CHINA: Lots going on.

NUMBER TWO

*Apologies for how insanely late this is*

The first sprint, brakes on fire, and not 1 but 3 disqualifications, China is eventful.

Headlines of the sprint: Hamilton’s first win for Ferrari - big moment. Piastri comes in strong at P2, while Norris scrapes into the points at P8. Verstappen P3, Russell P4, Leclerc P5 – pretty standard stuff. Tsunoda impressive P6 finish, and Antonelli at P7. To the race…

Let’s begin with the extremes. McLaren – excellent day. Ferrari – awful.

Piastri, having nailed the sprint, starts and finishes pole in his usual cool, calm and collected fashion. Norris puts on a much better performance than his sprint and comes in behind his teammate at P2 – albeit with no brakes (his brake pedal gives up on him in the closing laps). They finish the weekend with a whopping 51 points.

Ferrari on the other hand take just 12 points (gained in the sprint), as both drivers are disqualified from the race due to being underweight. Disqualification ignored, the two drivers come in at a respectable P5 and P6, but it’s not smooth sailing. Leclerc loses a chunk out of his front wing in the opening lap, and Hamilton struggles to settle – ending up with a 2-stop strategy and not just letting, but actively suggesting a position swap with his teammate. Not ideal.

Sandwiched between the McLarens and Ferraris crossing the line, we have Russell and Verstappen. Both put in a solid performance, with Russell taking another P3 and proving himself as a strong leading driver for Mercedes, and Verstappen displaying Russell-esque tyre management as he lights up the track in the closing laps to take Leclerc for P4.

It's a heck of a result for the rest of the Top 10, who all benefit from the disqualifications - Williams and Haas in particular. Albon and Sainz are bumped up from their respective P9 and P13 finishes to P7 and P10. Those points push them all the way up the Constructors’ Championship to P4, level with Ferrari. This is definitely a driving pairing to watch this season, and could be transformative for Williams. Haas come out even better, with Ocon jumping up from P7 to P5 and Bearman, who qualified P17, taking P8. All 4 drivers have a good race, but Bearman puts in a particularly confident, attacking performance – making bold moves in just his second rookie season race.

Elsewhere, it’s a good day for Antonelli, Stroll and Hadjar – albeit with a touch of luck. Antonelli continues his impressive start for Mercedes, nabbing P6 even after picking up floor damage in Lap 1. Stroll finds himself in the mix with some big battles mid race – with Russell and Norris coming to blows with him as they make their way up the grid post pitting. The Aston Martin is the last to pit in Lap 37 which eventually pays off (via the disqualifications) as his P13 finish is bumped up into the points at P9. Similarly, Hadjar benefits but narrowly misses out on points as he takes P11 – not the best performance on the grid, but a massive improvement from Aus and a display of confident overtakes from the RB driver.

It’s a shocker for Alonso, Tsunoda and Gasly. Alonso’s brakes literally catch fire and he retires in Lap 6. Tsunoda’s front wing somewhere snaps off entirely of its own accord and he comes in last. Gasly is disqualified. Tough day.

The rest put in average performances – Doohan is aggressive but ends up hit with a 10 second penalty for forcing fellow rookie Hadjar off track, and takes P13. Lawson continues to struggle in his Red Bull and finishes P12. The Saubers bring up the rear at P14 and P15.

A mixed bag, onto Japan…