Max Verstappen claimed pole position for the first Chinese GP (Grand Prix ) since 2019, marking a typical performance from the reigning world champion. A surprising setback awaited Lewis Hamilton in Shanghai as he faced elimination in Q1, relegating the seven-time champion to start Sunday’s race from the 18th position on the grid.
The day started promisingly for Hamilton, who had a strong showing in the sprint race earlier, securing second place. Verstappen won the sprint race, making a comeback from fourth to surpass Hamilton, who had led for the first half of the race but couldn’t match the pace of the Red Bull.
Despite feeling content with his sprint race performance, describing it as his “best result in a long time,” Hamilton’s fortunes took a turn for the worse during qualifying. An error on his part, locking up at the hairpin and running wide, cost him valuable time. He lost six-tenths to his Mercedes teammate George Russell in the final sector, ultimately failing to advance to Q2.
Acknowledging his mistake, Hamilton apologized to the team. This marks the first time since Jeddah in 2022 that he has failed to advance from Q1, and it appears likely that his streak of failing to finish in the top six this season will continue into Sunday’s race.
Red Bul
In contrast, Red Bull demonstrated formidable form throughout the weekend. Despite the teams facing some uncertainty due to the five-year hiatus from racing at Shanghai and the unique sprint weekend format with only one practice session, Red Bull excelled.
Dominance of Max Verstappen was evident in Q3, where he comfortably led in the final two sectors, ultimately setting the pace with a 1min 33.977sec lap, which was four-tenths faster than Fernando Alonso in second. Verstappen then improved his time on his final laps, securing pole position with a lap time of 1min 33.660, three-tenths quicker than Sergio Pérez and nearly half a second ahead of the rest of the field.
This pole at Chinese GP position extends Verstappen’s streak of dominance in qualifying this season, marking his fifth consecutive pole. It’s also a significant milestone for Red Bull, as it marks their 100th pole position and their first in China in over a decade, since Sebastian Vettel secured pole in 2011.
In the morning’s sprint race, Hamilton made a strong start, overtaking pole-sitter Lando Norris to take the lead.