Chinese GP - Sprint Race

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Lenovo Chinese GP

Sprint Race

April 20, 2024

Verstappen emerges victorious in the sprint race at the Chinese Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull's triple world champion, emerged victorious in the inaugural sprint race of the Formula 1 season at the Chinese Grand Prix held on Saturday in Shanghai.

At 26 years old, the Dutch driver defeated Lewis Hamilton from Mercedes by a margin of 13.043 seconds in the 19-lap race at the Shanghai International Circuit, further extending his championship lead over teammate Sergio Perez, who secured third place, to 15 points.

Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz of Ferrari finished in fourth and fifth place, respectively.

Lando Norris of McLaren, who had started in pole position, ran wide on the first lap while dueling with Hamilton, ultimately finishing in sixth place. His teammate Oscar Piastri secured seventh place, with George Russell of Mercedes claiming the final point in eighth position.

Verstappen, who began the race in fourth place, faced initial struggles but managed to overtake Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin on lap seven after a wheel-to-wheel battle with Sainz, and then passed Hamilton two laps later. Alonso retired from the race due to a puncture and damage sustained during the incident.

"The first few laps were quite hectic, they were pushing quite hard at the front and, of course, I had Carlos behind with new tyres so it was very difficult initially," Verstappen said. "But then we became stronger and I felt a bit more comfortable with the balance of the car as well, and I could look after my tyres so very pleased with that."

Hamilton, a seven-time world champion, expressed that the team had taken a significant leap forward by achieving their first top-three finish of the season.

"That's the best result I've had in a long time," the 39-year-old Briton said. "I found out a lot about the car through this short stint, from the race, so I'm excited for tomorrow."

Later on Saturday is when the main race qualifying takes place, and Hamilton was not anticipating Mercedes to compete for pole position.

"We're still not as quick on a single lap as the Ferraris, Red Bulls," he said. "I think the McLarens are ahead of us for sure, and possibly the Astons.

"I don't anticipate we will be fighting for the front row, but the fortunate thing is we can make some adjustments so hopefully I can improve the car in the next three hours and have a better qualifying session than we have had in the past."

Norris initially led from pole position but fell behind when Hamilton made a faster start off the line.

"I maybe could have been one or two positions higher but that was it," Norris said. "The Mercedes had very good pace today. Our race pace was pretty shocking today."

Perez from Red Bull capitalized on a duel between Alonso and Sainz.

"Carlos and Fernando were fighting and obviously we all had high [tyre] degradation following each other, and at some point I also had to defend from Charles," the Mexican said. "I managed to get by Fernando and Carlos; they got a little bit too close, I saw the opportunity and I went for it. We finished really close to Lewis."

A new battle unfolded between Sainz and Leclerc, resulting in the Ferraris colliding when the Spaniard went off track, giving the Monegasque driver the opportunity to move into first place.

Zhou Guanyu, the crowd's top pick, finished in ninth place for Sauber, who have not yet earned any points this season, with Kevin Magnussen securing the 10th position for Haas.

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Chinese GP 2024 Sprint Race Result

1. Max Verstappen, Red Bull (32:04.660)

2. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes (+13.043)

3. Sergio Pérez, Red Bull (+15.258)

4. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari (+17.486)

5. Carlos Sainz, Ferrari (+20.696)

6. Lando Norris, McLaren (+22.088)

7. Oscar Piastri, McLaren (+24.713)

8. George Ruselle, Mercedes (+25.696)

9. Zhou Guanyu, Sauber (+31.951)

10. Kevin Magnussen, Haas (+37.398)

11. Daniel Ricciardo, RB (+37.840)

12. Valtteri Bottas, Sauber (+38.295)

13. Esteban Ocon, Alpine (+39.841)

14. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin (+40.299)

15. Pierre Gasly, Alpine (+40.838)

16. Yuki Tsunoda, RB (+41.870)

17. Alexander Albon, Williams (+42.998)

18. Logan Sargeant, Williams (+46.352)

19. Nico Hülkenberg, Haas (+49.630)

20. Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin (+2 Laps)