In just his second race weekend with Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton has achieved a race win. The 7-time Champion controlled the sprint race from start to beginning. The McLarens on the other hand, suffered with race pace as Lando Norris fell back all the way to P8.
Just last weekend, Ferrari did not have the pace to qualify anywhere near the front row. Now, they have just won the sprint race at the Chinese Grand Prix. It seems as though the team has made several changes in the past week and are now ready to battle it out with McLaren for the Championship.
Lewis Hamilton drives flawless race
After a near-perfect lap during sprint qualifying on Friday, he drove a flawless race on Saturday. He had a clean start, putting himself in front of Verstappen to prevent an overtake. Despite the threat of Verstappen behind him, Hamilton did not make a single mistake as he managed his tyres brilliantly.
Here’s what Hamilton said after the race:
“I woke up feeling great today, the weather is beautiful and we have this amazing crowd. The [Sprint] was difficult, I think people underestimate the steep climb is it to get into a new team, understand a new team.
“So it is great to come here and feel more comfortable in the car as in Melbourne, I really didn’t feel comfortable in the car.
“It felt great today, I got a good start. I don’t feel the pressure, I know the team wants to win and it means everything to them. Rome wasn’t built in a day, so one day at a time.”
🔴| LEWIS HAMILTON WINS WITH FERRARI 🔥🔥
Piastri is second and Verstappen finishes third#F1 #ChineseGP pic.twitter.com/wg3EEb76NH
— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) March 22, 2025
Just last weekend, we saw Hamilton still trying to get adjusted to the Ferrari. So what changed in the span of the last week?
During the first couple of free practice sessions in Melbourne, the SF-25 showed an extremely strong pace. However, the team made some changes ahead of qualifying that caused the car to behave differently.
Coming to China, Ferrari probably decided to revert the changes they made last week ahead of qualifying. This helped unlock some more pace in the car, allowing Hamilton to take the Sprint pole and win the race.
Qualifying vital for the Chinese Grand Prix
If there’s one thing we learned from the Sprint Race, it’s that tyre wear and track position are vital for the Chinese Grand Prix.
We saw how difficult it was for drivers to overtake when following in the dirty air from the car in front. This prevented them from getting too close to the car ahead while approaching the longest straight on the calendar.
We saw Oscar Piastri fight the dirty air and still manage to overtake Max Verstappen. However, he had used too much of the tyres to make that overtake that he didn’t have enough to catch Hamilton who extended his gap to 6 seconds.
Lewis Hamilton ‘Gobsmacked’ After Securing Sprint Pole With Ferrari at the Chinese GP
After the race, Ferrari team principal, Fred Vasseur stated what Ferrari needs to do to win again in the Grand Prix race on Sunday:
“It was all about tyre management today, and it is much easier when you are out in front,”
“It is important to have a good quali this afternoon for the race tomorrow. As soon as you are in the dirty air, you struggle to overtake so quali will be crucial.”
This is why taking Pole Position during qualifying is vital for this race. Given that it is very difficult to overtake on this track, all the top teams will be hoping to qualify in the front row in order to have the best chance of winning the Chinese Grand Prix.
What are your predictions for the qualifying session in Shanghai? Post your thoughts in the comments section below.
