Chinese GP - Sprint Shootout

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Lenovo Chinese GP

Sprint Shootout

April 19, 2024

Rain leads to a varied starting grid for the Chinese Grand Prix sprint race with Norris securing pole position.

SHANGHAI, China -- Lando Norris has secured pole position for the inaugural sprint race of the 2024 season following a wet sprint shootout session in China that led to a varied starting grid.

Initially, Norris had his fastest time invalidated for breaching track limits at the final corner on his previous lap, resulting in a brief promotion of Lewis Hamilton to the top spot. However, race control swiftly reinstated Norris' time.

Hamilton will commence the race from second place representing Mercedes on the shuffled grid, with Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin lining up in third position.

Despite being the championship leader, Max Verstappen could only achieve the fourth fastest time in the wet final session as two of his three attempts were invalidated due to track limits violations.

The 19-lap sprint race is scheduled for Saturday morning in China, preceding the qualifying session for the full-length grand prix. Points are awarded from first to eighth place in this sprint race.

While not as crucial as the main grand prix qualifying, this outcome represents a significant milestone as it is the first time a McLaren car has secured the front spot on an F1 grid this season, since Norris claimed pole position in the sprint race in Brazil last year.

"It was [wild]. I am extremely happy, big thanks to the team. It was tricky," Norris mentioned later. "I got a good final lap. I am happy, sad it is not for a proper qualifying, but good enough.

"They were conditions where you've just got to risk a lot, you've just got to push, build tyre temperature and so forth. I was a little bit nervous that I made a few mistakes, started to aquaplane quite a bit, but it's good fun.

He added: "It gets your heart going, and to end up on top is exactly what we wanted. So a nice surprise and a good position for tomorrow," he added.

Meanwhile, Hamilton stated: "It was very tricky, tricky conditions, not a lot of grip as you saw

for everyone. But yeah, so happy. As soon as I saw the rain coming, I was getting excited.

"Naturally in dry conditions, we're not quick enough, so when the rain came, and I thought I'd have a bit of a better opportunity, and that's kind of when it all came alive."

As rain began to fall towards the end of SQ2, it led all drivers to switch from slick tyres to intermediates by the beginning of SQ3.

During the first lap out of the pits, Charles Leclerc, who had qualified seventh, went off track at Turn 3, while several drivers had their lap times deleted for exceeding track limits.

Verstappen went off track at Turn Six on his initial attempt and again at the final corner on his second try. He managed to complete a clean lap before the chequered flag, but for the first time this year, it was not quick enough to secure a spot on the front row of the grid.

"It was incredibly slippery," Verstappen said. "I struggled a lot to get the temperature in the tyres, it was very difficult to keep the car on-track, and it never really switched on for me.

"It was just like driving on ice. That's why I think it was quite deserved where we are in qualifying, because it's not really working for me in the wet, even though I think the dry we look quite good.

"So of course I'm quite happy with that."

Norris went off track at the final corner just before setting his fastest lap, which could have been seen as an advantage for the next lap. However, the FIA promptly reinstated his best time in accordance with the race director's guidelines for the weekend.

Carlos Sainz will start fifth on the grid for Ferrari, with Sergio Perez for Red Bull behind him, followed by Leclerc's Ferrari in seventh and Norris' McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri in eighth.

Valtteri Bottas claimed ninth on the grid for Sauber, with Chinese driver Zhou Guanyu in tenth place, setting the fastest time in front of an enthusiastic home crowd.

The start of the second part of qualifying was delayed due to a grass fire near Turn Five. A similar incident occurred during the morning practice at Turn Seven, with video evidence suggesting the fires were caused by sparks from the cars' titanium skid plates.

The brief delay in Q2 coincided with light rain, allowing all drivers to complete a flying lap on slick tires before heavier rain arrived towards the end of the session. The downpour at the end of Q2 solidified positions from the drivers' initial attempts, with Zhou narrowly beating George Russell to secure a spot in Q3 by 0.038s.

Haas drivers Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg will start 12th and 13th, respectively, ahead of Daniel Ricciardo in 14th and Lance Stroll in 15th for Aston Martin.

Pierre Gasly narrowly missed advancing to Q2 by less than a tenth of a second but outqualified Alpine teammate Esteban Ocon by 0.088s. Ocon's car was equipped with the team's latest updates, aimed at improving performance, although the new parts and lighter chassis could only be fitted to Ocon's car due to manufacturing constraints for the struggling French team.

Alex Albon claimed the 18th position for Williams, with Yuki Tsunoda finishing 19th for Red Bull, and Logan Sargeant coming in last for Williams.

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Chinese GP 2024 Sprint Shootout Result

1. Lando Norris, McLaren (1:57.940)

2. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes (1:59.201)

3. Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin (1:59.915)

4. Max Verstappen, Red Bull (2:00.028)

5. Carlos Sainz, Ferrari (2:00.214)

6. Sergio Pérez, Red Bull (2:00.375)

7. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari (2:00.566)

8. Oscar Piastri, McLaren ( (2:00.990)

9. Valtteri Bottas, Sauber (2:01.044)

10. Zhou Guanyu, Sauber (2:03.537)

11. George Russell, Mercedes (1:36.345)

12. Kevin Magnussen, Haas (1:36.473)

13. Nico Hülkenberg, Haas (1:36.478)

14. Daniel Ricciardo, RB (1:36.553)

15. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin (1:36.677)

16. Pierre Gasly, Alpine (1:37.632)

17. Esteban Ocon, Alpine (1:37.720)

18. Alexander Albon, Williams (1:37.812)

19. Yuki Tsunoda, RB (1:37.892)

20. Logan Sargeant, Williams (1:37.923)