China confirms Ferrari’s problems, but McLaren is not perfect: the comments of a former Ferrari engineer. A former Ferrari engineer commented on the Shanghai race.

Shanghai was a weekend full of twists and turns. From Hamilton’s victory in the Sprint to Ferrari’s double disqualification after the race, the Chinese GP provided important insights into the current competitive order on the grid. McLaren continues to establish itself as the team to beat, ahead of a Mercedes enjoying an excellent Russell and an increasingly impressive Kimi Antonelli. Doubts remain about Red Bull and Ferrari, with Helmut Marko reportedly already considering replacing Liam Lawson with Yuki Tsunoda.

In this context, the one-week break before Suzuka could be an opportunity for the teams. Engineers will have the chance to analyze in detail the data collected from the first two races of 2025 to find solutions to the issues that have emerged so far.

Luigi Mazzola’s post-race words
Immediately after the Chinese GP, engineer Mazzola posted a brief comment on his Instagram profile. “A very boring race due to the need to manage the tires. McLaren was superior to everyone, with an excellent Oscar Piastri and a nervous Lando Norris due to a brake issue. A very solid Russell once again brings Mercedes to be the second force. Max lit up his race with the overtake on Leclerc.” – the Italian explained.

Then came his comment on Ferrari, before the news of the double disqualification. “For Ferrari, a weekend with two sides. Hamilton won the Sprint but had a lackluster race. The issues seen in Australia are still there, but overall, there were some satisfactions in China,” Luigi Mazzola added.

Speaking later on the Race Anatomy show, the former Ferrari engineer also commented on McLaren. “In the Sprint, they were slightly behind the others. But looking at it from the outside, you can see that it’s not an easy car to drive. That means they did a great job with the balance between the Sprint and qualifying. I still believe they are one step ahead of everyone, but they have to keep working like the others, and this opens the door to several possibilities.” – the former Ferrari engineer concluded.