After half a decades absence, Formula One returned to China in spectacular fashion. In the Friday morning practice session the form guide was turned on its head as Max Verstappen could only manage the third quickest time behind Oscar Piastri and the surprise of the day being Lance Stroll fastest in his Aston Martin.

The teams were cautious of the new painted track surface which appears for now to have reduced the grip available at the Shanghai International Circuit. Sergio Perez was fastest in SQ1 but his time was some 3.5 seconds slower than when the teams last qualified here in China.

 

 

 

Drama during Sprint qualifying in China

The recent form shown by Yuki Tsunoda appeared to desert him as he failed to take his RB car any further than the first qualifying session and he was joined by both Alpine’s and Williams cars.

Normal service appeared to be resumed in SQ2 as Max Verstappen put his RB20 at the top of the time sheets, just a tenth quicker than his Mexican team mate. Yet as the session drew to a close, down came the rain meaning the final phase of Sprint qualifying was declared wet by race control.

A number of drivers went off track including Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc who spun gently into a barrier. Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri also had gravel excursions before the final frenetic attempts at a hot lap. Given the wet conditions, the drivers were able to record consecutive fast laps as the slippery conditions nullified the extra boost from the hybrid element of the power unit.

On his penultimate effort Lando Norris ran wide at the final turn and his wheels were clearly in the gravel trap. As is normal practice, the McLaren driver’s subsequent lap was also deleted which proved to be the quickest of all in the session.

Sainz options narrow further

 

 

 

Norris time reinstated

However, before Lewis Hamilton had chance to celebrate his first pole position since Hungary last season, the stewards unusually reinstated Norris time.

The reason for the change of protocol became clear quickly as F1 race director Niels Wittich event notes revealed no provision for subsequent laps to be deleted after a driver exceeded track limits. At certain circuits like the Red Bull Ring, running wide through the last corner means the driver is carrying extra speed which then benefits him the start of the next lap. This is not the case in Shanghai given the gravel on the outside of the corner.

The result was Norris quickest lap was reinstated meaning the McLaren driver starts ahead of Lewis Hamilton in the Sprint. Verstappen had a scrappy final session and could only manage the fourth best time which sees him start alongside Fernando Alonso in third.

After the session, McLaren boss Andrea Stella confirmed the team were ready to challenge the stewards decision had :and’s time not been reinstated.

Horner hits back at Wolff

 

 

 

McLaren ready to “battle” stewards decision

“We were ready to battle that decision,” he told the official F1 channel. “I think maybe that was deleted because Lando, on the previous lap, went off at the last corner. 

“But actually, if you go out at the last corner on the previous lap, then you lose a lot of time in the following lap because you launch at much lower speed,” explained the McLaren chief.

“I guess race control realised that themselves and Lando deserves the pole position and it’s good that the lap has been reinstated.”

McLaren were expecting a difficult weekend in Shanghai, with the slow corner characteristics of the track not suiting their 2024 challenger, yet despite exceeding expectations Stella suggested the result was more a reflection of the conditions rather than the McLaren car having inherent pace.

Marko explains the reason for Perez improvement

 

 

 

Wolff gracious as Hamilton loses pole

“First of all, it’s sprint pole in conditions which obviously were pretty extreme in terms of the low-grip condition in intermediate tyres today,” he said. “You could see drivers going off the track, which is not normal.

“I think this is just the reflection of how low the grip was in these conditions. So I would say, first of all, well done to Lando. He really drove minimising the impact of these conditions, finding his way and, maximising what was available. So well done to Lando.”

Toto Wolff was left to reflect on seeing Lewis Hamilton demoted one slot from pole position as Norris time was reinstated. “I haven’t seen the detail, just that all four tyres were off track,” he said.

“But, obviously, that was even slower [for Norris]. He could probably have gone faster, so I’m okay with that.” Wolff continued to explain he was happy with how the team had worked to produce a car capable of a front row starting position.

“The driving is most important in the wet, but it showed that it was about tyre preparation. We did the right things on the final run and the tyres were in the sweet spot. Combined with a great drive, that made the time.”

Verstappen responds to exit rumours

 

 

 

Ferrari struggle after big expectations

While McLaren were celebrating Lando Norris’ pole position, team mate Oscar Piastri was having a difficult time. His P8 time was over three seconds slower than Norris but Stella revealed mechanical issues had hampered the Aussies efforts.

“A little bit of a shame for Oscar, because he had an issue with a shift out of the hairpin,” said Stella. “The gearbox went into neutral, so he lost a lot of time – otherwise we would have had the second McLaren high up in the classification.

“So, so far, so good. We will see in dry conditions how much of our expectations were actually genuine.”

Carlos Sainz out qualified Charles Leclerc for the fourth time this year, but Ferrari had high hopes coming into the weekend and seeing their cars start the Sprint P5 and P7n will be a disappointment back in Maranello.

Kick Sauber had their best track session this year with both drivers making it into the top ten shootout. The crowd went wild when for the first time on home soil they watched a Chinese F1 driver who will now start the Sprint tomorrow in P10.

Sergio Perez reveals his F1 future

 

 

 

“Strange” Shanghai track as Verstappen predicts chao

Its been five long years since Formula One rolled into China and as the teams arrive at the Shanghai circuit some appear perplexed at the “painted” asphalt. The organisers of the Chinese Grand Prix had reportedly resurfaced the track which joined the F1 calendar in 2004, but it seems this is not the case and instead a new form of sealant has been applied.

The track has in fact been given a bitumen surface treatment intended to seal the gaps between the stones and the asphalt, its purpose to reduce the wear and tear and eliminate dust…. READ MORE