MCLAREN’S dominant start to the new season has continued in China!
Oscar Piastri started on pole, and he cruised to his third victory in F1, with his teammate Lando Norris finishing right behind him in second.
More drama followed after the race as Charles Leclerc and Pierre Gasly were both disqualified for an underweight car.
While Lewis Hamilton, who finished sixth, was also dealt a DQ for excessive plank wear underneath the car, meaning Ferrari leave the Grand Prix with nothing.
- Podium: 1 Oscar Piastri, 2 Lando Norris, 3 George Russell
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Where next?
Well, after a dramatic day in China, we have to wait two weeks for the next Grand Prix!
Ferrari react to disqualifications
The Italian team have gone away from the Chinese Grand Prix with nothing, following DQs to both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton.
Ferrari have posted the following statement on the matter: “Following the FIA post-race scrutineering both our cars were found not to conform to the regulations for different reasons.
“Car 16 was found to be underweight by 1kg and car 44’s rearward skid wear was found to be 0.5mm below the limit.
“Charles was on a one-stop strategy today and this meant his tyre wear was very high, causing the car to be underweight.
“With regard to Lewis’ skid wear, we misjudged the consumption by a small margin. There was no intention to gain any advantage.
“We will learn from what happened today and make sure we don’t make the same mistakes again. Clearly it’s not the way we wanted to end our Chinese GP weekend, neither for ourselves, nor for our fans whose support for us is unwavering.”
Constructors’ Championship standings
Here is how the table looks after China:
- 1 MCLAREN — 78 points
- 2: Mercedes — 57
- 3: Red Bull — 36
- 4: Williams — 17
- 5: Ferrari — 17
- 6: Haas — 14
- 7: Aston Martin — 10
- 8: Sauber — 6
- 9: Racing Bulls — 3
- 10: Alpine — 0
Credit: GETTY
View of SunSport’s F1 reporter Isabelle Barker
Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc and Pierre Gasly have all been disqualified from the Chinese Grand Prix.
Gasly and Leclerc’s cars were found to be underweight, while Hamilton’s car was deemed to have excessive skid wear.
It means Hamilton and Leclerc’s points for their sixth and fifth place finish respectively – eight and 10 – are wiped from their championship tally.
For seven-time world champion Hamilton, one of the skid blocks on his car was found to be less than the required thickness after the race.
F1 cars have skid blocks in the floor that are meant to ensure the car maintains a certain ride height and does not run too low.
If one is worn too much, it can mean a potential performance advantage as the car is able to run lower to the ground than would normally be possible.
It is history repeating itself for Hamilton, who was disqualified from the 2023 United States Grand Prix for a similar issue when he was driving for Mercedes.
Updated race result
1) Oscar Piastri, McLaren
2) Lando Norris, McLaren
3) George Russell, Mercedes
4) Max Verstappen, Red Bull
5) Esteban Ocon, Alpine
6) Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
7) Alex Albon, Williams
8) Oliver Bearman, Haas
9) Lance Stroll, Aston Martin
10) Carlos Sainz, Williams
Credit: Getty Perfect day at the office
For all the support team of McLaren, the Chinese Grand Prix could not have gone better.
With their drivers taking the top two spots on the podium, the constructor could have not written a better script themselves.
Piastri will take the plaudits in Shanghai but how well he and Norris drive as a team should be a concern to all.
Credit: AFP Credit: EPA Credit: EPA Hamilton also disqualified!
A trio of disqualifications in China as Lewis Hamilton, who finished 6th, is also disqualified from the race.
The reasoning behind Hamilton’s DQ is different to that of Leclerc and Gasly.
Hamilton’s is due to excessive plank wear underneath the car.
It means both Ferrari come out of the Grand Prix with nothing.
On Hamilton’s disqualification, the stewards said: “The plank assembly of Car 44 (Lewis Hamilton) was measured and found to be 8.6mm (LHS), 8.6mm (car centerline) and 8.5mm (RHS).
“This is below the minimum thickness of 9mm specified under Article 3.5.9 of the Technical Regulations.
” During the hearing the team representative confirmed that the measurement is correct and that all required procedures were performed correctly. The team also acknowledged that there were no mitigating circumstances and that it was a genuine error by the team.”
Leclerc and Gasly DISQUALIFIED
Charles Leclerc has been disqualified from the Chinese Grand Prix for an underweight car.
The Ferrari driver, who finished fifth, will move everybody up who finished behind him as a result.
Pierre Gasly, who finished 11th, has also been disqualified from the race for the same reasons.
Speaking on Leclerc’s disqualification, the stewards said: “Car 16 (Charles Leclerc) was weighed by the FIA Technical Delegate inside and outside scales with both scales showing the same result of 799 kg after the customary draining of fuel and the replacement of a broken front wing.
“The calibration of both scales was confirmed and witnessed by the competitor. During the hearing there was no challenge to the FIA’s measurements which are taken to be correct and that all required procedures were performed correctly.
“There are no mitigating circumstances and that the team confirmed that it was a genuine error by them.
“The Stewards determine that Article 4.1 of the FIA Formula 1 Technical Regulations has been breached and therefore the standard penalty of a disqualification needs to be applied for such an infringement.”
Hamilton at risk of disqualification
Lewis Hamilton, who finished sixth in the race, could also be disqualified due to excessive wear on his skid blocks beneath his car.
He has been disqualified for the same infringement in the past during his time at Mercedes at the 2023 United States GP.
FIA technical delegate Jo Bauer said: “The skid wear of car number 44 was checked.
“The rearmost skid was measured according to the team’s legality documents submission in accordance with TD039 L, item 1.2 b) i).
“Measurements were taken along the stiffness compliant area at three different points of the periphery (inner arc). The recorded measurement were 8.6 mm (LHS), 8.6 mm (car centerline) and 8.5 mm (RHS).”
Credit: AFP
McLaren fancied for success
Following today’s results, the bookies are edging towards the two McLaren drivers winning the driver’s championship this season:
Lando Norris 5/6
Oscar Piastri 2/1
Max Verstappen 6/1
Lewis Hamilton 18/1
Charles Leclerc 20/1
George Russell 22/1
Kimi Antonelli 125/1
Alex Albon, Carlos Sainz 150/1
Liam Lawson 275/1
All odds brought to you by Betfair.
Leclerc and Gasly face disqualification
The FIA have found that Charles Leclerc and Pierre Gasly’s cars were underweight.
Leclerc finished fifth in the race and had a damaged front wing.
The FIA fitted an official front wing to the car after the race, and it was found to be 1kg under the 800kg weight limit.
Gasly was also said to be 1kg under the limit.
FIA technical delegate Jo Bauer said: “After the Race, car number 16 was weighed and its weight was 800.0 kg, which is the minimum weight required by TR Article 4.1. As the front wing was damaged (the missing FW endplate was recovered and weighed with the car), the car was re-weighed with an official spare front wing assembly of car 16 and its weight was 800.5 kg.
“After this, fuel was drained out of the car and 2.0 litres of fuel were removed. The car was drained and according to the draining procedure submitted by the team in their legality document.
“The car was weighed again on the FIA scales (with the official spare front wing assembly of car 16) and the weight was 799.0 kg. The calibration of the scales was confirmed and witnessed by the competitor.
“For information the spare front wing was 0.2 kg heavier than the damaged one used during the race. As this is 1.0 kg below the minimum weight requested in TR Article 4.1, which also has to be respected at all times during the Competition, I am referring this matter to the Stewards for their consideration.”
“After the Race, car number 10 was weighed and its weight was 800.0 kg, which is the minimum weight required by TR Article 4.1.
“After this, a fuel mass check was carried out and 1.1 kg of fuel were removed. The car was drained according to the draining procedure submitted by the team in their legality document.
“The car was weighed again on the FIA scales and the weight was 799.0 kg. The calibration of the scales was confirmed and witnessed by the competitor. As this is 1.0 kg below the minimum weight requested in TR Article 4.1, which also has to be respected at all times during the Competition.”
Ferrari with plenty of work to do
After winning the sprint race yesterday, Hamilton reflects on his Chinese Grand Prix:
We made changes after the sprint and they didn’t work. The pit lane is too long here, times are a problem with that. We just couldn’t keep up with the other cars. A number of changes were made, they all added up and made the car worse. Hopefully we can learn from that.
Lewis Hamilton
Chinese Grand Prix official results
Here are how the drivers finished in Shanghai today:
Credit: @F1 Oscar sees chequered flag in China
Oscar Piastri put disappointment from Australia behind him as he secured victory in Shanghai.
He managed to fend off Lando Norris to take the first spot as McLaren secured the top two places.
The Australian will be hoping to see plenty more of these flags over the course of the season.
Credit: @F1 Red Bull no longer gives you wins
Speaking with Sky Sports, Verstappen discussed the issues they have struggled with to the start of the season:
If it is possible to adjust yeh. It was more promising for us and was a lot more fun to drive. We just looked to set our own pace, the tyres were still in decent shape when I decided to pit but we had to as everyone else was. We can take a lot out of it and take that into Japan. Hopefully we can learn from it and be more competitive in ten days.
Max Verstappen
Youngster shows potential in China
18-year-old Kimi Antonelli was awarded the driver of the day accolade for his performance in Shanghai.
Not many people his age can say they have spent their weekend tearing around a Formula 1 circuit.
He looks a great addition to the team following the departure of Hamilton and no doubt will soon be having George Russell looking over his shoulder more.
Credit: @F1 Red not so lucky for Italians
In Chinese culture, red is seen as an extremely lucky colour. It did not work out that way for the Ferrari team as Leclerc addressed the coming together between the teammates early on:
It was not Lewis’ fault at all. He did not know I was there, it is just a racing incident. There was no bad intentions. It was unfortunate, it cost me in the race. There was the potential to do a lot better but the eight seconds it would take to replace the wing would leave me having to overtake cars. Mercedes were so quick in turn twelve, they had some traction there, which is why I compared it to a dragster.
Charles Leclerc
Changing conditions surprise drivers
Having seen lots of issues with graining in practice, things changed considerably on race day.
While the medium compound tyres were still suffering, the hard compound tyres really held up.
Hamilton tried to gamble with a second pit stop, hoping that the tyres of the cars in front of him would degrade considerably in the closing stages while also hoping the forecast rain was to make an appearance.
However, it did not pan out for the Ferrari driver as the hard tyres really stood up to the surface of Shanghai when it mattered most.
Podium is a sea of orange in China
It is a sight that McLaren want to see plenty of this season, dominating the podium with both drivers up there.
Piastri and Norris seem to work well as a team and their tactics resulted in very little pressure in Shanghai.
The most concerning moment was in the latter stages where Norris had to protect his position from Russell as his brakes were failing but fortunately the chequered flag came just at the right time for the team.
Credit: Reuters Credit: AFP Credit: AFP Aussie impresses fans back home
Oscar Piastri is the man of the moment in Shanghai.
After taking pole position, he did not make one error in the entire race as he held off teammate Lando Norris.
The McLaren pair will be looking to dominate the driver standings this season, having made such a great start in these early races.
Credit: AFP Credit: AFP Fans make Shanghai one to remember
Each year this race seems to get bigger in China.
Martin Brundle commented how in the early years there tended to be more drivers than fans but that is not the case now.
There was a lot of love for the McLaren drivers in Shanghai, who will be pleased with the race outcome today.
Credit: AFP
Podium drivers watch race back
As they see the highlights of the Chinese Grand Prix, George Russell is impressed with the driving skills of Charles Leclerc.
Once they see the damage to his front wing, Russell comments “Wow! He did well if he had that from such an early stage.”
He compares the coming together between the Ferrari drivers like Schumacher and Barrichello.
Brit content with second place
Speaking with Sky Sports, Norris gave his view on the race and his car issues towards the end:
A few fun moments. The start, the turn went to plan but George then got me at the pit. Oscar drove well, he was quick for the whole race. He deserved the win, he drove well all weekend. Just how we wanted the race to go. It’s scary, it’s like my worst nightmare when the brakes are failing. We survived.
Lando Norris
McLaren dominate Chinese Grand Prix
Oscar Piastri bounces back after the disappointment in Australia to secure the win in Shanghai today.
Lando Norris would have liked to have pushed his McLaren teammate more but his braking issues meant he had to focus on holding off George Russell instead.
It is a third career win for Piastri, who drove the perfect race today.
Credit: AFP Chinese Grand Prix results
1. Oscar Piastri – McLaren
2. Lando Norris – McLaren
3. George Russell – Mercedes
4. Max Verstappen – Red Bull
5. Charles Leclerc – Ferrari
6. Lewis Hamilton – Ferrari
7. Estaban Ocon – Haas
8. Kimi Antonelli – Mercedes
Source: Motorsport - thesun.co.uk
