s – 15 pts
4. M. Verstappen (Red Bull) – +16.656s – 12 pts
5. E. Ocon (Haas) – +49.969s – 10 pts
6. K. Antonelli (Mercedes) – +53.748s – 8 pts
7. A. Albon (Williams) – +56.321s – 6 pts
8. O. Bearman (Haas) – +1:01.303 – 4 pts
9. L. Stroll (Aston Martin) – +1:10.204 – 2 pts
10. C. Sainz (Williams) – +1:16.387 – 1 pt
11. I. Hadjar (Racing Bulls) +1:18.875 – 0 pts
12. L. Lawson (Red Bull) +1:21.147 – 0 pts
13. J. Doohan (Alpine) +1:28.401 – 0 pts (plus 10s pen)
14. G. Bortoleto (Sauber) – +1 lap – 0 pts
15. N. Hulkenberg (Sauber) – +1 lap – 0 pts
16. Y. Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) – +1 lap – 0 pts
    DNF: F. Alonso (Aston Martin, brakes).

Oscar Piastri also set the fastest lap of the race with a 1:35.520 on lap 53 (worth 1 extra point). However, in official timing records, Lewis Hamilton’s 1:35.069 on lap 41 was fastest of all; Hamilton’s lap came late, but he did not earn the point due to his later disqualification.

Team-by-Team Review

McLaren (Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri): The big winners of Shanghai. Practice and qualifying had already shown McLaren’s pace, and they executed to perfection when it counted. The team pulled off a flawless 1-2 result – McLaren’s 50th one-two finish – with both cars on one-stop Medium-to-Hard strategies. Piastri, in particular, was “very impressive throughout the weekend,” as team boss Andrea Stella noted. He clinched pole and led every lap of the race. Norris, despite a brake issue late on, managed second place and even reeled in Russell near the end. Team radio hinted Norris had to hold back to nurse the problem. In the sprint, McLaren split a podium (P2 and P8) as they learned about the Sprint format, but in the Grand Prix they reaped the full benefit. Both drivers praised the car’s balance: Norris said it had been a “tough race” that required careful tyre management, and the one-stop strategy “was unexpected by many but executed well”. Piastri thanked the “papaya fans” and said the weekend had been “incredible”. McLaren now tops the Constructors’ standings, buoyed by 43 points from China alone.

Mercedes (George Russell, Kimi Antonelli): A solid weekend for the Silver Arrows. Russell scored his second podium in two races, finishing third in the GP after a close duel with his team mate and the McLarens. He began on pole in Sprint Quali, carried that to fourth in the Sprint, and then stayed out of trouble to execute his strategy in the race. He admitted “P3 was the maximum for us today” and took the podium with back-to-back top-3 finishes. Mercedes’ car seemed strong over one lap (qualifying) but was a bit short on race pace versus McLaren. Rookie Antonelli likewise impressed again. He gained his first points at Imola and added sixth place here, despite suffering floor damage on lap 1 and struggling with the rear in the latter stages. His pace was ultimately enough to fend off Albon’s Williams, earning 8 points. Both Mercedes cars ran one-stop strategies. The team leaves China optimistic – Renault-supplied engines and chassis are competitive – but aware of McLaren’s current edge. Russell said the car “felt good” and they’ll keep chipping away to close the gap.

Red Bull Racing (Max Verstappen, Liam Lawson): A mixed weekend. Sprint form looked promising with Verstappen second and a Renault engine upgrade rumored, but in the Grand Prix the Red Bulls never truly threatened. Verstappen qualified 4th and finished 4th, 16.6 seconds behind Piastri. He pushed hard on used mediums in the first stint to avoid front runners’ pace, then cruised on Hards in the final 19 laps. Overall he admitted the start “was tough on mediums,” but praised the last stint as “more fun to drive” with better grip. Red Bull was strongest at the end, capitalising on traffic and fresher tyres, and Verstappen’s pass on Leclerc (Piastri’s lap 17) was a highlight. Still, Horner noted “the Ferrari was properly quick on the straight,” making life difficult. The team collected 12 points (no Sprint points, since Verstappen was P3 but had already maxed Q1). Team orders were simple: get Lewis out of way, get points. Young Lawson (in his 6th Grand Prix) struggled to 12th after a pitlane start (he missed parc fermé after Sprint Q). The RB21 continues to be a tight car – Lawson admitted the “window is really small” and they still need to learn.

Ferrari (Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc): A weekend of highs and horrific lows. Hamilton’s Sprint victory was a fairy-tale start, giving Ferrari their first win with Lewis. But Saturday qualifying and Sunday’s race crushed that momentum. In Quali he could do no better than 5th, then in the race he dropped to 11th after a first-lap spin (Hamilton locked a tyre into a spin at T6). Leclerc likewise spun; shortly after, in a tangle at Turn 5, he clipped Hamilton’s rear wheel, sending both into the gravel at T7 and damaging Leclerc’s front wing. Both cars pitted (Leclerc’s wing was repaired) and Hamilton complied with orders to let Leclerc back through. By lap 17 the Ferrari fight ended when Verstappen overtook Leclerc. In the end, the red cars crossed in 5th and 6th – only to both be disqualified after the race due to technical infringements. Scrutineering found Leclerc’s SF-25 underweight by 1kg (after racing with a damaged endplate), and Hamilton’s skid block was 0.5mm too thin. Even Alpine’s Gasly (who finished 11th) was penalised for the same underweight rule. Ferrari’s official statement lamented that both cars “were found not to conform” – Leclerc’s car had lost its wing and the tyres wore faster, and Hamilton’s plank wear exceeded limits. The net effect: Ferrari left China with zero points and severe embarrassment. Both drivers were gutted; Leclerc noted that a one-stop strategy to exploit tyre wear had backfired disastrously. Team boss Frederic Vasseur tried to accentuate the positives in the press, but with both results erased the F1 world could only call it a fiasco.

Aston Martin (Fernando Alonso, Lance Stroll): A quiet race for the green cars. In qualifying, the Ferraris’ slip helped a resurgent Alonso into Q3 (13th) alongside Stroll (14th). In the Sprint, both Aston Martins failed to score (Alonso 10th, Stroll 9th). During the Grand Prix, their one-stop strategy was compromised by a bizarre DNF: Alonso’s car suffered a catastrophic brake failure on lap 5, ending his race early. Before that, he had climbed to the points (running 8th) and was on course to score. Stroll, freed from his team radio orders during the kerfuffle, picked up the only points for Aston Martin in China by finishing 9th. Stroll’s race saw him overtake both Bearman and Sainz in the closing laps to secure the 2 points. Team Principal Mike Krack noted that tyre wear would be key and AM’s pace seemed middle-of-the-pack; salvaging those 2 points was “a modest reward for a tough Sunday.”

Haas (Esteban Ocon, Oliver Bearman): Haas continued to punch above their weight. In FP1, Ocon was a solid P5 before any damage, and in FP1 he actually topped the times at one stage. In qualifying for the GP, Ocon climbed to 11th (just missing Q3) after switching to fresh components, while Bearman struggled in P20. But in the race, Ocon delivered a career-best result: fifth place and 10 points. He was tire management’s poster boy – running deep into the stint on Mediums before jumping to Hards, then re-joining without losing track position. He said the tyres “behaved very differently” in the race and credited mental toughness (“we haven’t slept much since Melbourne,” jokes in the garage) for reversing their fortunes. Bearman continued his learning curve: despite being a rookie he held off both Albon and Stroll for eighth place (4 points). Both Haas cars went one-stop, and the strategy paid off when others faltered (Ferrari’s issues, brake stops, etc.). Team Principal Frederic Vasseur (who was with Ferrari on track and radio) would have been impressed – Haas leapfrogged McLaren in reliability.

Williams (Alex Albon, Logan Sargeant): Another solid weekend in the midfield for Williams. Albon ran in Q3 (10th) and began the race 10th, while Sargeant was again out in Q2 (starting 16th). In the race, Albon executed a two-stop strategy, fighting up from 13th to claim seventh and the final 6 points. He used one-stop in the Sprint as well and stayed on track to keep clean air late. Sargeant had a quieter day, finishing 17th behind both Saubers. Williams’ pace looks consistent; Albon’s comments reflected confidence in tyre life and overtaking, which were key on this abrasive circuit. The team’s double points (no Sprint points) were crucial for closing the gap to Mercedes and Red Bull in the standings.

Alpine (Pierre Gasly, Jack Doohan): A weekend to forget. Gasly ran strongly on Friday (P7 in FP1) but then spun out in Sprint Quali and could only muster 12th for the race. In the Grand Prix, Gasly finished 11th on track, only to be disqualified for the same underweight breach as the Ferraris. So Alpine scored no points despite a legitimately race-fast car. Rookie Jack Doohan finally made the Sprint, qualifying 13th, and fought to 13th in the race, gaining a spot on Sargeant but dropping one to Lawson after that collision (and he got a time penalty). Doohan’s penalty did not change the finishing order, but it was a harsh lesson on clean overtakes. Alpine’s pace in race trim (especially with hard tyres) was promising – Doohan briefly ran P11 after the pits – but reliability and mistakes kept them off the leaderboard.

Sauber (Liam Lawson, Gabriel Bortoleto): The newly rebranded Kick Sauber team had mixed fortunes. Rookie Bortoleto did well in Sprint Quali (14th) and finished 13th in the Sprint, but in the GP he lost ground. He made an extra pit stop (lap 39 on hards) and finished 14th (+1 lap). Team mate Liam Lawson, in his second race for Sauber, shone in the Sprint but stalled in the main race. Despite making a late pit for hards, Lawson could only manage 12th after an early pitstop mix-up. However, Lawson’s biggest drama was that first-lap Turn 14 collision with Doohan – he lost a wing but limped home and (unlike Hamilton/Leclerc) suffered no penalty. Overall, Sauber scored nothing, but was ahead of Alpine in final placement. The experience gained by both rookies (especially Lawson’s Speed in Sprint) was a positive.

Racing Bulls (Yuki Tsunoda, Isack Hadjar): The rebranded RB team continued to impress with consistency. In practice Tsunoda was strong (3rd in FP1), and both cars made Sprint Quali (Hadjar 7th, Tsunoda 8th). Tsunoda kept it together in the Sprint (6th) and in the GP he ran one-stop. He finished 16th, lapped but just outside the points. Hadjar, in only his second Grand Prix, scored 2 points from sixth in the Sprint, and in the race he finished 11th, narrowly outside the points with a one-stop strategy. Racing Bulls’ Friday pace and sprint points (3 from Tsunoda and 2 from Hadjar) were good signs that the team can score in tight midfield battles. The RB20 chassis (with Honda power) seemed fast in low-fuel qualifying runs, and the drivers praised its stability. With two rounds done, they are sitting mid-pack in the standings.

Post-Race Fallout

The biggest story after the checkered flag was Ferrari’s double DQ. On Sunday night, race stewards announced that both Leclerc’s and Hamilton’s cars were in breach of Article 6.3.4 (minimum weight) and 3.5 (skid plank thickness). Leclerc’s Ferrari was 1kg underweight, likely due to losing his front wing, and Hamilton’s plank was 0.5mm too thin. Ferrari immediately issued a statement acknowledging the breaches. “Following FIA scrutineering, both our cars were found not to conform to the regulations,” the team said. “Car 16 was found to be underweight by 1kg and car 44’s rearward skid wear was 0.5mm below the limit.” They explained that Leclerc’s one-stop strategy led to high tyre wear and an underweight car. The result: Leclerc and Hamilton were stripped of their 5th and 6th place finishes (and any points), and Gasly’s 11th place was also wiped off. All in all, F1’s Chinese GP concluded not with drama on track, but behind the scenes.

Outside the disqualifications, fallout was relatively quiet. McLaren celebrated their one-two and gushed about the home fans and team effort. Russell was delighted with his podium streak, calling Shanghai “a really positive start” and promising more development. Ocon was ecstatic – years in the making, this was Haas’s payoff for recent hard work. The Ferrari camp was contrite; Vasseur and drivers tried to spin the positives, but it was clear they would be spending the flight home re-evaluating. The penalty hitting Doohan in the Sprint was a footnote, but Jack took it in stride and vowed to learn. Lastly, Pirelli noted the track was abrasive, as expected, but no safety cars and one-stop gambles made it a straightforward, if exciting, event.

The 2025 Chinese Grand Prix will be remembered for McLaren’s dominant 1-2, Hamilton’s historic Sprint win, and the post-race disqualifications that left Ferrari empty-handed. For young journalists like me, it was a weekend of edge-of-seat action and surprising twists – exactly the kind of drama that makes Formula 1 so compelling.

Sources: Official timing and results from F1 and Motorsport; team reports and quotes from F1.com and team press releases; and race coverage from F1 news outlets.

 

Written By Tom Hislop