F1 news LIVE: Ferrari release statement after Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc disqualification

F1 CHINESE GRAND PRIX - LATEST UPDATES

• BREAKING: Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc disqualified post-race
• COMMENT: Lewis Hamilton’s shock disqualification tells us one thing: Ferrari have hit rock bottom
• Alpine's Pierre Gasly also disqualified
• Click HERE for full F1 driver standings after the DSQs
• Oscar Piastri wins Chinese GP; Norris 2nd; Rusell 3rd

Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc disqualified

Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc have both been disqualified from the Chinese Grand Prix in a disastrous blow for Ferrari.

The cars of both drivers failed post-race checks, with Hamilton’s skid block found to be below the minimum thickness, while Leclerc’s car was found to be underweight.

Alpine’s Pierre Gasly has also been disqualified for an underweight car.

It means Hamilton and Leclerc’s points for their sixth and fifth place finish respectively – eight and 10 – are wiped from their championship tally.

The disqualification does not impact Hamilton’s sprint race victory on Saturday, for which he secured eight points.

FERRARI STATEMENT ON DSQs

“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 1 kg 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.”

COMMENT:Lewis Hamilton’s shock disqualification tells us one thing: Ferrari have hit rock bottom

Twenty-four hours is a long time in Formula One. Just on Saturday, Lewis Hamilton was riding high, optimism radiating, after his first taste of victory in the famous Ferrari red, albeit in the shorter sprint format.

By Sunday night, long after dusk fell in Shanghai, the Briton and his beleaguered team had hit rock bottom.

Full piece below:

Hamilton’s shock DSQ tells us one thing: Ferrari have already hit rock bottom

A final points summary in China:

The final points/placings from Shanghai after those three DSQs #F1#ChineseGPpic.twitter.com/Yfin5Xx4DK

— Formula 1 (@F1) March 23, 2025

Ollie Bearman after finishing 8th:

“Super happy, we did a great job – good execution on everything. I wasn’t expecting to do a one-stop, but the tyres lasted much better and we did a great job with setup changes. The car was so good today.

“This track suits what we have, on paper it’s good for our car. Very smooth, not many bumps, it is partly due to the track.”

Liam Lawson, after finishing 12th:

“ We tried to do something aggressive today, that’s why we started from the pit-lane. We learned something but it just didn’t work today.

On being under pressure already at Red Bull: “We’re in the season, two races in, racing. You’d love to have 60 test days and I know a lot of the other guys tested a lot, it’s not something we did. It’s one of those things, it’s not an excuse, something I have to get on top of as quickly as I can.”

Pierre Gasly reacts to disqualification:

“It was a tricky race out there today and again, like last week, we finished 11th and just outside of the points.

“Unfortunately, after the race, a technical infringement meant we faced a DSQ.

“In terms of the actual race, though, I think the degradation probably caught most teams out by surprise in the race as it was much lower than expected and the one-stop proved doable.

“We extended our second stint after pitting early and took it to the chequered flag without any reward. In general, it has been a challenging weekend where we have not been as competitive as we would like.”

Lewis Hamilton, after finishing sixth:

Hamilton spoke earlier, prior to news of his DSQ:

On two-stop strategy: “I’m glad that we tried something, I was struggling with performance.

“Ultimately we had a pretty decent car in the sprint, we made some changes and made it worse. Lots to learn, the pit stop is too long here and they were still going fast at the end, Verstappen was doing the same times as me and I had fresher tyres, it wasn’t great.”

On changes post-sprint: “We made it quite a bit worse, I hadn’t tested it, we both went that way and it was bad.

“I know not to do that again.”

An unwanted Hamilton fact...

Lewis Hamilton has become the first driver in F1 history to secure a win and also be disqualified in the same race weekend!

This, of course, follows his sprint race victory on Saturday - which still stands.

FIA STATEMENT:

On Hamilton’s DSQ, an FIA statement read:

“The plank assembly of Car 44 [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.

“The Stewards determine that Article 3.5.9 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.”

NEW TOP-10 - CHINESE GP

As a result of Hamilton (6th), Leclerc (5th) and Gasly’s (11th) DSQ - here is the new top-10:

1. Oscar Piastri

2. Lando Norris

3. George Russell

4. Max Verstappen

5. Esteban Ocon

6. Kimi Antonelli

7. Alex Albon

8. Ollie Bearman

9. Lance Stroll

10. Carlos Sainz

CONFIRMED: Lewis Hamilton disqualified from the Chinese Grand Prix

Hamilton’s DSQ is also now confirmed by the FIA.

This is due to excessive plank wear on his Ferrari car.

Wow.

CONFIRMED: Charles Leclerc is disqualified from the Chinese Grand Prix

Leclerc’s DSQ is confirmed. Pierre Gasly’s is also confirmed.

Both for underweight cars!

We await news on Lewis Hamilton’s DSQ...

UPDATE: Ferrari have seen stewards

Ferrari have already seen the stewards about Leclerc’s issue, with Alpine now in the room for Gasly.

Ferrari will be back in the room in 15 minutes for Hamilton...

BREAKING: LEWIS HAMILTON AT RISK TOO

Excessive skid wear to blame, as his rearmost skids have been measured below the 9mm minimum thickness limit post-race.

Could be a double Ferrari DSQ!

Oh gosh...

BREAKING: Charles Leclerc and Pierre Gasly at risk of disqualification

Leclerc (P5) and Gasly's (P11) cars have both been found to be underweight in post-race scrutineering.

It could mean Lance Stroll, in 12th, could be promoted to the points.

More as we get it...

Max Verstappen after finishing fourth:

“We set out to do our own pace, the tyres were in a decent shape when we pitted but it’s not how we want to race. A lot to analyse I think, the second stint was more positive and promising.

“I try to do the best I can, not thinking about anything else. Feel good in life in general, that’s what matters the most.”

F1 constuctors standings after Chinese Grand Prix

1. McLaren – 78 points

2. Mercedes – 53 points

3. Red Bull – 36 points

4. Ferrari – 35 points

5. Williams – 12 points

6. Aston Martin – 8 points

7. Haas – 7 points

8. Sauber – 6 points

9. Racing Bulls – 3 points

10. Alpine – 0 points

RACE REPORT: Oscar Piastri wins Chinese Grand Prix as Lewis Hamilton struggles for Ferrari

Oscar Piastri beat Lando Norris to win the Chinese Grand Prix as a struggling Lewis Hamilton moved aside for Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc.

Piastri led virtually every lap at the Shanghai International Circuit, with Norris following his team-mate home as McLaren underlined their impressive speed by executing a one-two finish.

Mercedes' George Russell was third ahead of Red Bull's Max Verstappen, who passed Leclerc with three laps remaining. Hamilton crossed the line a distant sixth.

FULL REPORT BELOW:

Oscar Piastri wins Chinese Grand Prix as Lewis Hamilton struggles for Ferrari

Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur:

“Very strange, one side of the garage OK. We can take the positive with Charles.

“I don’t want to blame something, we have to do a better job. The tyres are on the edge.

On Lewis’s second stop: “The deg at one stage was important, if everyone pitted it would’ve made sense.”

Charles Leclerc after finishing P5:

On lap 1 clash with Hamilton: “Honestly, it’s not Lewis’s fault at all - I was around the inside trying to position the car for turn 3, Lewis didn’t know I was there - I didn’t think Lewis would come back to the apex.

“It’s a racing incident, it’s not the first of last time it will happen. Shame it happened between the two red cars.

“We didn’t want to take the eight seconds to change the wing, didn’t want to take that risk. I wanted to maximise the result, I think we did well.”

Time for the podium!

It’s the Australian and British national anthems on the podium in China as Oscar Piastri celebrates his victory for McLaren!

And that’s Piastri’s 28th consecutive points-finish too... some record! He’s in his title fight!

Oscar Piastri on his China GP win:

“It’s been an incredible weekend, the car has been pretty mega – today was a bit of a surprise with the tyres, proud of the whole weekend. This is what I feel like I deserved form last week, team did a mega job, one-two.

“To go all the way to the end was a surprise, but a happy surprise.

“There’s a few too many Lewis Hamilton fans but we’ll convert you next year!”

Lando Norris on team radio:

“Yeah well done boys, beautiful one-two!”

Oscar Piastri on team radio:

“Mega job guys, mega job. Car was very lovely, good work with reacting on the deg – great team weekend, that is one satisfying weekend!”

"That is one satisfying weekend!" 🟠

Oscar Piastri reacts to winning the Chinese Grand Prix 🤩 pic.twitter.com/sEXj01TlT8

— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) March 23, 2025

George Russell after finishing P3:

“It’s a great result finishing P3… great race, we knew McLaren were a smidge quicker than us, few crucial points.

“I felt from early on that a one-stop was possible, easier than we all anticipated – probably one of my best results in Formula 1 in terms of overall performance, pleased to be on the podium.

“It was a bit dicey with Lando but from there, straightforward race.”

"Probably one of my best weekends in Formula 1" 🎉

George Russell reflects on a strong weekend 💪 pic.twitter.com/zIjddlFWzg

— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) March 23, 2025

Lando Norris on his 2nd place:

“A few fun moments – the start I was hoping for that but then George got me on the pit stops, but our pace was a lot better on the second stint. Oscar drove well, he was quick the whole race.

“I’m happy with second, it’s good points, one-two for the team. We’re very happy.

On brake issue: “It was scary, my worst nightmare! I was losing two, three four seconds, bit scared but we survived. Satisfied, great result!”

TOP-10 IN CHINESE GP

1. Oscar Piastri

2. Lando Norris

3. George Russell

4. Max Verstappen

5. Charles Leclerc

6. Lewis Hamilton

7. Esteban Ocon

8. Kimi Antonelli

9. Alex Albon

10. Ollie Bearman

Oscar Piastri wins the Chinese Grand Prix!

A third grand prix win in F1 for Oscar Piastri, who takes a superb victory in Shanghai!

Lando Norris just about brings his car home despite his brake issue, as McLaren claim a one-two!

George Russell on the podium again for third place!

4-10: Verstappen, Leclerc, Hamilton, Ocon, Antonelli, Albon, Bearman

Lando Norris brake issue critical (Lap 55/56)

Two laps left and Norris is being told to bring his car home, given a major issue with his brakes!

Still, it’s looking good for McLaren...

Max Verstappen passes Charles Leclerc (Lap 53/56)

Brilliant battle!

Verstappen has super pace suddenly and takes fourth place around the outside of turn 1, despite Leclerc’s best efforts for over a lap!

Verstappen P4!

Norris has a brake issue (Lap 52/56)

A lot of communications between Norris and his engineer Will Joseph over his brake pedal.

There’s an issue, but it should be manageable...

TOP-10 WITH 8 LAPS TO GO (Lap 48/56)

1. Piastri

2. Norris

3. Russell

4. Leclerc

5. Verstappen

6. Hamilton

7. Ocon

8. Antonelli

9. Albon

10. Bearman

All those positions hae leads over two seconds...

Charles Leclerc on team radio (Lap 45/56)

Leclerc’s engineer: “We’re losing time in turn 2, try not using the kerb.”

Leclerc: “Nope.”

Oscar Piastri has a five-second lead (Lap 44/56)

No sign of the tyres waning away yet... but there’s still time!

Piastri has a five-second lead, with Norris 4.6 seconds clear of Russell.

4-10: Leclerc, Verstappen, Hamilton, Ocon, Antonelli, Albon, Bearman

Looking like a hell of a race for Haas here, with two cars in the top-10 at the moment!

Ollie Bearman moves up to 10th! (Lap 41/56)

Celebrations in the Haas garage as Bearman makes an impressive move on Gasly to move up to 10th - and a points-scoring position!

After a horror show in Australia, Bearman looks back down to business in China!

Oscar Piastri eyeing one-stop (Lap 40/56)

Piastri’s engineer: “How’s the tyre looking, plan A?”

Piastri: “I think we can go to the end.”

There we go then!

Lando Norris:

Norris: “I see the first bit of graining, but we’re OK for now.”

Lewis Hamilton pits (Lap 38/56)

Hamilton pits - 2.3 seconds - and comes out in sixth!

OK, so Hamilton the first frontrunner to pit... but it seems possible that most of them will stay out for a one-stop!

Piastri’s lead out in front to Norris is now 2.4 seconds. Will they be allowed to race?

Rain on the cards?! (Lap 35/56)

Norris’s engineer: “Low risk of rain in 3 laps!”

I thought we were getting a dry race! Will the rain shake things up? It’s very dark in Shanghai now...

TOP-10 AFTER 34 LAPS

1. Oscar Piastri

2. Lando Norris

3. George Russell

4. Charles Leclerc

5. Lewis Hamilton

6. Max Verstappen

7. Lance Stroll

8. Yuki Tsunoda

9. Esteban Ocon

10. Kimi Antonelli

When will second pit stops occur? (Lap 32/56)

Race in a bit of a lull now, as we wait for the second pit stops!

When will be the optimum time?

Russell has been told he may go to the end with a one-stop!

Oscar Piastri has a four-second lead (Lap 26/56)

Piastri will be very satisfied with his work so far - he has a four-second lead to Lando Norris!

George Russell is two seconds further back, while Charles Leclerc is closing in on the Mercedes - 0.8 seconds the gap!

5-10: Hamilton, Verstappen, Stroll, Bearman, Tsunoda, Ocon

Lewis Hamilton... (Lap 24/56)

Hamilton: “Give me some feedback, I need some feedback.”

Engineer: “Turn 13 can improve.”

Hamilton: “Yep, you told me that already.”

Like last week, fascinating communications between Hamilton and Riccardo Adami!

TOP-10 AFTER 23 LAPS

1. Oscar Piastri

2. Lando Norris

3. George Russell

4. Charles Leclerc

5. Lewis Hamilton

6. Max Verstappen

7. Lance Stroll (no stop)

8. Ollie Bearman (no stop)

9. Yuki Tsunoda

10. Esteban Ocon

Kimi Antonelli has dropped to 11th...

Hamilton and Leclerc swap! (Lap 21/56)

Hamilton: “I’ll decide where we swap.”

And indeed he does - at turn 1!

Leclerc moves up to fourth! So Hamilton listens to his team, swaps the position, but does it on his terms!

Perfect compromise...

Lewis Hamilton resists Ferrari order (Lap 20/56)

Hamilton’s engineer: “We are swapping cars at turn 14.”

Hamilton: “When he’s closer, yes.”

The Ferrari pair in fifth and sixth, but Leclerc has superior speed in the latter position.

Hamilton: “Right now, I’m closing up.”

Piastri retakes lead! (Lap 18/56)

More pace, more power, as Piastri cruises past Albon to retake the lead!

And Norris gets the move done on Russell, steamrolling down the inside at turn 1! Great move!

Norris back to net-second in this race!

Russell overtakes Norris! (Lap 16/56)

Norris pits but comes out just behind Russell, who is now net second in the race!

Alex Albon - yet to pit - is now the race leader!

Piastri is second, 1.6 seconds behind Albon.

Leclerc, incidentally, did not change his front wing in his pit stop!

Oscar Piastri pits! (Lap 15/56)

A slow stop for Piastri - 3.6 seconds - and Lando Norris takes over the lead, with Russell also pitting!

How long will Lando leave it to pit?!

George Russell:

“I think it’s going to be one-stop, front left clearing up.”

Interesting! Russell likes going long... we saw that in Belgium last year!

Yet he’s still coming into the pits...

Hamilton and Verstappen pit (Lap 14/56)

Hamilton’s stop: 2.4 seconds.

Verstappen’s stop: 2.2 seconds.

Hamilton comes out in 10th, with Verstappen in 12th. Frontrunners diving into the pits now... let’s see how this works out!

Kimi Antonelli pits - and drops back! (Lap 13/56)

Tsunoda overtakes Antonelli out of the pits, with the RB pitting a lap earlier!

The undercut working well!

Hadjar also pits - but he’s behind the Mercedes!

Pit stops starting to come to fruition then....

Oscar Piastri has a two-second lead (Lap 12/56)

So far, so good for Piastri and McLaren. He has a two-second lead to his teammate - but it’s all about tyre management now. The graining is a tad slower than expected, I think.

Piastri’s engineer: “Can we make plan c target lap?

Piastri: “I think it might be possible.”

Charles Leclerc on team radio: (Lap 10/56)

“If it stays like this, I want plan A.”

What is plan A - one or two stops?!

Engineer: “There will be too much traffic, we stick with plan B.”

Oscar Piastri pulls out of DRS! (Lap 8/56)

Is it pure pace or is it an instruction? Either way, Norris has dropped back to a 1.4 second margin to Piastri.

The race just settling down now - Leclerc is the only man within a second of the car in front, which is teammate Hamilton!

When will the pit stops start? Is it a one-stopper or two-stopper?

Norris: “Starting to struggle, left-front!”

Fernando Alonso retires! (Lap 6/56)

Alonso has pulled into the pits and he becomes the first car to retire from this race due to those issues with the brakes!

Out in front, Piastri’s lead is now 0.8 seconds - so Norris has DRS!

Will McLaren let them race?!

3-10: Russell, Hamilton, Leclerc, Verstappen, Antonelli, Tsunoda, Hadjar, Ocon

Hamilton and Leclerc!

Replays show the Ferraris just grazed each other at the end of the sweeping turn 1, resulting in Leclerc’s front wing damage!

A minor clash; a usual occurrence on lap 1!

Meanwhile, Fernando Alonso has an issue with his brakes - they’re on fire!

Another look at the contact between Ferrari teammates Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton 🔴 pic.twitter.com/Eb21H7iq8F

— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) March 23, 2025

Oscar Piastri outside of DRS! (Lap 3/56)

Perfect start for McLaren here!

Piastri has a 1.1 second lead to Norris, who is 1.8 seconds clear of Russell!

4-10: Hamilton, Leclerc, Verstappen, Antonelli, Tsunoda, Hadjar, Ocon

Leclerc on his front wing: “We can survive.”

Lights out!

Oscar Piastri gets a poor-ish start but keeps the lead - and Lando Norris swoops around the outside of turn 1 to take second from George Russell!

Lewis Hamilton has taken fourth from Max Verstappen, who is sixth after dropping behind Leclerc too!

“Leclerc has a broken front wing,” says Verstappen. I think he hit Hamilton!

Thrilling start!

OFFICIAL ATTENDANCE

The official attendance for the Chinese Grand Prix is a sold out 220,000 people.

And boy are they excited for this start!

Formation lap!

Oscar Piastri leads the pack around for the formation lap in Shanghai!

All the field on the medium tyre, apart from three drivers: Lance Stroll, Ollie Bearman and Liam Lawson are on the hard tyre.

Who will have the lead after lap one?! Can George Russell steal a march on the McLarens?!

A reminder of the starting grid in China:

1. Oscar Piastri

2. George Russell

3. Lando Norris

4. Max Verstappen

5. Lewis Hamilton

6. Charles Leclerc

7. Isack Hadjar

8. Kimi Antonelli

9. Yuki Tsunoda

10. Alex Albon

11. Esteban Ocon

12. Nico Hulkenberg

13. Fernando Alonso

14. Lance Stroll

15. Carlos Sainz

16. Pierre Gasly

17. Ollie Bearman

18. Jack Doohan

19. Gabriel Bortoleto

Pit lane. Liam Lawson

Red Bull boss Christian Horner:

On Lawson: “We’ve taken the opportunity to make some big setup changes and try and learn something.

“We’re trying to take something out of it.”

On the race: “This race is impossible to call, it’s whoever takes care of that front left tyre.”

Max Verstappen, who starts in P4:

“We can’t touch the car after qualifying, and see if it’s any better in the race.”

Oscar Piastri, who starts on pole:

“Try and get a better start, manage the tyres, everyone learned a lot from yesterday.

“Everybody is a bit wiser – it’ll be pretty tough out there.”

Ollie Bearman, who starts P17:

“It’s a bit more gusty today. It’s changed a lot, we’ll see how it develops, track is a little bit dirty.”

Time for the Chinese national anthem in Shanghai!

With thousands in the grandstands, it’s time for the national anthem of China - the march of the volunteers!

Kimi Antonelli, who starts P8:

“We were just talking about wind being different to yesterday, disturbing a bit, but track feels good for grip.

“Some butterflies in the stomach, you want to get the start right.”

McLaren boss Zak Brown:

“It’s a bit cooler now, wind has picked up - don’t know if it’s a one or two stop. Tyre-dependent race strategy.

“The Ferraris were really strong yesterday, the dirty air impacted us... worry about George, Max and the Ferraris.”

Lando Norris' dad Adam:

“He's feeling good, we'll see, he'll do alright.”

Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur, speaking on the grid:

“We did a good job yesterday but it’s very very tight, we can have a good race.

“Lewis’ win was good for his confidence and the team, but more focused on today now.”

What is the starting grid?

1. Oscar Piastri

2. George Russell

3. Lando Norris

4. Max Verstappen

5. Lewis Hamilton

6. Charles Leclerc

7. Isack Hadjar

8. Kimi Antonelli

9. Yuki Tsunoda

10. Alex Albon

11. Esteban Ocon

12. Nico Hulkenberg

13. Fernando Alonso

14. Lance Stroll

15. Carlos Sainz

16. Pierre Gasly

17. Ollie Bearman

18. Jack Doohan

19. Gabriel Bortoleto

Pit lane. Liam Lawson

Liam Lawson to start from the pit-lane!

Lawson was set to start P20 anyway but after Red Bull did work on his car in parc ferme conditions, the Kiwi will start from the pit lane this morning!

Lewis Hamilton after qualifying P5:

“We started really optimistic, we made a few changes to the car but it was on a knife-edge.

“You want a car that’s balanced, it has a different balance. We made the change and then high-speed was overbalanced. You want a car that you can rely on, when it’s unpredictable you’ve got no hope.”

WATCH: Piastri's pole-clinching moment:

OSCAR. PIASTRI.#McLaren | #ChineseGP 🇨🇳pic.twitter.com/LNUoRRmKcU

— McLaren (@McLarenF1) March 22, 2025

TOP-10 IN CHAMPIONSHIP AFTER SPRINT

1. Lando Norris - 26 points

2. Max Verstappen - 24 points

3. George Russell - 20 points

4. Kimi Antonelli - 14 points

5. Alex Albon - 10 points

6. Lewis Hamilton - 9 points

7. Oscar Piastri - 9 points

8. Charles Leclerc - 8 points

9. Lance Stroll - 8 points

10. Nico Hulkenberg - 6 points

Oscar Piastri after qualifying on pole:

“The car came alive in Q3 and I came alive in Q3. Even at the end laps were scruffy but pumped to be on pole.

“When you hook it up, it feels pretty mega.

“I was pretty happy after the sprint, we did the most we could of. We learned a lot this morning, looking forward to putting that to use tomorrow.”

FULL STARTING GRID FOR CHINESE GP

1. Oscar Piastri

2. George Russell

3. Lando Norris

4. Max Verstappen

5. Lewis Hamilton

6. Charles Leclerc

7. Isack Hadjar

8. Kimi Antonelli

9. Yuki Tsunoda

10. Alex Albon

11. Esteban Ocon

12. Nico Hulkenberg

13. Fernando Alonso

14. Lance Stroll

15. Carlos Sainz

16. Pierre Gasly

17. Ollie Bearman

18. Jack Doohan

19. Gabriel Bortoleto

20. Liam Lawson

George Russell after qualifying P2:

“Feels incredible to be honest, one of the hardest quali sessions I’ve done in a long, long time. Nothing seemed to be clicking, did something different on that final lap and it worked, happy with P2.

“I had a big moment at turn 1 but it all came together, I was really surprised when I crossed the line. Buzzing, looking forward to tomorrow.”

Zak Brown on Piastri's pole:

"That was a MEGA lap" 💪

Zak Brown says it's "awesome" to see Oscar Piastri secure pole for Sunday 🎉 pic.twitter.com/rNEZWYWF5s

— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) March 22, 2025

Lando Norris unbothered about 'favourites' tag

"Makes no difference for me at the minute," he insisted, when asked about ‘favourites’ tag.

"I'm not thinking about it. I don't really care about it. It shouldn't change anything I do, it shouldn't change what the team do. I had one good weekend. People need to calm down a little bit!

"No, I stay focused and I try and do the same here this weekend. But yeah, I probably won't even think of the championship until at least halfway through the year "

George Russell on McLaren's car this year:

Russell said of McLaren before this weekend's Chinese Grand Prix: "Their car should win every race but I don't think they will win every race this year. Let's see.

"The gap they have this year on everybody is bigger than Red Bull has ever had.

“But when Max was in that [2023] car he was pretty reliable every single lap he did, every single run in Q3, throughout qualifying, never really a question."

Ralf Schumacher urges Ferrari to discipline ‘stroppy’ Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc

Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc have come in for criticism from Ralf Schumacher, who urged Ferrari to “give them both a rap on the knuckles” for their attitudes during the Australian Grand Prix.

Both Ferrari cars struggled in the rain during Sunday’s race, with Ferrari opting to keep Hamilton out in the worsening conditions when most of the other cars pitted, and the seven-time champion subsequently lost the race lead when held up by a safety car and pitting afterwards.

The Brit eventually slipped to 10th and there was evident friction between him and his new race engineer, Riccardo Adami, with Hamilton repeatedly telling him to “leave me to it” and swearing over the radio when told of his drop down the rankings having had the chance to win on his debut for the Scuderia.

Full piece below:

Ralf Schumacher urges Ferrari to punish ‘stroppy’ Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc

Formula 1 in talks over new grand prix with Stefano Domenicali ‘impressed’ by plans

A new grand prix in Bangkok could soon come to fruition after Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali paid a visit to Thailand to discuss plans.

Domenicali travelled to the Asian country in the days following last weekend’s season opener in Australia, meeting Thai prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra.

There, he heard about the nation’s ambitions to stage an inaugural F1 race on its streets.

Thailand is one of several countries eager to join an already packed calendar - but with the Dutch Grand Prix’s impending departure from the schedule in 2026, there may just be space for a new race down the line.

Former Top Gear presenters lead tributes to Formula One ‘legend’ Eddie Jordan

Former Top Gear presenters have led the tributes to Eddie Jordan after his death at the age of 76.

Rory Reid described his former co-star as a “legend” while Chris Harris said the former Formula One team owner was a “pure force of nature”.

TV pundit and entrepreneur Jordan, who disclosed in December that he had been diagnosed with cancer, appeared on the BBC motoring show between 2016 and 2018.

Full piece below:

Former Top Gear presenters lead tributes to Formula One ‘legend’ Eddie Jordan

VIDEO: Lewis Hamilton reacts after sprint win

Lewis' immediate reaction after winning for Ferrari for the first time ☝️ pic.twitter.com/2OvJbS5esa

— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) March 22, 2025

Lewis Hamilton takes swipe at Max Verstappen over radio conduct:

“Go and listen to the radio calls with others and their engineers...far worse,” Hamilton said, in his press conference ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix.

“The conversation that Max has with an engineer [Lambiase] over the years, the abuse that the poor guy’s taken and you never write about it, but you wrote about the smallest little discussion I had with mine.”

QUALIFYING REPORT: Oscar Piastri takes title fight to Lando Norris with first F1 pole position at Chinese GP

Oscar Piastri raised the stakes in his championship battle with Lando Norris by securing the first pole position of his career at the Chinese Grand Prix.

Norris won last weekend’s opening round in Australia with Piastri only ninth after he slipped off the road in the rain when narrowly trailing his McLaren team-mate.

But at the second round of the season in Shanghai, Piastri pulled out all the stops to see off George Russell of Mercedes by just 0.082 seconds with Norris having to settle for third, more than a tenth adrift of the Australian.

Piastri takes title fight to Norris with first F1 pole position at Chinese GP

A simple message from Oscar Piastri after his pole lap:

Pumped for tomorrow

— Oscar Piastri (@OscarPiastri) March 22, 2025

Ollie Bearman after qualifying only 17th:

“It was a tough Sprint, we’re still missing a bit of pace. We made a good start and held position but after that it was just a case of trying to manage the tyres.

“I expected the fronts to drop off and they did a little bit more than some of the others. In qualifying we had planned three runs today in Q1, and we just didn’t quite make it out there for the last one.

“It’s tight to fit three runs in with all the turnaround and everything – unfortunately I just didn’t cross the line in time. We changed a few things on the car, my first lap was getting used to that, second one was better. I think the changes are more based towards the race so hopefully we can have a good one tomorrow.”

Charles Leclerc, who qualified P6:

“The potential was just not there, the overall grip was just not there.

“I felt I did a good job but that’s the potential of the car. We need to look forward to tomorrow, we had good pace this morning.”

Liam Lawson painfully honest after torrid start to Red Bull F1 career: ‘It’s just not good enough’

Liam Lawson did not make any excuses as he reflected on a torrid start to his Red Bull F1 career at the Chinese Grand Prix.

The Kiwi driver, promoted to be Max Verstappen’s teammate this year as he replaced Sergio Perez, crashed out of the season-opening Australian Grand Prix in wet conditions last week

Yet this weekend in Shanghai has been even worse, so far. Lawson qualified dead last for the sprint race on Saturday – though moved up to finish 14th – but did not improve his one-lap pace in grand prix qualifying, finishing last once more.

Full quotes below:

Lawson painfully honest after torrid start to Red Bull F1 career: ‘Not good enough’

Yuki Tsunoda after qualifying P9:

“Two cars in the mix, teammate did a good job, did a massive mistake in the last lap - P9, I’ll take it.

“Both cars, there’s potential for points.”

Isack Hadjar after qualifying P7:

“It’s in the ball-park, really happy with what I have underneath.

“The big guys are out of reach on the long run, if I nail the start I’m in a good position to get my first points.

“P8 would be pretty satisfying.”

Kimi Antonelli after qualifying P8:

“A bit disappointed. I struggled with the tyres. I really struggled on the warm-up... but now we look forward to tomorrow.

“Top-6 is what we can achieve. The pace looks strong, we’ll see what we can do.”

Toto Wolff on Russell's lap:

“We are struggling left, right and centre getting the tyres in the right window. He got it super right, he’s able to put it together.

“It’s so tight in the times, it’s a discovery mission.”

George Russell on team radio:

Russell: “Go on! Come on! That was a session!”

Wolff: “That was a good one!”

FULL STARTING GRID FOR CHINESE GP

1. Oscar Piastri

2. George Russell

3. Lando Norris

4. Max Verstappen

5. Lewis Hamilton

6. Charles Leclerc

7. Isack Hadjar

8. Kimi Antonelli

9. Yuki Tsunoda

10. Alex Albon

11. Esteban Ocon

12. Nico Hulkenberg

13. Fernando Alonso

14. Lance Stroll

15. Carlos Sainz

16. Pierre Gasly

17. Ollie Bearman

18. Jack Doohan

19. Gabriel Bortoleto

20. Liam Lawson

What time is the Chinese GP?

The race is at 7am (GMT) on Sunday morning.

Click here to read the full blog on The Independent's website