Lewis Hamilton claimed his first victory for Ferrari by winning the Chinese Grand Prix Sprint.
Having taken a surprise pole on Friday, Hamilton held off Max Verstappen at the start and in the opening stages, before expertly managing his tyres to cruise to victory.
The victory was a first for both Hamilton and Ferrari in a Sprint, and marked a stunning turnaround from his disappointing debut for the Italian team at last weekend’s season-opening Australian Grand Prix.
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Lewis Hamilton holds Max Verstappen off to secure the Chinese Grand Prix Sprint lead.
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri passed Verstappen for second in the closing stages, but had taken too much out of his tyres to chase down Hamilton, who won by almost seven seconds.
Melbourne winner Lando Norris retained his drivers’ championship lead after scoring just a single point for finishing eighth, having dropped three places from his starting position of sixth following an opening-lap error.
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Oscar Piastri moves into second after a battle with Max Verstappen in the Chinese Grand Prix Sprint.
George Russell was fourth for Mercedes after holding off Hamilton’s Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc, who he overtook on the first lap.
Yuki Tsunoda drove superbly for Racing Bulls to take sixth, holding off Hamilton’s Mercedes replacement Andrea Kimi Antonelli.
Hamilton silents critics with statement win
Despite the positive vibes that came from Hamilton’s performance on Friday, his and Ferrari’s underwhelming effort in Australia meant there was plenty of doubt as to whether he would be able to convert pole to victory at the Shanghai International Circuit.
Not only did he have Verstappen alongside him, but there was also the looming threat of Piastri from third, in a McLaren that many had believed would be completely dominant this weekend.
The 40-year-old showed his reactions remain as sharp as ever as he got off the line cleanly and cut off across Verstappen to ensure he held the lead at the first corner.
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Lewis Hamilton led from start to finish as he claimed his first victory with Ferrari in the Sprint at the Chinese Grand Prix.
Hamilton was swiftly able to extend his lead over Verstappen to just above a second, keeping the Dutchman just outside of DRS range, but that would change when the gap suddenly closed on lap seven.
The seven-time world champion used his experience to deny Verstappen a clear overtaking opportunity, before the Red Bull dropped back a couple of laps later as his tyres struggled in the dirty air of the Ferrari.
With Hamilton moving clear, Verstappen then came under pressure from Piastri, but held him off until lap 15, by which point the Ferrari was almost three seconds clear.
It quickly became clear that Piastri had little life left in his tyres, and Hamilton drove into the distance to deliver a statement result.
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Lewis Hamilton was thrilled after winning his first race with Ferrari in the Sprint around Shanghai International Circuit.
Hamilton said: “I really do feel a lot of people underestimated the steep climb it is to get into a new team, become acclimatised within the team, understanding and communication – all sorts of things.
“The amount of critics and people I heard, yapping along the way, clearly not understanding maybe because they never had the experience or were unaware.
“It felt great to come here and be more comfortable in the car because in Melbourne I didn’t feel great in the car. From Lap 1 this weekend we have been on it. The engineers and mechanics have done a great job to finetune the car and it felt great.”
Sky Sports F1’s live Chinese GP schedule
Saturday March 22
- 5.45am: F1 Academy Race 1*
- 6.35am: Chinese GP Qualifying build-up*
- 7am: CHINESE GP QUALIFYING*
- 9am: Ted’s Qualifying Notebook*
Sunday March 23
- 2.40am: F1 Academy Race 2
- 5.30am: Chinese GP build-up: Grand Prix Sunday*
- 7am: THE CHINESE GRAND PRIX*
- 9am: Chinese GP reaction: Chequered flag*
- 10am: Ted’s Notebook*
*Also on Sky Sports Main Event
Formula 1 is in Shanghai this week for the first Sprint weekend of the season at the Chinese GP, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW – No contract, cancel anytime
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