Glory for Piastri in Shanghai as he banishes Albert Park heartbreak

Oscar Piastri drove a nearly faultless race to win in Shanghai.Credit: AP

Bayside Melbourne product Oscar Piastri has shown the maturity of a future Formula 1 champion, turning his Albert Park heartbreak into grand prix glory in Shanghai just seven days later.

Starting on pole for the first time in his F1 career, the 23-year-old Piastri was typically cool, calm and collected all race as he kept the best in the business at bay for 56 blistering laps of the Chinese Grand Prix to win his third main race in world motor sport’s premier class.

“It’s been an incredible weekend from start to finish,” Piastri said on Sky after the race, adding that he hoped this victory marked the start of his title charge after finishing ninth in Melbourne.

“[The car was] pretty mega the whole time, I think, today.

“I’m just proud of the whole weekend – this is what I feel like I deserve from last week.

“I’m extremely happy.”

Mercedes’ George Russell, Red Bull’s four-time reigning world champion Max Verstappen, and Piastri’s own McLaren teammate Lando Narris – who saluted in Melbourne seven days prior – all pushed Piastri to the brink, but he was unflinching.

Though struggling with wheelspin off the start line at the end of the monstrous Shanghai straight, Piastri kept Russell behind him going into turn one and refused to look back – despite a few hair-raising moments when it came to tyre strategy.

Piastri pitted early from the lead and then stayed on his hard tyres, like the bulk of the field, for the remainder of the race in a true battle of attrition.

“The hard was a much better tyre than everyone expected, I think,” Piastri said of what was essentially a wire-to-wire win.

“To go all the way to the end like that was a bit of a surprise, but a happy surprise.”

Piastri – who after the race said his heritage is part-Chinese, to the roar of the crowd – held his nerve as Norris pushed in second, both of them trying desperately to keep the “dragster” (in the words of Ferrari racer Charles Leclerc) of Russell’s Mercedes behind them.

For his part, Norris congratulated Piastri for his win.

“Turn one went to plan, but then George [Russell] got me in the pit stops and I was a little bit nervous because our pace was a lot better in the second stint … it was a tough race, just with the management [of it],” Norris said.

“I don’t think many people expected a one-stop today. Oscar drove well, he was quick the whole race – I tried to get close, but in the end I just couldn’t.”

Norris was asked if he could have fought Piastri for the win, to which he replied: “It doesn’t matter now really, does it? He deserved the win, and he drove very well all weekend.”

Piastri had finished second in the sprint race on Saturday before setting two lap times good enough for pole position in claiming the top spot on the grid for the first time in his career.

There’d be no repeat of Albert Park, where Piastri slid off on lap 44 while battling Norris for the lead. This was redemption.

Piastri summed it up best following the win: “The car was very lovely ... great team effort. That is one satisfying weekend,” he said at his understated best over the radio.

Norris tried everything to push Piastri to the brink again, but this time around the Australian had the race lead to his advantage – setting the race pace, and looking after his tyres after what initially loomed as an action-packed two-or-three-stop race. Norris, by contrast, struggled with his brakes in the race’s closing stages.

Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, and Mercedes’ George Russell in their post-race press conference in Shanghai.Credit: Getty Images

What a day for Oscar Piastri and his fans, and what a reminder to deliver so soon after the nightmare of race day in Melbourne.

Piastri knew he had the speed at Albert Park, which only increased his frustration at spinning off from what was sure to at least be a podium position.

In Shanghai, he took the lead with both hands and simply refused to relinquish it. That was clinical.

The first McLaren 1-2 finish took place at the Canadian Grand Prix of 1968. They now have 50.

Piastri and teammate Lando Norris know exactly what kind of a weapon their current car is.

Asked if they expect to still have the upper hand at the next race in Japan, Norris said simply on Sky: “I think so.

“The longer you have the same regulations, it gets harder and harder to find these bits [in terms] of lap time,” he said.

“The team has done such a good job over the winter, it’s a credit to them that they’ve given us the car they have because it shows how much everyone else is struggling.”

Next up: Japan. The Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka starts at 3pm AEST on April 6.

Until next time, take care.

World champion Max Verstappen has plenty of work to do with his team before the next race in Japan.Credit: Getty Images

Four-time reigning world champion Max Verstappen showed plenty of pace in the second half of the Chinese Grand Prix, but he wasn’t up to the level of the McLarens in his first stint.

He spoke to Sky about the battles he’s currently facing with his car.

“It’s difficult to say when you don’t really know where to find it [improvement with the car] or how to find it at the moment,” he said.

“At least that last stint gives us a bit more of a clearer picture. We’ll go through all of the data.

“In 10 days hopefully we can learn a little bit more and be a bit more competitive [at the start of the grand prix weekend in Suzuka, Japan].”

Red Bull team boss Christian Horner also spoke to Sky about the team’s predicament. He said it was more important to finish the season strong and was confident – with the talent in their garage – they could find their groove.

The first practice session for the Japanese Grand Prix is on April 4.

A week after his best chance to snap Australia’s hoodoo of no local driver finishing on the Albert Park podium went awry when a late-race spin in the rain meant he finished ninth, Oscar Piastri was utterly dominant, leading for 53 of the 56 laps to head a McLaren one-two over teammate and Australian Grand Prix winner Lando Norris, who finished 9.748 seconds adrift.

Matthew Clayton writes about how it all went down, here

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri debrief the Chinese Grand Prix.Credit: Getty Images

Despite finishing second in Shanghai, Lando Norris knows he was much closer to falling behind George Russell in third than he was to catching Oscar Piastri for the race win, given his rapidly fading brakes.

“He would have got me next lap,” Norris told Sky succinctly about Russell at the end of the race.

“I was lucky – lucky to be finishing the race today, which is not something we want to be saying.

“It was a sketchy last couple of laps … the brakes were getting worse and worse every lap, and the last couple of laps were three or four seconds off.

“I was quite nervous – I think the team knew about the problem much before they told me about it because they wanted to keep me calm.”

The improvement in Piastri’s racing, even from last year to this, has not been lost on some of the most knowledgeable figures in the sport.

“He’s just learning all the time, isn’t he?” said Sky sports commentator and former F1 racer Martin Brundle.

“But for a very wet turn 13 [at Albert Park] last weekend in Australia, he could well have been leading the world championship – or he would have been leading the world championship after the sprint [race] yesterday.

“He’s right in there. It looks like it could be quite a fight between Piastri and Norris as they ebb and flow.”

Despite starting on the front row of the grid, Mercedes star George Russell knew this was unlikely to be his day.

“It’s a great result, finishing P3, especially in front of all these fans,” he said.

“[It was a] really great race, [and we’re] really pleased with a P3 – we knew McLaren were a smidge quicker than us at a few crucial points, but well done to those two [Piastri and Norris].”

The podium of the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai.Credit: Getty Images

Here is the finishing order at the chequered flag.
* Note that Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton were both disqualified after their cars failed post-race check. Leclerc’s car was found to be under the weight limit, while Hamilton’s car was reported to stewards for excessive skid wear. Their disqualifications moved drivers below them up the standings.

1. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
2. Lando Norris (McLaren) +9.748 sec
3. George Russell (Mercedes) +11.097
4. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +16.656
5. * Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +23.211
6. * Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +25.381
7. Esteban Ocon (Haas) +49.969
8. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +53.748
9. Alexander Albon (Williams) +56.321
10. Oliver Bearman (Haas) +1:01.303
11. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1:07.195
12. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +1:10.204
13. Carlos Sainz (Williams) +1:16.387
14. Isack Hadjar (RB) +1:18.875
15. Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +1:21.147
16. Jack Doohan (Alpine) +1:28.401
17. Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber) +1 lap
18. Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber) +1 lap
19. Yuki Tsunoda (RB) +1 lap
20. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) DNF

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri after the race in Shanghai.Credit: Getty Images

Lando Norris was the first to congratulate Oscar Piastri for his victory, saying in the post-race that he was happy to collect the haul of points he did in second – and it’s little wonder, given he won a week prior in Melbourne.

But it was in talking about the state of his brakes in the race’s closing stages that Norris gave a genuine insight into what he was feeling in the cockpit.

“It’s scary,” Norris said of the feeling of what’s described as a “long” brake pedal, typically meaning the pedal has to be pushed in further than usual to engage the brakes.

“It’s my worst nightmare – whenever I have a nightmare, it’s when the brakes are failing.

“I was losing two, three, four seconds the last couple of laps so I was a bit scared, but we survived and we made it to the end.

“I would have loved to have given it [a fight for victory] a little try, and put Oscar under a little bit of pressure, but not today.

“We’re satisfied. [It’s a] great result.”

Oscar Piastri drove a nearly faultless race to win in Shanghai.Credit: AP

Bayside Melbourne product Oscar Piastri has shown the maturity of a future Formula 1 champion, turning his Albert Park heartbreak into grand prix glory in Shanghai just seven days later.

Starting on pole for the first time in his F1 career, the 23-year-old Piastri was typically cool, calm and collected all race as he kept the best in the business at bay for 56 blistering laps of the Chinese Grand Prix to win his third main race in world motor sport’s premier class.

“It’s been an incredible weekend from start to finish,” Piastri said on Sky after the race, adding that he hoped this victory marked the start of his title charge after finishing ninth in Melbourne.

“[The car was] pretty mega the whole time, I think, today.

“I’m just proud of the whole weekend – this is what I feel like I deserve from last week.

“I’m extremely happy.”

Mercedes’ George Russell, Red Bull’s four-time reigning world champion Max Verstappen, and Piastri’s own McLaren teammate Lando Narris – who saluted in Melbourne seven days prior – all pushed Piastri to the brink, but he was unflinching.

Though struggling with wheelspin off the start line at the end of the monstrous Shanghai straight, Piastri kept Russell behind him going into turn one and refused to look back – despite a few hair-raising moments when it came to tyre strategy.

Piastri pitted early from the lead and then stayed on his hard tyres, like the bulk of the field, for the remainder of the race in a true battle of attrition.

“The hard was a much better tyre than everyone expected, I think,” Piastri said of what was essentially a wire-to-wire win.

“To go all the way to the end like that was a bit of a surprise, but a happy surprise.”

Piastri – who after the race said his heritage is part-Chinese, to the roar of the crowd – held his nerve as Norris pushed in second, both of them trying desperately to keep the “dragster” (in the words of Ferrari racer Charles Leclerc) of Russell’s Mercedes behind them.

For his part, Norris congratulated Piastri for his win.

“Turn one went to plan, but then George [Russell] got me in the pit stops and I was a little bit nervous because our pace was a lot better in the second stint … it was a tough race, just with the management [of it],” Norris said.

“I don’t think many people expected a one-stop today. Oscar drove well, he was quick the whole race – I tried to get close, but in the end I just couldn’t.”

Norris was asked if he could have fought Piastri for the win, to which he replied: “It doesn’t matter now really, does it? He deserved the win, and he drove very well all weekend.”

Piastri had finished second in the sprint race on Saturday before setting two lap times good enough for pole position in claiming the top spot on the grid for the first time in his career.

There’d be no repeat of Albert Park, where Piastri slid off on lap 44 while battling Norris for the lead. This was redemption.

Piastri summed it up best following the win: “The car was very lovely ... great team effort. That is one satisfying weekend,” he said at his understated best over the radio.

Norris tried everything to push Piastri to the brink again, but this time around the Australian had the race lead to his advantage – setting the race pace, and looking after his tyres after what initially loomed as an action-packed two-or-three-stop race. Norris, by contrast, struggled with his brakes in the race’s closing stages.