Round two of the 2025 Formula 1 season is done and dusted, and boy, did it stir the pot. Though the race may not have been the most entertaining, the aftermath of the weekend ultimately turned heads.
Before we get into the preview, a couple of things to mention:
Authors Note 1: The Formula One Season has two main championship competitions. The first is the Drivers' Championship, which is a competition between the individual drivers. The drivers who finish in the top 10 each weekend will score points (the higher you place, the more points you get). These points are added up, and whichever driver finishes with the most points at the end of the season will win the Drivers' Championship. The next is the Constructors' Championship, a competition between the teams. The number of points the drivers within a team get each race is combined, creating the total points for the team (E.g., Lando Norris has scored 44 points, and Oscar Piastri has scored 34 points, giving the McLaren team 78 points in the Constructors' Championship). The team whose drivers accumulate the most points combined for their team will win the Constructors' Championship.
Author's Note 2: This weekend's race was a sprint-style format. A Sprint is a race with fewer laps that gives the drivers an opportunity to score some extra points. It is meant to not only help the drivers, but also give the fans more racing action. Instead of the normal weekend format (Three practice sessions, qualifying, and the race), a sprint weekend format is a little different. There will be only one practice session, and two qualifying sessions (one for the sprint race and one for the main race). The sprint race will occur between the sprint qualifying session and the main race qualifying session.
Authors Note 3: One driver will be listed as "NC" in the Drivers' Standings. This means "Not Classified", indicating that they have not completed a race yet this season, thus they cannot be given a position among the standings.
Now, here is a look at the standings for both Championships:
Drivers' Championship Standings:
Lando Norris 44 points
Max Verstappen 36 points
Geroge Russell 35 points
Oscar Piastri 34 points
Andrea Kimi Antonellii 22 points
Alexander Albon 16 points
Esteban Ocon 10 points
Lance Stroll 10 points
Lewis Hamilton 9 points
Charles Leclerc 8 points
Nico Hulkenberg 6 points
Oliver Bearman 4 points
Yuki Tsunoda 3 points
Carlos Sainz 1 points
Isak Hadjar 0 points
Pierre Gasly 0 points
Liam Lawson 0 points
Jack Doohan 0 points
Gabriel Bortoletto 0 points
N.C. Fernando Alonso
Constructors' Championship Standings:
McLaren 78 points
Mercedes 57 points
Red Bull 36 points
Williams 17 points
Ferrari 17 points
Haas 14 points
Aston Martin 10 points
Kick Sauber 6 points
Racing Bulls 3 points
Alpine 0 points
Standings were found at F1.com.
Alpine
Alpine just does not seem there just yet in terms of pace. For the sprint, Jack Doohan qualified 16th and finished 20th, while Pierre Gasly qualified 17th and finished 12th. For the main race, Doohan qualified 18th and finished 13th, while Gasly qualified 16th and was disqualified from the race due to his car being underweight post-race.
The reason Gasly was disqualified was because his car was 1kg under the 800 kg minimum after the car's fuel was drained post-race.
Alpine's performance this weekend was just bad. From start to finish, the team showed minimal signs of any competitive pace, while also failing to keep themselves afloat with the rest of the midfield. Not making it into the second session of either qualifying is a major concern, and exposed them as potentially far behind those of the Racing Bulls and Williams.
Not only did they provide a slow car, but they also made an inexcusable mistake that cost Gasly an 11th-place finish. Gasly had outperformed the car in both the sprint and main race, however there were no points to show for it. Doohan has also shown flashes in qualifying, however, his race pace has not been good at all.
Time to panic Alpine fans??? I would not say yes yet, but it is not looking good.
Aston Martin
Aston Martin had a very similar end to this weekend than to last weekend...confusing. For the sprint, Fernando Alonso qualified 11th and finished 10th, while Lance Stroll qualified 10th and finished 9th. For the main race, Alonso qualified 13th and did not finish due to his brakes failing, while Stroll qualified 14th and finished 9th.
If you were to show me the results of the two Aston Martin drivers after the first two races, I would have thought they would be the opposite. The fact Alonso has been the one retiring while Stroll has scored points on both race weekends is not something I had on my bingo card.
Yes, it was not Alonso's fault that his brakes failed on him, however, it was not like he was off to a good start anyway. Again, surprisingly enough, Stroll has all around looked better than Alonso to start 2025. Stroll did have some luck, as the disqualifications from Gasly, Hamilton, and Leclerc pushed him from 12th to 9th, but points are points no matter how they come. Lance has also been extremely close to Alonso in qualifying (14 thousandths of a second gap between the two this weekend), which was a major problem last year.
It will be interesting to see how long Stroll sustains this run of form because he seems to be outperforming the car right now. Stroll is known for starting seasons well and falling off a cliff, but who knows, maybe he's turned over a new leaf...
Ultimately, Aston Martin needs both cars to finish a race before they can analyze where they are at.
Ferrari
What started off incredible ended in heartbreak for Ferrari, which seems to be a common trend for them. For the sprint, Charles Leclerc qualified 4th and finished 5th, while Lewis Hamilton started from pole (1st) and won the sprint race. For the main race, Leclerc qualified 6th with Hamilton qualifying 5th, but both drivers were disqualified from the race after it ended.
Leclerc was disqualified for the same reason as Gasly (the car was underweight after fuel was removed post-race). Hamilton was disqualified due to his car's rear underbody skid block (a required rectangular plate attached to the underside of the car to maintain a minimum ride height and safeguard the car's floor, stopping teams from setting their cars too close to the ground), which exhibited wear exceeding the 1mm limit. The thickness of Hamilton's blocks ranged from 8.5 to 8.6mm, depending on the measurement location, while the minimum allowed thickness is 9mm.
Ferrari looked incredible to start the weekend. Their pace was a night-and-day difference from last race weekend, which resulted in Hamilton dominating and winning the sprint. After that, it all went to crap. Hamilton and Leclerc collided on turn one of the first lap, which resulted in the endplate of Leclerc's front wing breaking off. Though it didn't seem to affect Charles' pace too much, it definitely hindered him from separating himself from the cars behind him.
Ferrari really needs to figure things out from a team standpoint. Whether it is their race strategy, team rules, or their car setup, it is hindering any chance of their drivers competing. They have such a good opportunity this year, especially if they can carry what they showed this weekend into future weekends, but they won't go anywhere if they keep making such preventable mistakes.
Haas
Operation Turnaround: Sucess
Australia seems to have been a fluke weekend for Haas, as they returned to what we expected from them this year in China. For the sprint, Esteban Ocon qualified 18th and finished 16th, while Oliver Bearman qualified 12th and finished 15th. For the main race, Ocon qualified 11th and finished 5th, while Bearman qualified 17th and finished 8th.
Their qualifying pace could still use some work, but Haas showed an undeniable race pace in China, which is extremely promising. Not only that, but that race pace was shown by both drivers, which was a concern coming into the weekend. Both drivers reminded us this weekend of the talent they possess, and that they just needed a little time to get used to the car.
I truly believe this weekend will have jumpstarted Haas back into midfield contention. Now, does that mean they will score points every weekend? I would not go that far. However, what I do know is that in the main race, they looked faster than both Williams and Racing Bulls. Haas has lots to be hopeful about after this weekend in China.
Kick Sauber
Well...they're back
Kick Sauber were bottom dwellers on the grid all weekend long. For the sprint, Gabriel Bortoletto qualified 14th and finished 18th, while Nico Hulkenberg qualified and finished 19th. For the main race, Bortoletto qualified 19th and finished 14th, with Hulkenberg qualifying 12th and finishing 15th.
Taking the disqualifications/DNFs into account, things looked pretty bad for Kick Sauber. Their qualifying pace is not translating to race pace whatsoever, which is why we saw both drivers fail to compete in the races. It is unfortunate because both drivers seem quick, and both have shown flashes, but the car is just so slow. I am not surprised the car is this slow, I just wish that Bortoletto and Hulkenberg didn't have to waste a year of their career in this car while they wait for Audi to enter the fold in 2026.
McLaren
Though a little rocky, McLaren did exactly what they needed to do by the end of the weekend. For the sprint, Lando Norris qualified 6th and finished 8th, while Oscar Piastri qualified 3rd and finished 2nd. For the main race, Norris qualified 3rd and finished 2nd, with Piastri qualifying on pole and winning the race.
As I said, it definitely was not a perfect weekend for the team as a whole, but it did end the way they expected it to end. Norris seemed to struggle to harness the car early on in the weekend, which resulted in his lackluster SQ and sprint race performance; but he did rebound, and ultimately secured the best result he could in the race.
Oscar, on the other hand, was easily the fastest on the grid come the main race. He put almost a 2 tenths gap between him and Norris in qualifying, and led for most of the race. Considering what happened in Australia the week before, Oscar put that behind him and dominated in China, securing his first race of the season.
No one seems to be on McLaren's level in terms of race pace. However, the only problem I see with McLaren is that the pace the car has is hard to control at times, which is why we saw Norris struggle early on this past weekend. I think the gap between McLaren and the rest of the teams will be closer than expected until Norris and Piastri get control of the car; but with that being said, that car is absolutely rapid.
Mercedes
Mercedes did not look particularly quick this weekend, yet that did not stop the drivers from getting the most out of the car. For the sprint, Kimi Antonelli qualified and finished 7th, while George Russell qualified 5th and finished 4th. For the main race, Antonelli qualified 8th and finished 6th, with Russell qualifying 2nd and finishing 3rd.
What a drive from George Russell! He was fantastic this weekend from start to finish. His consistency and ability to seek the most out of the car was extremely impressive. Yet somehow, he has flown under the radar after securing his 2nd podium finish in two races. Whether you like him or not, Russell's pace and mistake-free driving are getting more and more difficult to ignore. He has easily been a top 3 driver so far this year in my opinion, which I think needs to be recognized more!
Russell's teammate, Kimi Antonelli, had a relatively quiet but solid weekend in China. He did not make mistakes, and his pace was exactly where Mercedes needed him to be after his second career race. I am a little concerned with how far off he has been off Russell's pace in qualifying (5 tenth gap between their respective best lap times), but I think that gap will decrease as Kimi gains more experience.
Overall, a very solid weekend for Mercedes, drivers and team alike.
Racing Bulls
Yikes RB...
The only ones to blame for the result RB produced this weekend is themselves, as they once again sabotaged themselves. For the sprint, Isak Hadjar qualified 15th and finished 13th, while Yuki Tsunoda qualified 8th and finished 6th. For the main race, Hadjar qualified 7th and finished 11th, with Tsunoda qualifying 9th and finishing 16th.
As the main race went on, it was pretty clear that it was going to be a one-stop race. What I mean by that is that there was a point in the race where every team felt that they could preserve their tires enough to only have to change them one time, rather than the expected two pit-stops. Well...almost every team.
RB thought it would be a good idea to pit their drivers twice. This basically ruined both drivers' chances to score points. This is the second race weekend in a row where Racing Bulls' race strategy backfired. I honestly could not rationalize the thinking behind pitting twice, considering every other team pitted their drivers once, but what I do know is that they need to reflect heavily on their decisions.
That said, when they didn't have to decide when to pit their cars, both drivers were fantastic. Tsunoda looked quick all weekend long, producing an amazing result in the sprint and both qualifying sessions. Hadjar also seemed to unlock some of that raw pace he possesses as well, which is extremely promising.
Overall, a huge missed opportunity for RB this weekend, considering what could have been. Something needs to change if they want to continue to compete in the midfield, and I can tell you right now, it is not the drivers.
Red Bull
So remember when I said in my race preview that Liam Lawson needed to perform better after his result in sprint qualifying? Well... let's just say, he didn't.
For the sprint, Liam Lawson qualified 20th and finished 14th, while Max Verstappen qualified 2nd and finished 3rd. For the main race, Lawson qualified 20th and finished 12th, while Verstappen qualified and finished 4th.
Of course, the obvious talking point after the Chinese Grand Prix for Red Bull is Liam Lawson. Qualifying 20th in BOTH qualifying sessions is a pretty brutal look if you're Lawson, no matter how hard the car may be to drive. Yes, Red Bull has yet to make a compatible car for their second driver since Mac joined the team, but not one that would make that driver look this bad.
Like I have said before, I really hope Red Bull does not make a rash and premature decision when it comes to Lawson, but rather gives him at least half a season to try and figure things out, but I am not optimistic. Rumors are already flying that Lawson may be replaced by the Japanese Grand Prix, which is the next race weekend. I hope that is not the case, but regardless, Red Bull needs a driver next to Max who isn't almost 9-tenths of a second off his pace and qualifying last or near last.
On the other side of things, Max was great once again. The only reason Red Bull are scoring points is because he is the best driver on the grid, simple as that. Verstappen knows how to outperform whatever car he drives, and continues to produce the ceiling of what the car can do.
Williams
Williams had a relatively quiet weekend in China. For the sprint, Alex Albon qualified 9th and finished 11th, while Carlos Sainz qualified 13th and finished 17th. For the main race, Albon qualified 10th and finished 7th, while Sainz qualified 15th and finished 10th.
Williams came down to earth a little bit this weekend. I think they got a little lucky with the DSQs of the two Ferraris and Gasly, but you take points when you can. Albon still looks great, and was consistent all weekend long, but Sainz's struggles tell me that he has not figured out the car just yet. a 4.5-tenth of a second gap between the two in qualifying is not great, but I think isn't their biggest concern. What they should be focused on is how to get Sainz more comfortable in the car, because something within the car is not working for him.
Williams has a great opportunity to be competitive this season, which you can see in what Albon has done this year. However, Sainz has taken more time than anticipated to get control of the car, which is surprising considering how good he looked during pre-season testing. Ultimately, I am not worried, Carlos is a phenomenal driver, but I am worried that Williams does not know how to fix the issue.
Stay tuned for more F1 content, and be sure to check out fansonlysportz.com for more sports media content posted daily.
Until next time!
-Matt Hylen
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