Piastri wins Chinese Grand Prix with statement performance ahead of Norris and Russell
Oscar Piastri bounced back from the disappointment of his late-race mistake at last week’s 2025 season opener in Australia by converting pole position into an assured victory during the Chinese Grand Prix
- SHANGHAI — Oscar
Piastri bounced back from the disappointment of his late-race mistake at last
week’s 2025 season opener in Australia by converting pole position into an
assured victory during the Chinese Grand Prix – leading home teammate Lando
Norris for a McLaren 1-2.
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- Piastri controlled Sunday’s 56-lap encounter at the Shanghai
International Circuit from start to finish, never putting a foot wrong in a
much calmer second race of the campaign that centred around whether drivers
would complete one or two pit stops.
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- As it transpired, the first five finishers – and the vast
majority of the field – only visited the pits once, with Piastri building and
managing a gap back to Norris across their two stints to take the chequered
flag and kick off his challenge for the title.
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- Norris hovered around three seconds behind Piastri in the
closing stages, when he encountered a developing brake problem and was told to
take no risks by the McLaren pit wall – just about ensuring the papaya outfit
emerged with that perfect finish.
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- After dropping behind at the start, Russell did his best to
make life difficult for Norris as the afternoon wore on, briefly reclaiming
second during the pit stop phase, but the McLaren man had enough pace in hand
to take P2, even with his late brake dramas.
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- Max Verstappen predicted a difficult race for Red Bull after
their Sprint struggles, and he finished where he started in fourth, a few
seconds ahead of Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, who
dramatically made contact on the opening lap.
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- Leclerc raced on with a damaged front wing, deciding not to
change it in the pits, while Hamilton was the only frontrunning driver to
complete a two-stop strategy – a series of fastest laps not quite enough to
make up for the time he had lost swapping tyres again.
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- Esteban Ocon was a brilliant seventh for Haas after their
tough start to 2025, followed by the other Mercedes of Kimi Antonelli, the lead
Williams of Alex Albon and teammate Ollie Bearman, who denied Alpine’s Pierre Gasly
and Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll points.
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- A period of adaptation for Carlos Sainz at Williams
continued as he placed 13th, with Racing Bulls’ Isack Hadjar 14th after making
two stops and getting involved in a late incident with Jack Doohan, for which the
Alpine man was penalised.
