In the Chinese Grand Prix, Max Verstappen, the current leader of the Formula 1 championship, had a dominant performance. The race, which was the first full-distance race at the venue since 2019, was interrupted by two safety car periods. Verstappen’s victory in the sprint race the day before hinted at his strong performance, and he proved that to be true. However, his Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez was unable to secure a 1-2 finish as he dropped behind McLaren’s Lando Norris and couldn’t regain the position.
Verstappen quickly established his lead at the start of the race, leaving Perez behind as he overtook Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso. Verstappen continued to extend his lead throughout the race, leaving his competitors far behind. While the focus was on Verstappen, the battle for positions unfolded behind him. Norris swiftly overtook Alonso and built a gap between himself and the Ferraris, who had fallen behind George Russell’s Mercedes and Nico Hulkenberg’s Haas due to their own internal fight.
Norris and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc stayed out on track for a long time, taking advantage of Valtteri Bottas’ retirement from the race to make a pit stop under the virtual safety car. Bottas’ car had suffered an engine failure, resulting in a prolonged yellow flag period and eventually a full safety car deployment. Most drivers, including the Red Bulls, pitted during this period, causing Perez to drop back to fourth place behind Norris and Leclerc.
Before the race resumed, there was a collision between Alonso and Daniel Ricciardo at Turn 14, causing chaos in the pack. Shortly after, another collision occurred when Kevin Magnussen collided with Yuki Tsunoda, ending Tsunoda’s race and forcing Magnussen to pit for repairs. The second safety car period made it easier for the drivers to reach the finish line, and Perez had fewer laps to make his way back up to second place.
Perez managed to overtake Leclerc for third place, but he couldn’t catch up to Norris, who had quickly pulled away from the Ferrari after the restart. Norris finished in second place, 13.7 seconds behind Verstappen. Perez and Leclerc completed the top four, with Carlos Sainz in fifth place. Russell finished as the top Mercedes driver in sixth place, while Alonso took seventh. Alonso’s strategy of using the soft tires during the safety car period forced him to pit again later in the race.
Despite his pit stop, Alonso made his way back through the field with the help of fresher tires. He had a close call when he caught the gravel at the final corner but managed to recover and overtake Lewis Hamilton and Oscar Piastri in quick succession. Piastri finished in eighth place, while Hamilton, who started in 18th, made his way into the points to finish ninth. Hulkenberg secured the final point for Haas, but he was under investigation for a potential safety car infringement related to his overtaking of Ricciardo after the collision with Stroll. If Hulkenberg receives a penalty, Ocon will be promoted to 10th place, earning Alpine’s first point of the season.