Chinese GP sprint report: Lewis Hamilton wins in Ferrari colours for the first time in his career!. Results and report from the F1 Chinese GP sprint race.

Lewis Hamilton capitalizes on his first triumph with Ferrari, securing victory in the Chinese Grand Prix Sprint race ahead of Oscar Piastri in second and Max Verstappen in third.

Sprint Race Recap

As the cars lined up on the grid, Max Verstappen angled his Red Bull toward Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari, aiming to gain an advantage off the line and defend against any early overtaking attempts from the Briton.

When the lights went out, Hamilton made an excellent launch, successfully fending off Piastri. Charles Leclerc also held his ground against George Russell while attempting to challenge Piastri into Turn 3. Meanwhile, Lando Norris found himself compromised at Turn 5, losing two positions after his McLaren got unsettled mid-corner.

As the pack approached the hairpin at Turn 14, Russell executed a decisive move on Charles Leclerc, overtaking the Ferrari on the inside. The Monegasque, however, remained glued to the back of the Mercedes, determined to reclaim the lost position.

By lap 3, the seven-time Formula 1 world champion set the fastest lap of the race, crucially pulling out of Verstappen’s DRS range.

By lap 5, the top five order remained unchanged: Hamilton led from Verstappen, followed by Piastri, Russell, and Leclerc. Behind them, Yuki Tsunoda continued to impress in sixth. Meanwhile, Red Bull’s Liam Lawson made a late-braking move on Alpine’s Jack Doohan into the Turn 14 hairpin. The aggressive maneuver led to contact between the two, prompting the Stewards to launch an investigation into Lawson for causing a collision.

Lap 9 saw Hamilton’s tires degrade faster than expected, allowing Verstappen to close the gap to just six-tenths of a second. Piastri, on the other hand, dropped out of Verstappen’s DRS range, losing touch with the front two. The Ferrari driver wasn’t the only one struggling with tire wear—Norris, running in ninth, radioed his engineer Will Joseph, complaining that despite managing his pace, his tires were still wearing excessively.

Further down the order, an intense midfield battle unfolded as Gabriel Bortoleto, Isack Hadjar, Pierre Gasly, Carlos Sainz, and Liam Lawson fought fiercely for P13. In the midst of the scrap, Lawson made contact with another car on the main straight, causing minor bodywork damage to his Red Bull.

At the front, Oscar Piastri also began experiencing graining, while Verstappen’s front tires looked visibly worn. This played into Hamilton’s hands, as the Ferrari driver extended his lead to 1.5 seconds.

By lap 12, Carlos Sainz’s struggles continued. The Spaniard lost two positions in a single corner, first to Hadjar at Turn 4, then to Lawson, who seized the opportunity to slip past as well. Realizing his deteriorating pace, Sainz immediately dived into the pits for fresh rubber.

Lap 14 saw Oscar Piastri challenge Verstappen with a bold move into Turn 1. The Dutchman defended aggressively, forcing Piastri to attempt the pass around the outside. Shortly after, Verstappen radioed his engineer, Gianpiero Lambiase, reporting that both his front tires were “completely gone.”

A few laps later, Oscar Piastri finally lined up an overtake on Verstappen at Turn 14. The Red Bull driver didn’t give up the position easily, but their wheel-to-wheel battle remained fair. Further back, Norris also gained a place, overtaking Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll to move up to eighth and secure a points-paying position.

F1 China, the Sprint standings