by The 2025 Chinese Grand Prix delivered a complete takeover by McLaren as Oscar Piastri converted his maiden pole position into a commanding victory, leading home teammate Lando Norris for a 1-2 finish that has sent shockwaves through the Formula 1 paddock. This 17th running of the Chinese Grand Prix at the Shanghai International Circuit saw McLaren establish themselves as serious title contenders in dry, sunny conditions throughout the race weekend.
Practice Sessions Hint at McLaren’s Hidden Potential
Friday’s practice session gave us the first clues that McLaren might be the team to beat this weekend. Lando Norris topped FP1 with a blistering 1:32.451 on medium tires, putting him three-tenths clear of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. The session revealed so much about McLaren’s confidence in their aero package, especially how well they could balance downforce with tire preservation on Shanghai’s track.
Unlike in Australia, where wet conditions masked the true pace, Shanghai’s dry practice sessions allowed teams to show their genuine performance. McLaren’s dominance here felt more significant—they weren’t just fast in changing conditions but genuinely quicker in stable, representative running.
Meanwhile, Max Verstappen was struggling with serious rear instability in his Red Bull, finishing only fifth fastest. The most dramatic moments came from Alpine’s Jack Doohan, who spun twice at Turn 14, highlighting the team’s ongoing mechanical grip issues that would haunt them all weekend. This was a stark contrast to Doohan’s Australian Grand Prix, where, despite crashing out early, he had shown impressive pace in qualifying.
What really stood out was how comfortable both McLaren drivers looked through Shanghai’s demanding Turn 1-2 complex. While others were fighting their cars through this section, Piastri and Norris seemed to float through it, carrying incredible mid-corner speed without sacrificing exit stability. This would prove crucial during qualifying and the race.
Sprint Drama: Hamilton Takes the Win
Saturday’s Sprint qualifying brought the first major surprise of the weekend when Lewis Hamilton secured pole for the Sprint race with a brilliant tactical gamble. While most drivers played it safe with soft tires in SQ3, Hamilton went against conventional wisdom by choosing mediums, betting on their durability for the 19-lap Sprint.
His decision paid off perfectly, allowing him to grab pole by two-tenths over Piastri. The seven-time world champion looked absolutely delighted in parc fermé, punching the air as he celebrated his first pole position for Ferrari.
“The car just came alive on the mediums,” Hamilton explained afterward. “Sometimes you have to trust your instincts.”
The Sprint race itself delivered Hamilton’s first win in Ferrari colors, holding off a determined Piastri while Verstappen completed the podium. Championship leader Norris had a nightmare Sprint, making an early mistake and dropping positions before recovering to eighth and claiming the final point. This mixed result for McLaren gave zero indication of the dominance that would follow on Sunday.
Qualifying: Piastri’s Breakthrough Moment
Sunday’s qualifying session became Oscar Piastri’s coming-of-age moment in Formula 1. The Australian smashed the lap record with a 1:30.641 to secure his first-ever pole position, showing incredible composure under pressure.
This achievement was particularly meaningful after his disappointing Australian Grand Prix. Just one week ago in Melbourne, Piastri had spun during a late-race downpour, losing what seemed a guaranteed podium finish. His ability to bounce back so emphatically shows remarkable mental resilience for a driver who has already secured three career F1 wins at this point in his career.
His performance hinged on three key factors that demonstrated his growing maturity as a driver. First, McLaren’s revised front wing endplates—adjusted after FP1 to combat graining—gave him enhanced outwash that reduced turbulent air hitting the front tires. This technical advantage allowed Piastri to maintain an incredible 5.2G through Turn 1 without losing rear stability.
Second, his tire warm-up strategy was perfect. By completing his final preparation lap slightly slower than Norris, he preserved tire surface temperature while maintaining optimal carcass heat—a delicate balance that gave him significant gains in Sectors 2 and 3 compared to his teammate.
Mercedes nearly spoiled the party when they held Russell in the garage until the final three minutes of Q3. His last-gasp effort on scrubbed soft tires came incredibly close, falling just 0.082s short of Piastri’s time. Toto Wolff later admitted they had completely underestimated McLaren’s one-lap pace.
The qualifying session also produced some shocking results further down the grid. Both Ferraris failed to reach Q3 for the first time since 2021, with Leclerc reporting “inexplicable” power unit derates during acceleration zones. Liam Lawson qualified dead last in the Red Bull, marking his second consecutive Q1 exit and raising serious questions about his future with the team.
Race Day: McLaren’s Strategic Brilliance
When the lights went out on Sunday, Piastri made a perfect getaway from pole, but Russell initially cleared Norris off the line. What happened next was crucial: Norris recovered brilliantly, sweeping around the outside of Russell at Turn 3 to reclaim second place. This move ensured both McLarens cleared Russell by the end of Lap 1, giving them the clean air they needed to execute their strategy.
“I knew I had to get past Russell immediately,” Norris explained later. “Once Oscar and I could control the pace from the front, we could manage the tire graining that everyone was struggling with.”
The undercut proved decisive in cementing McLaren’s advantage. Piastri pitted first on Lap 14, switching to hard tires. Russell followed on the same lap, but Norris delayed his stop until Lap 15. Though this briefly cost Norris position to Russell, he used the hard compound’s durability to unleash a series of blistering laps, reclaiming second place by Lap 20.
Max Verstappen, meanwhile, had a nightmare start, losing positions to both Ferraris and dropping to sixth place. Though he eventually recovered to fourth, his performance was largely anonymous until the closing stages when he began setting competitive lap times—far too late to challenge the leaders.
The most dramatic moment came in the final laps when Norris reported a “lengthening brake pedal” over team radio—a terrifying issue for any driver. McLaren’s engineers immediately instructed him to avoid hard braking and to mind his brake pressure. This cost him precious time—reportedly losing between 2-4 seconds per lap in the closing stages—but ensured he could bring the car home safely in second place.
“It’s like my worst nightmare,” Norris admitted afterward. The British driver later revealed he was “a bit scared” by the situation, describing it as “scary” and acknowledging he was “lucky to finish the race” due to the brake issue. His race engineer even described the situation as “critical” on the penultimate lap.
Unlike his victory in Australia where he battled with a damaged floor against Verstappen in changing conditions, Norris faced a different challenge here—managing a mechanical issue while protecting team position. Both races showed his growing maturity as a driver capable of handling pressure in various forms.
Despite this scare, Piastri crossed the line 9.7 seconds ahead of his teammate, with Russell completing the podium for Mercedes. The victory was Piastri’s third career F1 win and marked a perfect redemption after his disappointing result at his home race in Australia just one week earlier.
Team-by-Team Analysis
McLaren emerged as the undisputed winner of the weekend. Their perfect 1-2 finish highlighted their car’s incredible pace and their strategic brilliance. The MCL39’s ability to bring tires into the optimal temperature window faster than rivals gave them a decisive advantage, particularly in Shanghai’s technical Sector 3. This backs up their strong showing in Australia, suggesting their pace is genuine across different track layouts.
Haas was the surprise package, with Esteban Ocon finishing seventh and rookie Oliver Bearman scoring his first F1 point in tenth. This double-points finish shows the American team is making serious progress after years of struggling at the back of the grid.
Mercedes continued their upward trajectory with Russell on the podium and rookie Antonelli finishing eighth. The 18-year-old Italian has now scored points in both his first two Grands Prix—an incredible achievement that suggests Mercedes has found a future star.
Williams had mixed fortunes, with Alex Albon scoring points in the ninth after a clever strategy that saw him start on hard tires. Carlos Sainz, however, couldn’t capitalize on what should have been a top-10 finish, continuing his difficult start to the season. After his bizarre Safety Car crash in Australia, Sainz desperately needed a clean weekend but couldn’t deliver.
Red Bull will be deeply concerned by their performance. Verstappen’s fourth place represented a decent recovery after a poor start, but the team’s dominance from 2024 seems to have evaporated. “We were better than expected today,” Verstappen claimed afterward, but his body language in the cool-down room told a different story. Two races without a win represent their longest drought since early 2022.
Ferrari endured what can only be described as a nightmare weekend. Charles Leclerc struggled with front wing damage that affected his tire life, while Lewis Hamilton’s two-stop strategy completely backfired, leaving him sixth. After Hamilton’s Sprint victory, this was a brutal reality check for the Scuderia.
Racing Bulls wasted strong qualifying performances with poor race strategy. Their two-stop approach proved completely ineffective for both Isack Hadjar and Yuki Tsunoda, who finished well outside the points despite showing promising pace earlier in the weekend. Hadjar’s weekend was a significant improvement over his disastrous debut in Australia where he crashed on the formation lap.
On to Japan: McLaren vs Red Bull Round 3!
Wow, McLaren just dominated two weekends in a row! Can you believe it?!
Piastri’s win in China, coming right after Norris crushed it in Australia, has everyone in the paddock talking. Just 10 points separate the McLaren teammates now in the championship standings. I’m dying to see if these two start battling each other soon!
The McLaren garage must be absolutely buzzing right now. Two different winners in two races? That’s the kind of momentum that championship campaigns are built on! Their car looks unbeatable right now – fast in qualifying, gentle on tires in the race, and seemingly able to handle any track layout they throw at it.
Red Bull, though? They look totally shook.
I’ve never seen Max this quiet in press conferences. No jokes, no smiles, just tense answers and a lot of looking at the floor. The car seems super twitchy through high-speed corners, and Christian Horner was spotted in deep conversation with Adrian Newey after the race.
They’ve got MAJOR work to do before Suzuka.
Japan next weekend is going to be epic! Suzuka has always been Red Bull territory with all those high-speed changes of direction. But if McLaren can win there too? We might be seeing a complete power shift in F1! The track should suit the RB21’s strengths, but McLaren’s showing they can be quick literally everywhere.
I’m def staying up all night for qualifying – there’s absolutely no way I’m missing this battle! Will Piastri make it back-to-back wins? Can Norris bounce back from his brake scare? Or will Verstappen remind everyone why he’s the four-time champ?
One thing’s for sure – F1 in 2025 is delivering drama by the truckload, and we’re only two races in! This season is already shaping up to be one of the most exciting in years.
I can’t wait to see what happens next! See you all next week for what promises to be another thriller at Suzuka! I’m predicting another McLaren win, but don’t count out a very angry Max Verstappen…