Oscar Piastri claimed his first-ever victory at the Chinese Grand Prix, dominating the race from pole position. The McLaren driver remained unchallenged throughout the race, with his teammate Lando Norris finishing in second place, marking the team’s 50th one-two finish in Formula 1.
Piastri, who secured his first pole on Saturday, had a strong start on Sunday, leading into the first corner, while Norris overtook George Russell’s Mercedes for second. From there, Piastri extended his lead, maintaining a smooth and steady drive for his third career win, following victories in Hungary and Azerbaijan last year.
“It’s very satisfying, obviously,” Piastri said, now in fourth place in the standings, just 10 points behind Norris, with 22 races remaining. “I think it’s always a good day when you cross the line first, but this one has been the most satisfying—not just the race, but the whole weekend. The two wins I had previously were very different, and I think this one’s been the most complete.”
The final results of the race were changed by stewards after it concluded, with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton, and Alpine’s Pierre Gasly all being disqualified.
Lando Norris had a more challenging race to secure his second-place finish. The British driver had to overtake both George Russell and Alex Albon of Williams after his pit stop. He then followed his teammate, Piastri, across the finish line but faced a worsening brake-pedal issue in the final stages, which nearly hindered his ability to complete the race.
“It was a tough race,” Norris said. “I’m satisfied with the result, and for the team, the 50th one-two for McLaren is a great achievement. I’m happy to be part of that, and Oscar had a great race. I’m also pleased given how difficult the past few days have been for me and how much I struggled to get comfortable and figure out how to drive the car.”
George Russell finished in third, marking Mercedes’ 300th podium in F1. It was Russell’s second consecutive podium finish of the season, and his consistent performances have placed him third in the standings, just one point ahead of Piastri.
“In the last three races, including the sprint, the result we achieved was the best we could have gotten, so that gives me a lot of satisfaction,” Russell said.
“If we can deliver a car that’s capable of competing with McLaren, I’m confident we can finish ahead because we’re working so well as a team.”
Max Verstappen, last year’s winner, finished in fourth after passing Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in the final laps. Leclerc’s race was affected by a lap-one collision with his teammate Lewis Hamilton, which damaged the left-front endplate of his wing and disrupted his car’s aerodynamics for the rest of the race.
However, both Leclerc, who finished fifth, and Pierre Gasly, who finished 16th, were disqualified after it was found that their cars were 1 kilogram under the minimum weight limit at the end of the race.
Hamilton, who won Saturday’s Sprint race for his first Ferrari victory and finished sixth in the main race, was also disqualified. His car was found to have a skid block on the underside that was thinner than the permitted minimum limit.
Haas’ double points finish was helped by the disqualifications, with Esteban Ocon moving up from seventh to fifth, and rookie Oliver Bearman advancing from 10th to eighth.
Mercedes’ rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli finished in sixth, followed by Alex Albon in seventh. Lance Stroll, driving for Aston Martin, moved up to ninth, while Carlos Sainz of Williams secured the final point in 10th.
The next race will take place at Japan’s iconic Suzuka Circuit on April 6th, kicking off a triple-header with races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
