Mercedes’ George Russell won the Chinese Grand Prix after a frantic clash with Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari in the early laps.
Russell and Hamilton swapped positions five times in the first five laps before the winner of the first race of the season cruised to victory.
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Hamilton lost to teammate Charles Leclerc three laps after Russell finally passed him for the lead, with Ferrari finishing second and third.
In the second half of the race, the safety car was deployed, closing the field and slightly changing the team’s position. Hamilton was once behind McLaren’s Lando Norris.
But the seven-time champion regained the lead on the outside of Turn One a lap after the restart.
Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli dropped to eighth after a slow start and was later handed a 10-second penalty for a collision with Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar on the first lap, finishing fifth.
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The Italian was overtaken by McLaren’s Oscar Piastri on the restart after the safety car was deployed, but the Australian had to hand the position back to him as he overtook before the starting line.
Race on the track in the fun China Sprint Race
The early laps of the race provided plenty of entertainment as Russell and Hamilton swapped the lead.
Hamilton moved up from fourth on the grid to pass Norris on the inside of Turn One, then took the lead using an opportunistic and impromptu move on the inside of Turn Nine.
Russell easily passed him on the straight and back into the hairpin of Turn 14, before Hamilton attacked at the start of the second lap and passed him around the outside of Turn One.
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Russell overtook the Ferrari on the straightaway on lap three and Hamilton regained the lead heading into Turn One on lap four, but the Mercedes took the position for good a lap later.
Hamilton was then left to fight Leclerc, with the two Ferraris battling for three laps before the Monaco entered Turn 1 on lap eight.
Hamilton fought back at the start of the next lap, challenging Leclerc at Turn 1, but Leclerc had to defend until Turn 6 before consolidating his position.
Antonelli then overtook Hamilton into the hairpin on lap 11 before Audi’s Nico Hulkenberg stopped on the track at Turn One due to a technical failure, prompting the safety car to be deployed.
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This prompted the lead car to pit for new soft tires, with Hamilton and Piastri losing some money by having to pile up behind their teammates, while Antonelli also fell behind when he received a penalty.
Shortly after the restart, Piastri was ordered to hand over fifth place to Antonelli.
Trailing the lead car, Liam Lawson had moved from ninth to seventh when the Bulls decided not to stop under the safety car and he managed to hold off Haas driver Oliver Bearman, who had taken the final point.
Max Verstappen dropped to 15th on the first lap due to a slow start, but was up to ninth by the end, just behind Bearman, missing out on just one point.
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Top 10
1. George Russell (Mercedes) – 8 points
2. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) – 7
3. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) – 6
4. Lando Norris (McLaren) – 5
5. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) – 4
6. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) – 3
7. Liam Lawson (Bulls) – 2
8. Oliver Bellman (Haas) – 1
Full sprint results