The 2025 Chinese Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 Heineken Chinese Grand Prix 2025) was a

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship ...

motor race that was held on 23 March 2025 at the

Shanghai International Circuit The Shanghai International Circuit () is a motorsport race track, situated in the Jiading District, Shanghai. The circuit is best known as the venue for the annual Chinese Grand Prix which was hosted from 2004 to 2019 and was scheduled again f ...

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...

, China. It was the second round of the 2025 Formula One World Championship and the first of six Grands Prix in the season to utilise the sprint format.

Lewis Hamilton Sir Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton (born 7 January 1985) is a British racing driver currently competing in Formula One for Mercedes. In Formula One, Hamilton has won a joint-record seven World Drivers' Championship titles (tied with Mic ...

in the Ferrari took sprint

pole position In a motorsports race, the pole position is usually the best and "statistically the most advantageous" starting position on the track. The pole position is usually earned by the driver with the best qualifying times in the trials before the ra ...

and kept the lead to win the sprint ahead of

Oscar Piastri Oscar Piastri (born 6 April 2001) is an Australian racing driver who previously served as the reserve driver for Alpine F1 Team, having previously been in the team's driver academy. He won the 2019 Formula Renault Eurocup with R-ace GP, and wo ...

in the

McLaren McLaren Racing Limited is a British motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. McLaren is best known as a Formula One constructor, the second oldest active team, and the second most successful Formul ...

and

Max Verstappen Max Emilian Verstappen (; born 30 September 1997) is a Belgian-Dutch Auto racing, racing driver and the 2021 Formula One World Championship, 2021 and 2022 Formula One World Championship, 2022 Formula One World Champion. He Formula One drivers ...

in the

Red Bull Red Bull is a brand of energy drinks of Austrian company Red Bull GmbH. With 38% market share, it is the most popular energy drink brand as of 2019. Since its launch in 1987, more than 100 billion cans of Red Bull have been sold worldwide, inc ...

. Piastri took his maiden career pole position for the main race, ahead of George Russell in the

Mercedes Mercedes may refer to: People * Mercedes (name), a Spanish feminine name, including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or last name Automobile-related * Mercedes (marque), the pre-1926 brand name of German automobile m ...

and teammate

Lando Norris Lando Norris (born 13 November 1999) is a Belgian-British racing driver currently competing in Formula One with McLaren, racing under the British flag. He won the MSA Formula championship in 2015, and the Toyota Racing Series, Eurocup Formu ...

. In the main race, Piastri converted his pole position to a win ahead of teammate Norris and Russell. Following the race,

Charles Leclerc Charles Marc Hervé Perceval Leclerc (; born 16 October 1997) is a Monégasque racing driver, currently racing in Formula One for Scuderia Ferrari. He won the GP3 Series championship in 2016 and the FIA Formula 2 Championship in . Leclerc ma ...

and

Pierre Gasly Pierre Gasly (; born 7 February 1996) is a French racing driver, currently competing in Formula One under the French flag, racing for Scuderia AlphaTauri. He is the 2016 GP2 Series champion, and the runner-up in the 2014 Formula Renault 3.5 S ...

were disqualified from fifth, sixth and eleventh respectively. Leclerc and Gasly were disqualified due to their cars being underweight, whilst Hamilton was disqualified due to excessive

plank Plank may refer to: *Plank (wood), flat, elongated, and rectangular timber with parallel faces * Plank (exercise), an isometric exercise for the abdominal muscles *Martins Creek (Kentucky), the location of Plank post office * ''The Plank'' (1967 fi ...

wear. This marked the first time in Formula One that both Ferraris were disqualified from a Grand Prix.

Background

The event was held at the

for the 18th time in the circuit's history, across the weekend of 21–23 March. The Grand Prix was the second round of the 2025 Formula One World Championship and the 18th running of the

Chinese Grand Prix The Chinese Grand Prix () is a round of the Formula One World Championship and was contracted to return in 2023 but will now not do so until 2024 at the earliest. It is currently held at the Shanghai International Circuit, Jiading, Shanghai, ...

. It was also the first of six Grands Prix in the season to utilise the sprint format and the second time overall that the Chinese Grand Prix featured it. Prior to the event, teams and tyre supplier

Pirelli Pirelli & C. S.p.A. is a multinational tyre manufacturer based in Milan, Italy. The company, which has been listed on the Milan Stock Exchange since 1922, is the 6th-largest tyre manufacturer and is focused on the consumer production of tyres ...

faced what the

FIA FIA is the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (English: International Automobile Federation), the world's governing body for all forms of motor sport where four or more wheels are used. Fia or FIA may also refer to: People * Fia Backs ...

referred to as logistical issues regarding the transportation of equipment from

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...

, venue of the preceding Grand Prix, to Shanghai. As a result, the FIA gave special dispensation to reduce the night curfew period on Wednesday before this event only from 11.5 hours to just six hours in order to minimise the impact of these issues on the event.

Championship standings before the race

Going into the event,

led the Drivers' Championship with 25 points, 7 points ahead of

in second, and 10 ahead of George Russell in third.

and

, both holding 27 points, entered this round as the leaders of the Constructors' Championship from

Red Bull Racing Red Bull Racing, also simply known as Red Bull or RBR and currently competing as Oracle Red Bull Racing, is a Formula One racing team, racing under an Austrian licence and based in the United Kingdom. It is one of two Formula One teams owned ...

, who are third with 18 points.

Entrants

The drivers and teams were the same as published in the season entry list, with no additional stand-in drivers for the race. The Grand Prix marked the last for

Liam Lawson Liam Lawson (born 11 February 2002) is a New Zealand motor racing driver set to compete in the 2023 Super Formula Championship with Team Mugen. Lawson, who is mentored by three-time New Zealand Grand Prix winner Ken Smith, previously competed f ...

and

Yuki Tsunoda Yuki Tsunoda (Japanese: 角田裕毅, ''Tsunoda Yūki'', ; born 11 May 2000) is a Japanese racing driver who is racing for Scuderia AlphaTauri in Formula One. Supported by Honda since 2016 through the , he was the 2018 Japanese F4 champion a ...

for Racing Bulls; from the

Japanese Grand Prix The Japanese Grand Prix ( ja, 日本グランプリ, Nihon-guranpuri) is a motor racing event in the calendar of the Formula One World Championship. Historically, Japan has been one of the last races of the season, and as such the Japanese Gran ...

onward, both drivers would swap teams.

Tyre choices

Tyre supplier

brought the C2, C3, and C4 tyre compounds designated hard, medium, and soft, respectively, for teams to use at the event.

Track changes

The DRS zone leading in to turn 14 was lengthened by .

Practice

The sole

free practice A Formula One Grand Prix is a sporting event which takes place over three days (usually Friday to Sunday), with a series of practice and qualifying sessions prior to the race on Sunday. Current regulations provide for two free practice sessions ...

session was held on 21 March 2025, at 11:30 local time (

UTC+8 UTC+08:00 is an identifier for a time offset from UTC of +08:00. With an estimated population of 1.708 billion living within the time zone, roughly 24% of the world population, it is the most populous time zone in the world, as well as a ...

), and was topped by

driver

, ahead of Ferrari driver

, and Norris' teammate

. A red flag was observed after

Jack Doohan Jack Doohan (born 20 January 2003) is an Australian racing driver, currently serving as a reserve driver in Formula One for Alpine F1 Team, Alpine. Doohan most recently competed in the 2023 FIA Formula 2 Championship for Virtuosi Racing, Virtu ...

's Alpine A525 lost

power steering A power steering is a mechanical device equipped on a motor vehicle that helps drivers steer the vehicle by reducing steering effort needed to turn the steering wheel, making it easier for the vehicle to turn or maneuver at lower speeds. Hydraul ...

, stranding him on track.

Sprint qualifying

Sprint qualifying A Formula One Grand Prix is a sporting event which takes place over three days (usually Friday to Sunday), with a series of practice and qualifying sessions prior to the race on Sunday. Current regulations provide for two free practice sessions ...

was held on 21 March 2025, at 15:30 local time (

), and determined the starting grid order for the

sprint Sprint may refer to: Aerospace *Spring WS202 Sprint, a Canadian aircraft design *Sprint (missile), an anti-ballistic missile Automotive and motorcycle * Alfa Romeo Sprint, automobile produced by Alfa Romeo between 1976 and 1989 * Chevrolet Sprin ...

Sprint qualifying classification

Notes * –

Nico Hülkenberg Nicolas Hülkenberg (, born 19 August 1987) is a German professional racing driver who is scheduled to make a full-time racing return to Formula 1 with Haas F1 Team in 2023, after serving as a reserve driver for Aston Martin F1 Team for the ye ...

qualified 19th, but was required to start the sprint from the pit lane as his car was modified under

parc fermé ''Parc fermé'', literally meaning "closed park" in French, is a secure area at a motor racing circuit wherein the cars are driven back to the pits post- and sometimes pre-race. Area For example, according to the FIA Formula One regulations, th ...

conditions.

Sprint

The

was held on 22 March 2025, at 11:00 local time (

), and was run for 19 laps.

Sprint report

in the Ferrari took pole position and held a lead throughout the sprint to take his first and also Ferrari’s first ever sprint victory. The remaining podium positions were secured by

in the

and

in the

. Early championship leader

in the McLaren finished eighth having lost places at the start of the race.

Sprint classification

Notes * –

finished 20th on track, but received a post-sprint ten-second time penalty for causing a collision with

Gabriel Bortoleto Gabriel Bortoleto Oliveira (born 14 October 2004) is a Brazilian racing driver, currently competing in the 2023 FIA Formula 3 Championship for Trident. He previously competed for R-ace GP in the 2022 Formula Regional European Championship. Car ...

. The penalty made no difference as he was classified in the last position.

Qualifying

Qualifying Qualification is either the process of qualifying for an achievement, or a credential attesting to that achievement, and may refer to: * Professional qualification, attributes developed by obtaining academic degrees or through professional exper ...

was held on 22 March 2025, at 15:00 local time (

), and determined the starting grid order for the main race.

Qualifying report

in the

took his maiden Grand Prix pole position ahead of George Russell in the

. Piastri's teammate

qualified third having topped Q1 and Q2.

Qualifying classification

Notes * –

qualified 20th, but was required to start the race from the pit lane as his car was modified under

conditions.

Race

The race was held on 23 March 2025, at 15:00 local time (

), and was run for 56 laps.

Race report

Polesitter

in the

kept the lead on the first lap, while his teammate

moved up to second.

in the Ferrari tagged with teammate

, causing the left endplate of Leclerc's front wing to come off. On the fifth lap,

Fernando Alonso Fernando Alonso Díaz (; born 29 July 1981) is a Spanish racing driver currently competing for Alpine in Formula One. He won the series' World Drivers' Championship in and with Renault, and has also driven for McLaren, Ferrari, and M ...

in the

Aston Martin Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings PLC is an English manufacturer of luxury sports cars and grand tourers. Its predecessor was founded in 1913 by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford. Steered from 1947 by David Brown, it became associated ...

retired from the race due to overheating on his rear brakes, while

Sauber Sauber Motorsport AG is a Swiss motorsport engineering company. It was founded in 1970 (as PP Sauber AG) by Peter Sauber, who progressed through hillclimbing and the World Sportscar Championship to reach Formula One in . After operating it ...

spun into the gravel on the same lap, though he was able to keep going. Piastri and Norris, the latter suffering from a worsening brake issue, completed their 50th 1-2 finish for McLaren ahead of George Russell in the

Post-race

Following the race,

of Ferrari and

Alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National P ...

were disqualified due to their cars being underweight, while sprint winner and Leclerc's teammate

was disqualified for excessive skid wear. This marked the first double disqualification for a team since

Renault Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinational automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company produces a range of cars and vans, and in the past has manufacture ...

's double disqualification at the

2019 Japanese Grand Prix The 2019 Japanese Grand Prix (formally known as the Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix 2019) was a Formula One racing event held on 13 October 2019 at the Suzuka International Racing Course in Suzuka in the Mie Prefecture, Japan. The race was the 1 ...

, the first Grand Prix to see more than two disqualifications since the

2004 Canadian Grand Prix The 2004 Canadian Grand Prix (officially the Formula 1 Grand Prix du Canada 2004) was a Formula One motor race held on 13 June 2004 at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. It was Race 8 of 18 in the 2004 FIA Formula One World Championship. It was won ...

, and the first time in Formula One history that both Ferrari cars had been disqualified from a Grand Prix. In the days that followed the Grand Prix,

announced that

would undergo a driver swap with Racing Bulls'

, with the latter taking his seat at Red Bull from the

onward.

Race classification

Notes * –

finished 14th, but received a 10-second time penalty for forcing

Isack Hadjar Isack Alexandre Hadjar (born 28 September 2004) is a French-Algerian racing driver who most recently competed in the FIA Formula 3 Championship for Hitech Grand Prix. He was the 2021 Formula Regional European rookie champion and is a member o ...

off track. He gained a position following the disqualifications of

and

. * – Charles Leclerc and Pierre Gasly finished 5th and 11th, respectively, but were disqualified as their cars were found underweight. * – Lewis Hamilton finished 6th, but was disqualified for excessive plank wear.

Championship standings after the race

;Drivers' Championship standings ;Constructors' Championship standings * Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.

Notes

References

External links

{{F1GP 2020–29 China

Grand Prix Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to: Arts and entertainment ...

2025 Predicted and scheduled events *January 1 ** In the United States, books, films, and other works published in 1929 will enter the public domain, assuming there are no changes made to copyright law. ** The American FAA will have been imp ...