FORMULA 1

[MIKA27]

Chinese GP: Latest tech updates, direct from the garages

Giorgio Piola and Sutton Images uncover the latest technical details on show in the Shanghai pitlane.

Ferrari SF71H

A three-quarter glance across at the SF71-H’s sidepods and the outer deflectors.

Red Bull Racing RB14 front wing detail

The RB14’s front wing still features the distinctive outer footplate, which is placed at a much higher position at the leading edge before swooping down.

McLaren MCL33 brake duct detail

A close up of McLaren’s front brake duct, note the separate channels within the inlet scoop, dividing up the airflow in order that it cools the brakes and fulfills an aerodynamic purpose.

McLaren MCL33 sidepod detail

The six vortex generators on the MCL33 sidepod’s shoulder which help to drive aerodynamic performance.

Force India VJM11 rear wing detail

An extreme close up of the winglets mounted above the diffuser and either side of the crash structure on the VJM11.

McLaren MCL33 detail

The area ahead of the rear tyre on MCL33, which was modified for Bahrain and now features a slanted end fence, rather than a flat one on the floor’s edge.

Renault Sport F1 Team R.S. 18 rear wing detail

A close up of the open-end style rear wing endplate louvres on the RS18 and now favoured by a large majority of the grid.

McLaren MCL33 rear brake duct detail

A close-up of the rear brake duct fins on the MCL33, which directly increase downforce but also have an impact on the surrounding flow structures.

Renault Sport F1 Team R.S. 18 front wing detail

This shot of the RS18’s front wing from behind allows us to see that this particular configuration utilises four strakes with which to control the flow of air.

Mercedes-AMG F1 W09 EQ Power+ rear floor detail

The W09’s floor is outfitted with a row of pitot tubes as the teams look to gather aerodynamic data during Free Practice.

Renault Sport F1 Team R.S. 18 rear

A great shot of the RS18 from behind – note the three pairs of vortex generators on the trailing edge of the plank, the multi-element perforated diffuser Gurneys which run around its periphery and the double-barrel shotgun style wastegate layout under the main exhaust.

McLaren MCL33 barge board detail

A look down on the ever-more complex bargeboard and floor area on the MCL33, note the two piece sidepod deflectors used only on Alonso’s car last time out too.

Haas F1 Team VF-18 front wheel hub

Haas front brake assembly which features crossover pipework that moves airflow from the inlet scoop out through the wheelface. The teardrop-shaped holes allow hot air to pass through both the crossover and the brake drum in order that it radiates into the wheel rim and subsequently the tyre.

Williams FW41 bodywork detail

Williams lower T-Wing, which you’ll note features a slot near the bodywork in order to improve efficiency.

McLaren MCL33 aero detail

The triple axehead arrangement being employed by McLaren ahead of the floor on the MCL33.

Force India VJM11 rear detail

A look at the engine cover and sidepod cooling exit on the VJM11.

Ferrari SF71H rear detail

The floor area ahead of the rear wheel on Ferrari's SF71H, with its numerous slots that help to control the effects of tyre squirt.

Mercedes-AMG F1 W09 EQ Power+ front brake and wheel hub detail

A look at the W09’s front brake assembly prior to the fitment of the brake drum.

Force India VJM11 chassis and front suspension detail

Photo taken as the VJM11 is built up, and with the nosecone not installed.

Ferrari SF71H front brake and wheel hub detail

Detail of Ferrari's front brake assembly prior to the brake drum being fitted.

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Ricciardo expects grid penalty after Bahrain failure

Daniel Ricciardo expects to serve a grid penalty for using an extra Formula 1 energy store later this season after his Bahrain Grand Prix failure.
The Red Bull driver retired on the second lap of the race when the car shut down without warning thanks to the failure, and the team has confirmed damage to the Renault energy store means it cannot be re-used.

The number of energy stores allowed per season season for each driver has been reduced to two this season, and once a third is introduced it will trigger a 10-place grid penalty.

Ricciardo has taken a new energy store and control electronics for this race.

“We’ve got a second one, if we do it again then we’ve got a penalty,” said Ricciardo of the energy store failure.

“Two have to last the year and one, I believe, is in a bin in Bahrain. We survived with one for one race.

“It’s more likely than not we’ll have a penalty. Hopefully it’s happening later – I’m 90 per cent sure.”

Despite the failure, which he suffered while running fourth early in a race in which Red Bull hoped to have the pace to challenge for victory, Ricciardo is refusing to get frustrated with the problems.

It is the second time Red Bull has suffered an energy store problem of this nature in 2018, with the first occurring during pre-season testing.

“I was more disappointed, it’s too early to be frustrated,” said Ricciardo.

  

“Just to start being frustrated and overdrive, I don’t think that’s the right mindset right now.

“I was disappointed with the result, I wanted to break something, but I’m not at the point where I’m frustrated.”

The 28-year-old is satisfied with the fact Red Bull has started 2018 in more competitive shape than it did last season.

But he is keen to start delivering the podium finishes the car is capable of, having taken the team’s best finish of the season so far with fourth in last month’s Australian Grand Prix.

“The car is performing well, we’re still trying to find more from it but the base of the car started off a lot better than last year aerodynamically,” said Ricciardo when asked by motorsport.com whether Red Bull had achieved its aims of starting the season in better shape performance-wise.

“It’s just more sound, it feels like more of a race car and there’s a bit more confidence throwing the car around.

“I believe both races we had a podium car and we haven’t got there, so we need to start converting some of these results from what we believe we’ve got.

“It’s no good having maybe the fastest car if we’re not winning with it.

“Hopefully, [we can have] a smooth weekend and see what the potential is like because we assume we’ve got a really quick car, but we’ve got to do a whole race to see now.”

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SHANGHAI FP1: HAMILTON SETS THE EARLY PACE IN

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton was fastest in the opening practice session for the Chinese Grand Prix on Friday with championship leader Sebastian Vettel only sixth quickest in his Ferrari at the Shanghai International Circuit.

Hamilton lapped the 5.4km circuit in 1:33.999 seconds, 0.359 of a second clear of Ferrari´s Kimi Raikkonen. The Finn´s best effort was set on the grippier ultra-soft tyres while Hamilton´s was on softs.

Vettel, winner of the first two races in Australia and Bahrain, was 0.862 seconds off Hamilton´s pace.

Hamilton´s Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas was third fastest ahead of Red Bull pair Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen.

German Vettel, the first Ferrari driver since Michael Schumacher in 2004 to open the season with back-to-back wins, leads fellow four-times champion Hamilton by 17 points.

In a session of little drama, both Verstappen and McLaren´s Stoffel Vandoorne spun off into the gravel before rejoining, while Hamilton also had a minor spin as drivers tried to get to grips with the cooler track temperatures.

Dane Kevin Magnussen set the seventh-fastest time for American outfit Haas with Renault’s Carlos Sainz eighth and the other Haas driver Romain Grosjean ninth.

Sainz’s teammate Nico Hulkenberg rounded out the top 10. Frenchman Pierre Gasly, who steered his Honda-powered Toro Rosso to fourth last Sunday in Bahrain, was 11th quickest, edging out the Japanese manufacturer´s former partners McLaren, who had Fernando Alonso in 12th.

Williams, enduring their worst start to a season since 2013, continued to struggle with Russian Sergey Sirotkin 15th and Lance Stroll propping up the time sheets in last place.

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Ferrari explains error that injured mechanic in Bahrain

Ferrari has revealed a sensor confusion triggered the unsafe release of Kimi Raikkonen's car that led to a pit crew member suffering a broken leg during the Bahrain Grand Prix.
A problem removing the left-rear during Raikkonen's second pitstops delayed Francesco Cigarini from fitting a new tyre, and he was standing in front of the wheel when the Finn was given the green light to leave the pit box.

Cigarini was hit by Raikkonen's car as the Finn pulled away, and required surgery after sustaining a fractured shinbone and fibula.

Ferrari boss Maurizio Arrivabene revealed that Ferrari had conducted a review into the procedure together with the FIA to determine why the system gave Raikkonen the signal to go when the left-rear wheel had not been changed.

"The team was hurt that a person was injured, so it was in our interest to review the overall procedure," he said when asked by Motorsport.com to explain what happened.

"We have a procedure to ensure the pitstops during the race are done as safely as possible.

"In this case we have three factors: human control [the pit crew members], mechanical [the wheel gun] and an electronic device [a sensor to determine a properly attached wheel]."

Arrivabene said this led to the "mishandling of the rear left" as it was "not perfectly read by the electronic device, which gave the green light".

Motorsport.com understands the system is designed to check whether a wheel is securely fitted and whether the wheel gun has been sufficiently active.

As the old wheel was not removed, and the gun was disengaged and then re-engaged to try again, the system registered it as a completed wheel change and gave Raikkonen the green light.

Arrivabene said Ferrari would ensure this cannot happen again, stressing that "it's in our interest, because we care about our people before anything else".

The exact solution is unknown, but it is believed Ferrari has modified how it uses sensors during the process to ensure the system can recognise if a wheel has not actually been changed.

Arrivabene said he spoke regularly with Cigarini this week and that his employee is now recovering at home in Italy after his initial care in Bahrain.

"I would like to thank our team doctor, the FIA medical staff and also the authority of Bahrain that granted to us immediately the best doctor in Bahrain to do the surgery," Arrivabene added.

"They were assisting us 24 hours [a day], literally, so thanks to all of them."

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Liberty sets May deadline for 2021 F1 engines decision

Ferrari boss Maurizio Arrivabene says F1 owners Liberty Media have agreed a May deadline for confirmation of the 2021 Formula 1 engine regulations.
Initial plans for the sport's engines from 2021 were unveiled in October last year, but no agreement has yet been reached.

Today's FIA press conference in Shanghai saw the first official comments from Ferrari on any of the proposals outlined by Liberty in Bahrain.

Arrivabene gave an insight onto the deadline for the finalisation of the 2021 engine rules, while confirming that all four manufacturers had made their position clear to F1's bosses before the Bahrain meeting.

"Liberty, if I'm not wrong, they gave us a deadline for the end of May, I think," Arrivabene said.

"I hope that this deadline is going to be respected.

"It's a bit early somehow, and it's far, if you are looking at the situation from another point of view, a technical point of view, concerning the engines.

"We, Mercedes, Renault and Honda sent a letter one month ago explaining in detail our position. Now it's quite clear."

Toro Rosso's Franz Tost also stressed the urgency of getting confirmation of the new engine rules.

"I think the power unit regulation has to be finalised soon, May/June," he said. "Otherwise I don't think it's possible for new manufacturers to come into F1, because time is running away.

"Twenty-one is tomorrow. And I think Liberty Media is aware about this, and the rest, we will see."

The Austrian confirmed that the overall plan is good for the midfield teams: "I support all the points that Liberty presented, and I hope that they will realise it."

Arrivabene also said that the Italian team is still considering whether Liberty's planned $150m budget cap for 2021 is achievable.

"We are reading the overall document, we are discussing," he said. "We will see in the future if it's achievable or not."

He stressed that all aspects of 2021 – engine format, chassis rules and financial – had to be considered as a package.

"All the elements they are important, because they are linked together somehow. So I hope soon we find an agreement – if any – related to the various topics that are in the proposal, we can go."

Arrivabene also made it clear that Ferrari's longstanding right of veto on rule changes could be part of governance revisions.

Asked how the team would react to losing it, he said: "We'll let you know as soon as we go deeper into the conversation. You can see a smile on our face or not!"

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CHINESE GRAND PRIX: BRILLIANT RICCIARDO STEALS THE SHOW

Daniel Ricciardo delivered the best drive of his career to win a riveting Chinese Grand Prix, in the process he pulled off three of the slickest overtake moves, on the Formula 1’s biggest stars to score an unlikely victory in an action-packed race.

The Red Bull driver was followed over the line by Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas in second and Kimi Raikkonen in the Ferrari claiming the final podium spot.

The big smiling Aussie was in sniper mode in a race that came to Red Bull after a safety car period provided them an opportunity to pit their cars and bolt on the yellow band Pirelli soft tyres, while the race leaders at that point stayed out on track. 

When the safety car peeled into the pits the blue cars came alive, gobbling up the gaps. Ricciardo’s ambush from 50 metres behind Lewis Hamilton was one of the most memorable overtakes in recent memory, however this is now establisghed as the Red Bull driver’s trademark.

After gulping down a ‘shoey’ Ricciardo said, “I don’t seem to win boring races. That was unexpected. 24 hours ago I thought we may be starting at the back of the grid. Thanks to the boys, today is the real reward for that. The mechanics worked their butts off.”

“I heard Safety Car in Turn 14 and was told to box. It was very quick but very decisive, winning moves from the team. Sometimes you just have to lick the stamp and send it.”

“I enjoyed it very much. I knew on the soft tyres I could get more out of the braking. A lot of the time you get one chance to try so I make the most of every opportunity,” added the Australian.

His attack on Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel to take second place was also ballsy. And and then his threading of the needle to get past Valtteri Bottas to claim the lead had Fans and his crew on their feet. 

For sure Ricciardo on the fresher softs were always going to be an advantage, but it took a brilliant performance to get the business done and ignite what, up until the safety car period, had been a mundane race.

Not to be forgotten are the Red Bull crew who rebuilt his car for qualifying and got him out into Q1 with a couple of minutes on the clock. Ricciardo then went on to qualify sixth. Then in the race, they twice double-stacked their cars for lightning fast pitstops. 

Also, credit to their pitwall who were on the ball when it mattered while their rivals missed the opportunity presented by the safety car opportunity.

While Ricciardo was undeniably brilliant, in stark contrast his teammate Max Verstappen had a calamitous afternoon as he punted himself off when trying to go around the outside of the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton. Then he clattered clumsily into Vettel as the pair battled for the same piece of tar through the hairpin.

For his shenanigans, Verstappen received a ten seconds penalty which dropped him down to fifth, when a podium and even a win were on the cards for him on the day.

The young Dutchman would do himself a great service if he took a hard look at the race replay and watch his teammate and see how it should be done. Two races in two he has collided with rivals and compromised his race and denied himself what should have been strong results.

Credit ot Verstaooen who was contrite when he told reporters, “I could see him struggling on the tyres and tried to brake late into the corner. I locked the rears a bit and hit him. That was of course my fault.

“It’s not what you want and it’s easy to say afterwards I should have waited. That probably would have been the best idea but unfortunately that happened,” he added.

Bottas crossed the line in second eight seconds behind the winner. The Finn had a solid weekend and all-in-all outperformed his world champion teammate Lewis Hamilton.

At one point Bottas looked to be on his way to victory, he chased Vettel throughout the first stint and then took the lead thanks to the undercut after a impressive out lap. But the safety car period played against him and when Ricciardo came calling, with fresh softs bolted to the Red Bull, he had no answer. Second place was his reward.

Bottas reflected, “The race was going pretty well for us and we were looking strong all the way until the guys stopped during the Safety Car. It is disappointing, we were giving everything we had and felt like we deserved the victory. It felt like everything was under control and I had no major drop off so I think I could have held off Sebastian [without the Safety Car]”

Kimi Raikkonen salvaged third place after a race in which his team deliberately compromised him to help Vettel’s cause. When Bottas and Vettel pitted, they kept the veteran Finn out on track, in the lead but on worn tyres. 

Soon it was clear why… he was being used to slow Bottas and allow Vettel to catch up. And it worked because Bottas’ lead was cut dramatically thanks to the Ferrari ploy. It also signalled very clearly that Raikkonen is merely the rear-gunner for the Reds.

Raikkonen summed up his afternoon, “We made a good start and then blocked a bit and passed in the first corners. We stayed out very long but had a bit of luck with the Safety Car. In the end we needed the soft tyres to really go for it. I got close to Valtteri but it is so difficult to follow people.”

After the dust had settled it was clear that Mercedes, for a third race in a row, messed up the strategy. Perhaps the timing of the safety car did them no favours with Bottas, but there was no excuse not to pit Hamilton as Red Bull did their cars. The world champion on fresher tyres may have ended higher up than fourth place.

On the other hand, with Raikkonen as the sacrificial pawn had Vettel with victory in sight, but the German also lost out during the safety car period and probably would not have been able to fend off Ricciardo.

However, a podium was on the cards until he was torpedoed by Verstappen, after which the Ferrari limped home in eighth place.

Vettel said afterwards, “I didn’t see him until very late. I left a little bit of room as well.  was expecting him to come earlier. I had no intention to resist because it was clear with Daniel as well that there was no point doing so – they were just too quick on the fresh tyres.”

“I didn’t want to compromise my race to the guys behind. But he made a mistake, locked up – it happens with a tailwind down that straight – I guess he misjudged and compromised both our races. He’s not young anymore.”

“This can happen when you have done 300 races. Inside the car judgements are very difficult to make. But you have to ultimately have these things in mind and make sure you don’t crash. We were both lucky,” concluded Vettel who saw his championship lead cut from 14 points to nine at the end of the day.

Renault’s Nico Hulkenberg and Fernando Alonso in the McLaren took advantage of the dramatic turmoil ahead to finish sixth and seventh respectively. Alonso again dragging his car by the scruff of the neck into points yet again.

Carlos Sainz, in ninth, made it a double points score for Renault and was followed over the line by the Haas of Kevin Magnussen claiming the final point.

For Toro Rosso it was a case of ‘what a difference a week makes’ as Honda ‘power’ went AWOL in China and Pierre Gasly, who was fourth a week earlier, blotted his copybook by smashing into his teammate Brendon Hartley at the hairpin.

As a result, debris was scattered all over the track and this is what prompted the race deciding safety car deployment, allowing marshalls time to clear the Toro Rosso mess.

Blow-By-Blow-Report

When the lights went out Vettel made a slightly slow getaway and as Räikkönen got away well, the German moved right to cover his team-mate. That allowed Bottas to go around the outside of the Finn and steal second place.

Behind them, Verstappen made an excellent start from fifth place and was quickly past Hamilton through Turn 1 as the Briton tried to attack Räikkönen. Verstappen then closed on the Ferrari driver and made a good move past the Finn to take third by the end of the first lap.

The first stint saw Vettel etch out a lead of more than four seconds over Bottas, who in turn built up a five-second gap back to Verstappen, with Räikkönen fourth and comfortably ahead of Hamilton. The race then settled until the first round of pit stops.

Verstappen was the first of the front-runners to stop, arrowing into the pit lane at the end of lap 17 to take a set of medium tyres. Seconds later he was followed by sixth-placed team-mate Daniel Ricciardo who also moved to mediums as Red Bull enacted an impressive double stop on the same lap.

The move was designed to give both drivers an opportunity to attack the Mercedes driver in front of them but when Hamilton pitted he was able to rejoin ahead of Ricciardo. It was a similar story for Verstappen whose stop failed to dent the advantage enjoyed by Bottas, who was able to pit and rejoin ahead of the Dutchman

Vettel was next in and as the German moved to medium tyres Mercedes told Bottas that he had to push as hard as possible. The Finn obliged and Vettel exited the pit lane to see Bottas sweeping past him.

The race was now led by Räikkönen who had yet to pit. As the Finn’s pace ebbed on fading tyres, Ferrari tried to use him as a bulwark, backing Bottas towards Vettel. The Mercedes driver was alive to the threat, however, and attacked, passing Räikkönen on lap 27 in the slow ‘Snail’ section of the circuit.

The complexion of the race changed moments later when the two Toro Rosso drivers collided at the hairpin, with Gasly running into the back of Hartley, scattering debris across the track.

The Safety Car was deployed and Red Bull took the decision to again double stop its drivers, this time for soft tyres. With the other front runners staying sticking with their medium tyres, it proved a decisive move.

Verstappen rejoined in fourth place behind Hamilton and Ricciardo sat in sixth behind Räikkönen, but their tyres soon gave them a pace advantage and on lap 37 Ricciardo muscled his way past Räikkönen to claim fifth. Ahead, Verstappen was pressuring Hamilton and attempted a move. Hamilton was not for moving, however, and the Red Bull driver was forced off track as the Mercedes man tightly held the racing line.

That allowed Ricciardo to move past his team-mate and take up the fight. The Australian was more decisive and dived down the inside of Hamilton into the hairpin to claim third place.

Ricciardo was now in full flight and after dismissing Vettel with relative ease he closed on leader Bottas. The Finn tried to defend as the Red Bull driver again attacked at the hairpin, but despite the gap narrowing, Ricciardo somehow slotted through and then kept control on exit to take the lead.

Behind him Verstappen was also lining up a move at the hairpin to pass Vettel. Again though it didn’t work and the pair collided, with Verstappen dropping to fifth and Vettel to seventh.

The Red Bull driver made it back to fourth past Hamilton but then was handed a 10-second time penalty by stewards for causing a collision.

In the final laps Ricciardo stretched his lead over Bottas to eight seconds, who slowly fell back towards Räikkönen. The Ferrari driver made several attempts to get past but couldn’t find a way and the flag fell with Ricciardo claiming his sixth career win ahead of Bottas and Räikkönen. Hamilton was fourth ahead of Verstappen with Hulkenberg fifth.

Vettel had held seventh until the closing stages but on the penultimate lap he was passed by Alonso in bold move that left the Ferrari driver complaining that the move was illegal.

The stewards, however, ruled the pass to be a fair one. Behind the German the final points positions were taken by Sainz and Magnussen.

MIKA: I normally have always disliked the Chinese GP, normally boring. I stand corrected for a change, really great spectacle.

Extremely sad to see Ferrari doing everything they can to already have Kimi play second fiddle to Vettel. 

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Daniel Ricciardo's Amazing Overtakes! | 2018 Chinese Grand Prix

 

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F1 Paddock Pass: Post-Race at the 2018 Chinese Grand Prix

 

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VETTEL: NO EXCUSES FOR MAX HE’S DONE ENOUGH RACES

Sebastian Vettel looked on for a win at the  until he was clattered into by overambitious Max Verstappen which caused the pair to spin and thereafter the Ferrari driver struggled for pace and dropped down the order to eighth when a podium, if not victory, was on the cards.

Speaking after the race in Shanghai, Vettel gave told reporters, “I didn’t see him until very late, so I left a little bit of room as well. To be honest I was expecting him to come earlier.”

“I had no intention to resist because it was clear with Daniel [Ricciardo] as well that there was no point doing so as they were just too fast on the fresh tyres. I didn’t want to compromise my race to the guys behind.”

“But then obviously he did a mistake, he locked up, which happens. We had a tailwind down that straight the whole race, so I guess he misjudged and compromised both of our results.”

Verstappen was quick to , but when asked if the young Dutchman’s inexperience could be blamed for the incident, Vettel said, “Not anymore, he’s done enough races. Again, this can happen to you when you’ve done 300 races.”

“Inside the car you mustn’t forget that the judgements are very difficult to make. But you have to ultimately have these things in mind and make sure you don’t crash. He could have easily taken his front wing off or got a puncture, whatever.”

“Then it’s game over for both of us in that case. Obviously, we are both lucky, but that’s how it goes,” mused Vettel who departed Shanghai with a nine-point championship lead, down from 16 points before the third round of the championship.

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CHINESE GRAND PRIX: TEAM & DRIVER REPORTS & PHOTOS

Teams and drivers report from race day at the , Round 3 of the 2018 Formula 1 World Championship, at Shanghai International Circuit.

Red Bull

Daniel Ricciardo, Winner: “That was fun, a lot of fun and I just about believe it now. From where we were yesterday you would not have believed we would be here today. For me this is a massive reward but for the mechanics and engineers, they really earned this victory. Not only for the pit stops and strategy today but for getting me out in Qualifying yesterday which enabled me to get in the fight for victory, they should be very, very proud. The problem in free practice wasn’t their fault but they did all the hard work and made today happen. At the start of the race I thought we could fight for a podium but I didn’t really expect a win; then after the safety car and when I could see the way the race was going I knew we had a chance. Once I had a sniff of victory I wasn’t going to let it go. The team made a very quick decision to stop both cars under the safety car and it was a winning decision. I have lots of emotions. On the in lap I was just smiling and I didn’t have many words, then on the podium I was nearly in tears and in the press conference I was just thinking about the whole race and also about last week; how disappointed this sport can make you feel but also how high it can make you feel. Now we can all go and celebrate tonight.”

Max Verstappen, 5th: “Not the result I wanted today, we missed a great opportunity for a double podium. I tried to pass Lewis on the outside but there were too many marbles and I went a bit wide, it was a shame as I was in a good position but ended up losing a position to Daniel. It was still an open race with the possibility to finish first and second but unfortunately I made some mistakes. Seb was struggling a bit on the tyres so I knew I had an opportunity, I tried to take him on the inside but locked the rears and ended up hitting him. I am disappointed with myself that this is the outcome of the race. The team executed everything perfectly today, we had a great strategy and the car was behaving well so it is a real shame. It isn’t going my way at the minute so I’ll go away and analyse this and hopefully come back stronger. A massive well done to the team on such a strong weekend and of course to Daniel on the race win.”

Christian Horner, Team Principal: “To achieve our first victory of the year here in China was the result of a fantastic team effort. A strong strategy and a great performance by the pit crew, who have done an amazing job all weekend particularly with the engine change on Daniel’s car; and Daniel drove an amazing race and fully deserved victory. His passes were exemplary and the strategy really came alive for us under the safety car. We made a late call to get both cars in and again the second double stop was clinically executed and they did an unbelievable job. For Max the first part of the race was going very well for him, unfortunately he lost time on the outside of Lewis, dropped behind Daniel, and then, when attempting a pass on Sebastian, he made contact resulting in a 10-second penalty which he has apologised for. He still managed to bring the car home in fifth; it is a result I am sure he will be frustrated with, but performance today bodes well for the coming season. Speaking of a team effort, any win begins with all of the guys and girls back at the factory and the dedication and hard work there, and that allows us to enjoy moments like this.”

Mercedes

Valtteri Bottas, 2nd: “This is disappointing; today doesn’t feel like winning a podium but like losing a win. Coming home second is not what we aimed for after the beginning of the race and the successful undercut. The team did a really good job, the pit stop was absolutely perfect and came at the right moment. We lost the race under the safety car. When it came out, Sebastian and I were already past the pit entry, so we were a bit unlucky – the cars behind us could react, but we didn’t have any choice. They could get fresh tyres, but I ended up doing nearly 40 laps on the Medium, so of course it was slower in the end. It’s very close between Red Bull, Ferrari and us, so we need to make sure we keep developing our car. Nearly winning both last weekend and this weekend is the worst feeling – but it makes both me and the entire team even hungrier. Thankfully there are a lot more races to go.”

Lewis Hamilton, 4th: “It was another difficult day at the office. I was trying to hold on, but my tyres were done, so I had no chance of keeping the Red Bulls behind. Saturday and Sunday felt like a disaster from my side. I just haven’t had the pace since yesterday and I struggled with the car. We’ve been underperforming but I’m not going to let my head drop because I know we have a tough battle ahead of us. I need to get back to my normal level of performance before I lose more valuable points. It could have been worse, Max did me a favour today in terms of the points standings, but it’s a weekend to forget, that’s for sure. Now we need to work hard to understand why we have been struggling and start the climb back to the front of the field.”

Toto Wolff, Head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport: “I am sure that was a fantastic grand prix for the fans watching in the grandstands and back at home – but it was a very challenging one from where we were sitting. Ultimately, the reality of today’s pace is that we lacked pace in each phase – Sebastian managed the performance in the opening stint, building a good gap to Valtteri, and the Red Bulls were significantly faster on fresher tyres after the Safety Car. The best part of our day was undoubtedly Valtteri’s drive: the pit wall called an aggressive undercut, the boys delivered a perfect pit stop and he claimed first the position over Sebastian, then the lead from Kimi with a bold pass round the outside. We saw a real fighter in the car today and, while he was unfortunate with the Safety Car timing opening the door for Red Bull, he protected P2 in a perfect way. For Lewis, it was a tougher afternoon. He could not make progress in the opening stint, pitted early for the medium tyre running a one-stop strategy and then was sitting in P3 after the Safety Car came in. At that stage we believed that gaining track position was key as we did not see any overtaking in the first part of the race. In the end we must admit that the decision from Red Bull to pit for a fresh set of tyres under the safety car was the right call but that was not a given at that stage of the race. P2 and P4 is some good damage limitation from a tricky race but it is little comfort that this puts us in the lead of the constructors’ championship as we head home. We have seen the competitive picture change quickly over the past three races and it’s clear that we still have much to understand about our car and how to get the best from the tyres. We have been in tough spots before in recent years and shown the right spirit to respond. We will do the same again this time.”

Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director: “Firstly congratulations to Valtteri finishing his 100th race with another podium. Last week Valtteri was wanting the race to run a few laps longer and this week he’ll be glad that it finished when it did. He drove a strong race, managed his tyres well and had the pace to make the undercut work with Vettel. It would have been great to have seen him on the top step but we missed it by quite a margin today as we just weren’t fast enough compared to Red Bull. Leading up to the safety car, the race was going reasonably well. Valtteri was running in first place and Lewis was in fourth having benefit from Ferrari going long on the first stint with Kimi. The safety car changed the situation: we had to stay out with Valtteri to retain the lead and decided not to stop Lewis as we might have lost a position to Ricciardo, and risked losing a further place to Kimi. We’d not been able to overtake during the first stint so were conscious that if we’d lost that position, we may have been stuck there. However, we simply didn’t have the pace to beat Red Bull on the same strategy today and we need to be very honest with ourselves regarding our performance of our car this weekend. We’ve had very different conditions over qualifying and race but haven’t been fastest in either. We’re off to Baku next which is a very different type of circuit and we are fully expecting another close battle. We’ve got work to do in many areas, both qualifying and race pace need to be improved. This championship is anyone’s to win and we will be working flat out over the next few weeks and month to try and solve our weaknesses.”

Ferrari

Kimi Raikkonen, 3rd: “It was quite a painful race and not a very enjoyable one. At the start I had a good jump, but then I had to back off and this cost me a few places. After the pit stop the car was pretty fast and the feeling was good; at that point we were behind, but I could see the other cars at the end of the straight. The safety car helped us, at that time we had fresh tyres. I would say it took us back in the race. In the end I had a decent speed with the Mediums against the guys that were on the same tires, but getting close to them and try to follow was really tricky. For sure we were faster than Valtteri, but when you get close it becomes more difficult, you lose so much grip in the process and lose so much downforce, especially in this kind of circuit. I just couldn’t get enough of a run on him. Today we take the third place, but obviously when you start from the first row it’s far from ideal. We’ll try to do better next time.”

Sebastian Vettel, 8th: “I was lucky to end my race. After a collision like the one I had, I think we could have even stopped there. Obviously, the lucky thing is that the car was still working, even if the balance was gone. We lost the lead after the pit stop and that was not ideal. We were quite sure we would have come out in front, but we didn’t. The timing of the Safety Car was bad for both me and Valtteri, because we had no chance to react. After that it was clear that Red Bull was faster and I think there was no point to resist much at the way Daniel approached from behind, and then the same happened with Max. I gave him some room just in case he had a bit of tyre lock-up, but then obviously he had a big one and that’s why we crashed. I think he realized he was wrong. We were both lucky to continue but it was not necessary. However, I appreciated the fact he came to me straightway because that’s the way to solve things like this, face to face. But obviously this is not the result we were looking for.”

Maurizio Arrivabene, Team Principal: “Today’s result was definitely not the one we were aiming for, given that we were starting from the front row. Our race pace wasn’t bad, but this was a Grand Prix in which the many variables made the difference. Kimi made it to the podium and Sebastian limited the damage in a car which, after the collision, was not in the best of conditions for a fight. Now it’s important for us to maintain concentration and determination, already thinking about the next race in Baku.”

Renault

Nico Hulkenberg, 6th: “Everyone seemed to have low grip at the start with cars sliding all over the place. We were on a two-stop strategy from the beginning, so we had to make the tyre last, while maintaining strong pace. It paid off well, the safety car played to our hands and made things easier, but even without the safety car I think we would have come out on top. The pace was good today and we were on top of the midfield, so not a bad day overall. Eight points, we’ll take that home. It was an entertaining one, that’s for sure!”

Carlos Sainz, 9th: “Double points for the team again this year! Well done! I made a really good start moving on one of the Red Bulls but he squeezed me out on the first lap, moving back a couple of places behind Nico. From there we managed to cover two-stops with the aid of the safety car. On my last stint, traffic behind Alonso and Magnussen degraded my tyres too much and I had to save them in order to have a better opportunity at the end of the race. It was really close with Vettel…had there been another lap I would have had him. Overall I’m happy to score more points but I still need to work hard with my engineers to get full confidence with the car.”

Cyril Abiteboul, Team Principal: “Today was obviously a good day for the team which shows we are gaining in maturity. We had decent starting positions with both cars in the top ten, but that actually put us in a difficult position with our race strategy as we knew we would have to do two stops when the competitors around us were in a position to complete the race with one. But thanks to a strong first lap and many very clean overtaking moves from our drivers we made that work. The safety car helped slightly but I don’t think it would have changed much. The team is building and getting stronger across the board. Our pace was encouraging, as was the win of Daniel Ricciardo, showing the Renault power unit is getting there and is a race-win capable engine.”

McLaren

Fernando Alonso, 7th: “Again, on Sundays we seem to deliver better than any other day, which is good as this is when points are given out. It was a well-executed race from our side – P13 at the start and P11 after the first lap. The Safety Car didn’t play into our hands as we were on a one-stop strategy and we’d just pitted onto good, fresh tyres which were going to take us to the end, but the Safety Car gave everyone else the opportunity to pit. We had good battles with Haas and Ferrari, even though the latter wasn’t really a fair fight as Sebastian [Vettel] apparently had damage on his car and was struggling in the corners. We caught up with him, saw that the door was open in one corner, so we went for it. P7 is a great result for the team after a difficult weekend, but there’s no doubt that we have to improve. Our pace wasn’t there all weekend and we were still not fast enough in the race. It was great to see more people here in the grandstands than in previous years, thanks to the Chinese fans!”

Stoffel Vandoorne, 13th: “I didn’t have a great start today and lost a few places on the opening lap. I managed to make three solid overtakes to make a few positions back before the pit-stop. The question for us was whether to make one or two stops when racing the other cars around us, and unfortunately our one-stop strategy didn’t really pay off in the end because the others around us benefitted from pitting under the Safety Car. We thought there might be more opportunities at the end, but we didn’t have the pace and I felt a strong vibration in the car which made the last few laps difficult. It wasn’t the day we were hoping for, but despite this, we still showed that our race pace today was stronger than our qualifying pace. We’re working hard to improve this and our performance on Saturdays, and hopefully we can have a stronger weekend in Baku.”

Eric Boullier, Racing Director: “While today was the tough race we expected, we were still able to show our fighting spirit and bring home some more valuable points. Fernando made a good start, and was up to P11 by the end of the third lap. He managed to maintain strong pace compared to those around him despite the Safety Car period, executed a good strategy, and made a couple of stunning overtakes in the final stages of the race to cross the line in seventh. On the other side of the garage, Stoffel wasn’t as lucky today. He had a slow start off the line and found himself with an uphill struggle after losing a couple of places. He responded strongly though, making some solid overtakes and managing his tyres well. In the latter stages, when his competitors were on fresher rubber, he battled hard in the midfield despite suffering from a strong vibration which made the final laps tricky to manage. He gave it everything to finish in 13th but it was a tough day for him, and we hope for better fortunes in Baku. We opted to run a one-stop strategy today with both drivers, knowing that our tyre management showed good potential. Unfortunately, we were a little bit unlucky with the Safety Car as many of the cars around us took advantage of the window to pit. Still, we fought hard, proved to be opportunistic and used the strengths of our package to our advantage to come home with six more points. Now, we head back to the factory after a long stint away, to regroup and work on preparing ourselves for the next race in Baku.”

Force India

Esteban Ocon, 11th: “We were so close to scoring points today, but the events of the race didn’t really help us. It was a messy start and we lost some time, and we didn’t make any progress. The race was starting to come back to us because we pitted early and the two-stop strategy looked to be working well. We were on course to finish in the points until the Safety Car came out. After that it was a big push until the end of the race, but I was stuck behind Grosjean for too long and he defended very well. Ultimately this cost me the chance of overtaking Magnussen and getting back in the points. It’s another race where things didn’t play into our hands, but the pace was competitive so we focus on the positives.”

Sergio Perez, 12th : “It was another race ruined on the first lap. The start was chaotic and I ran into a lot of trouble. I was pushed wide by a Renault at the exit of turn four and lost a lot of places there. That pretty much ruined our whole weekend. We were suddenly on the back foot, on the weaker tyre and there was very little I could do. We got close to the points and the team made a strategy call that gave me an opportunity to try and pass Kevin [Magnussen] but there was not enough time. We can focus on the positives: we are getting closer to our competition. Yesterday we took a step forward; we made another improvement today and I am confident that once we get to Europe we can start picking up some stronger results.”

Robert Fernley, Deputy Team Principal: “A difficult opening lap put us on the back foot and saw both cars drop down the order. Despite a pace advantage we were stuck in traffic, which forced us to pit both cars early in an attempt to undercut the cars ahead of us. Both cars were following two-stop strategies and after the Safety Car it was a case of trying to recover to the points, which we very nearly did. It was one of those afternoons where a combination of factors played against us and into the hands of others. The pace of the car was solid and that’s definitely a positive to take away we prepare for Baku.”

Haas

Romain Grosjean, 17th: “We made a ballsy strategy going on the ultrasofts to mediums. Unfortunately, the misfortune kept going with me because I knew from the safety car in the middle of the race – when I was on the very long stint on the medium – we were not going to pit. I knew it would be very difficult at the restart, and it was. I tried to hang on to P11 as long as I could but, eventually, the two Force Indias passed me. We came in for another set of ultrasofts for the last 10 laps. They were encouraging as there was very low degradation, and the car felt really good. I knew things were going to be very difficult at the safety car, though.”

Kevin Magnussen, 10th: “I just got unlucky with the safety car. Our strategy was paying off to begin with, but then we got the safety car at a bad time. We didn’t get the advantage out of the strategy that we would’ve had otherwise. I don’t know if we should’ve pitted. It was a tough choice. I just think the safety car came at a very unlucky time and it meant we couldn’t score more than the one point. That’s still okay, but we had hoped for a bit more. It’s a long season and, hopefully, we’ll keep scoring points. I’m proud of how we’re performing as a team. We need to keep that up.”

Guenther Steiner, Team Principal: “A tough finish to the day. The safety car destroyed our race, obviously. I think we were on the way to be seventh with Kevin, and eighth or ninth with Romain. The Renaults got a free pit stop and, therefore, we ended up where we were. We couldn’t get the tyres back up to temperature after the safety car. Kevin fought hard to finish 10th, and Romain just had to change tyres again as we couldn’t get any temperature into them anymore. It’s a tough end to the day but, again, we showed that we can fight in the positions that we fought in from the last two races. I think in some places we can be best of the rest. We go with a positive attitude to Baku and try to do there what we haven’t done over the first three races.”

Sauber

Marcus Ericsson, 16th: “I had a good start today, but lost a few positions after I went slightly off-track in one of the turns. Overall, the race had two phases. The first part was on soft tyres; I was struggling quite a bit as the balance did not feel great. After changing to the medium tyres, I caught up with the lower midfield and could keep up with their pace. Once we look at the data, we can start our preparations for the next race in Azerbaijan.”

Charles Leclerc, 19th: “It was not an ideal race today. I started on a set of soft tyres. I was quite happy with my pace, and managed to advance to the midfield. Shortly after I changed to the set of medium tyres, I spun into the gravel. I picked up some damage to the floor, and started having some trouble with the balance of the car. Unfortunately, I lost a couple of positions there. We will look at our data and make sure that we are ready to do the best job possible in Baku.”

Frédéric Vasseur, Team Principal: “The race had two different sides for us. We had both drivers on a one-stop strategy, starting on the soft, and changing to medium tyres. For Charles, the first stint was a very good one. He could match the pace of the midfield, and recover a few positions. After the pit stops, the race started to change. There was a safety car following an incident on track. The timing was not ideal for us, as our competitors took this chance to save time during their pit stops. Shortly after changing to the medium tyre compound, Charles spun into the gravel. He flat-spotted and picked up damage to his floor. Unfortunately, not much was possible for him after that. Marcus, on the other hand, had a good pace in the second stint and felt more comfortable on the medium tyres. He recovered a few positions and delivered a consistent performance. Overall, the race pace is there and we can see that we can get in the fight within the midfield. We still have some improvements to make for qualifying. That is the next step, and we look forward to the next race.”

Williams

Lance Stroll, 14th: “It was a great start again and, like in Bahrain, I made up five or six positions at the start. Then after that I believe we raced the maximum out of the car. We were not very lucky with the safety car, because the guys on two stops got a free pitstop in front of us. I think the Force Indias were possible to beat today, not on pure pace, but with the good start and everything. It was a bit of a shame, but I am really happy with the race. We got our strategy done and I believe we got everything out of it today.”

Sergey Sirotkin, 15th: “It was a difficult race. I had nothing to lose so I had to fight at the start. I tried to get some positions but when you’re right in the midfield it’s difficult to do something and I think I could have managed better. Afterwards, I really struggled to find the pace. It was quite difficult to find the window with the tyre and it was a very tough first stint. At some points when I was in free air for a few laps it was stabilising a bit, but overall it was really tricky. We pitted for a new set of mediums and then new softs under the safety car. I don’t know what happened to them but they had far less grip than the mediums so we lost quite a bit with that, then we were just trying to get to the end of the race.”

Paddy Lowe, Chief Technical Officer: “Although these aren’t great results, and certainly not in the points, compared to where we were in Bahrain it’s fantastic get two cars to the finish in 14th and 15th. We were certainly in the race today whereas in Bahrain we were not even competing, so a much more positive feeling for everyone and something we can build on in the weeks to come. Both cars had really good starts off the line with Lance taking the most profit out of it, through turns one and two, and getting as high as 12th with Sergey 15th. We always planned the one stop soft-medium and we stuck with that as it was working very well for us. The safety car didn’t help us that much but we took the opportunity to put Sergey on the soft tyre, which appeared to be a better tyre for us and for this circuit, as indeed it appeared to be for the front-runners. On pace, we were able to beat the Saubers but through strategy, we were able to beat both Toro Rosso cars, as well as the Haas of Grosjean.”

Toro Rosso

Pierre Gasly, 18th: “It was a difficult weekend for us overall because we never found the pace since Saturday morning. We knew the race would be difficult after the performance we had in qualifying and the car was quite tricky. Today things didn’t really work out for us, so we have plenty to analyse between the two weekends and try to understand why we were fast in Bahrain and why we struggled in Shanghai. I apologise to Brendon for the contact we had, the team told me that they were going to switch our positions so I went on the inside of the back straight thinking he would give me space. Unfortunately, I don’t think he saw me and once I was on the inside there was nothing I could do. We lost a lot of time after that, I broke my front wing and the steering bent at the end of the race, so it was really difficult to drive and we couldn’t do much from there. We have some work to do to get ready for Baku, it’s a track I know and like so I’m looking forward to getting there.”

Brendon Hartley, DNF: “It was a tough day for us, at the beginning of the race I had no grip on the Ultrasofts so that compromised our strategy. Starting near the back of the grid we tried alternating strategies to give us a better chance but unfortunately that didn’t work. I think the accident with Pierre was down to a miscommunication. The team asked us to swap positions because we were on completely different strategies, so I was going to let him by on the exit of Turn 14 like I did at the start of the race. The second time we had to change positions I planned to do the same but I got hit from behind at the apex. Then towards the end of the race I had to retire because the team saw an issue with the gearbox. In the end it was a long afternoon.”

Franz Tost, Team Principal: “First of all, congratulations to Red Bull Racing for this fantastic victory. It was a fantastic decision from the strategy side and Daniel Ricciardo took the chance. He had everything under control to win the race. Unfortunately, Toro Rosso didn’t perform well. This weekend we struggled from the very beginning onwards – we were near the back on the starting grid, and during the race we couldn’t find the pace we needed. In addition to this, we had the collision between the two drivers because of a communication misunderstanding, which is a real shame. At the end of the race, we detected an issue on the gearbox of Brendon’s car and therefore we had to retire. Hopefully we can find the reason for this bad performance and be more competitive in Baku.”

Toyoharu Tanabe, Honda F1 Technical Director: “After a strong showing in Bahrain just a few days ago, we have had a much more difficult weekend in Shanghai and today’s poor result reflects that. On the PU front, everything ran smoothly, but our overall pace was not very good and then it was unfortunate that our two cars collided. Now, after three races in just four weeks, we can assess what we have learned in order to improve for the future.”

Pirelli

Mario Isola, Head of Car Racing: “After Bahrain, we enjoyed another race where some different thinking on tyre strategy among the leading competitors led to a very exciting conclusion, with many different tactics in play. Track temperatures today were around 20 degrees higher than they had been over the previous couple of days, which meant that the teams were facing a few unknown factors heading into the race, not having run in these temperatures here before. Another factor that influenced tyre strategy and ultimately the race victory was a lengthy safety car period, allowing both Red Bulls to change tyres at an advantageous moment, while reducing wear and degradation for everyone else who stayed out. In total, six drivers, including the race winner, used all three compounds.”

[MIKA27]

Mercedes now second or third quickest confesses Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton reckons Mercedes are no longer the quickest team and could have even dropped to third behind Ferrari and Red Bull, following a difficult Chinese Grand Prix weekend.

Mercedes were easily outqualified by Ferrari on Saturday before Sebastian Vettel romped off into the lead. A clever strategy to undercut Vettel put Valtteri Bottas into the lead for Mercedes before a mid-race Safety Car shuffled the order, with Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo coming through from sixth to take the victory.

Bottas meanwhile finished second with Hamilton down in fourth as he was powerless to keep those on fresher tyres behind.

Speaking after the race, the Briton confessed Mercedes had lost their speed this weekend, but is confident things will change and is pushing his team to find answers.

"It's clear from this weekend we are not the quickest," said Hamilton. "We’ve lost performance since Melbourne and maybe more so this weekend.

"So we are the second or third fastest team at the moment. We’ve got some improving to do, but that’s not impossible.

"I think what this team has shown over the years is we’re great at staying united and continuing to keep working. Everyone here and back at the factory is just going to keep working as hard as possible. We’ve got a lot of information over the last couple of weeks.

"I certainly also am pushing very hard James Vowles and James Allison, Niki [Lauda] and Toto [Wolff], trying to encourage them so they know which areas of the car we’re struggling the most with so they can really apply pressure in those departments and make sure we’ve got more developments coming. Got to keep constructive pressure on the guys. But they’re already pressured, they want to win just as much as all of us."

Mercedes' third straight defeat marks their longest period without a race win since the hybrid era began in 2014 and Hamilton is therefore expecting a harder fight than ever.

"Who knows what the season holds," he added. "If it continues the way it is it’s going to be very tough to win. But if there is an opportunity, we were to finish on top, it would mean even more, because it’s an even tougher season than before."

[MIKA27]

Mix-up over instruction led to Toro Rosso clash at F1 Chinese Grand Prix

Toro Rosso drivers Pierre Gasly and Brendon Hartley have explained that a communication mix-up caused the Safety Car period that had a transformative effect at the Chinese Grand Prix.

Gasly and Hartley ran towards the rear of the pack throughout the bulk of the weekend at Shanghai, with Toro Rosso unable to replicate the pace that netted it a strong haul of points in Bahrain.

Toro Rosso diverged on its strategies, with Hartley taking the start from 15th place on Ultrasofts, and Gasly lining up one row behind as the only driver to run the first stint on Mediums.

Hartley switched to Mediums after 10 laps while Gasly was serviced 21 laps in for a set of Soft tyres, and the Frenchman was catching his team-mate as the second stint wore on.

Toro Rosso instructed the pair to swap positions but they came to blows at the Turn 14 hairpin, with Gasly tipping Hartley into a spin, suffering front wing damage in the process.

Gasly was deemed the culpable party and received a 10-second time penalty, along with two penalty points, while the resultant debris caused the deployment of the Safety Car, which changed the complexion of the win battle.

“I apologise to Brendon for the contact we had,” said Gasly.

“The team told me that they were going to switch our positions so I went on the inside of the back straight thinking he would give me space.

“Unfortunately, I don’t think he saw me and once I was on the inside there was nothing I could do.

“We lost a lot of time after that, I broke my front wing and the steering bent at the end of the race, so it was really difficult to drive and we couldn’t do much from there.”

Hartley proffered his view, commenting: “I think the accident with Pierre was down to a miscommunication.

“The team asked us to swap positions because we were on completely different strategies, so I was going to let him by on the exit of Turn 14 like I did at the start of the race.

“The second time we had to change positions I planned to do the same but I got hit from behind at the apex.”

The penalised Gasly went on to classify in 18th position while Hartley retired with five laps remaining due to a gearbox problem.

[MIKA27]

Marko: Verstappen gave away the win

Helmut Marko believes Max Verstappen cost himself the victory in China with his audacious attempt at passing Sebastian Vettel.

Having earlier had troubles trying to pass Lewis Hamilton, which he eventually made stick, Verstappen with his fresher ultrasoft tyres closed up on Vettel.

However, that pass didn’t go according to plan.

Verstappen dived into the inside at the corner and hit Vettel, pitching both drivers into a spin.

Both lost positions but while Vettel was the biggest loser on paper, Marko reckons Verstappen cost himself a shot at the victroy.

“Max overdid it by trying to overtake Vettel,” he told Movistar. “It was a mistake from him.

“He apologised. That can happen in racing.”

Marko spoke with Verstappen after the race and revealed what he told the Dutch driver.

He said: “His time will come. He just shouldn’t overdo it. He knows what he lost.

“There was a victory for him on the table, but he gave it away.

“But still it was a very good drive from both our drivers. He 19 or 20, he’s bloody young, and it can happen.”

[MIKA27]

Vettel: Race-changing safety car timing was "not right"

Formula 1 championship leader Sebastian Vettel has questioned the timing of the safety car period that compromised his race in China.
FIA race director Charlie Whiting called for the safety car after a collision between Toro Rosso drivers Brendon Hartley and Pierre Gasly left debris on the track, opting not to go for a VSC because it was necessary to create a gap in traffic to allow marshals onto the track.

However, the yellow flag period was confirmed just after leader Valtteri Bottas and Vettel had passed the safety car line – which meant that they could not duck into the pits.

Often the leaders have the chance to carry on round and pit before finding the safety car and joining the queue, but the timing on this occasion meant that Bottas and Vettel were given no such opportunity.

Meanwhile, Red Bull drivers Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo were able to pit for fresh tyres – a decision that ultimately won the race for the Australian.

“Obviously the timing of the safety car was bad for Valtteri and myself, because we had no chance to react," Vettel said.

“The safety car was caught almost straight away, so basically we were taken out of the race there, and didn't have the choice to jump on fresh tyres or stay out.”

Vettel was frustrated because he believed that, having waited for a couple of laps while the debris situation was assessed, Whiting could have timed the safety car so that the leaders did not suffer.

“I need to understand why we had the safety car changing the race. In 2014 in Hungary we were in a similar situation, where the leaders were disadvantaged because the safety car came once they passed the pit entry, or it was called out after they passed the pit entry.

“I understand if something happens and you have to react straight away, then you can't always respect where cars are relative to each other.

"But we had two laps of the debris on the track, so why not call the safety car half a minute sooner and then everybody has the chance to decide whether they pit or not?”

Vettel acknowledged that the safety car was required: “I don't know the gaps but you have to give the marshals a one and a half or two-minute window to clean the track.

"But in my point of view it's not right to send it when you actively change the race.”

  

Whiting wanted to make sure safety car was "necessary"

Queried on the timing of the safety car, Whiting stressed it wasn’t race control’s job to ensure that nobody lost out in such situations.

“I don’t look to see who is going to be advantaged or disadvantaged,” he said. “You remember a few years ago in Hungary, Nico [Rosberg] was leading, the first four cars were just past the pit entry, and they got disadvantaged. So that’s fairly straightforward.

“It’s a little bit of a mystery to me why this has all come into sharp focus, because we’ve had the VSC since 2015, we’ve had the safety car for 20 years, and we know that in every intervention there will be winners and losers.

"If we have to sit there and work out who is going to be advantaged and work it so everyone has exactly the same chance... We don’t have time for that. It’s not our job to do that.”

Regarding the delay on the decision, he said: “I think we wanted to make sure it was necessary. We didn’t want to do it just on the basis that three or four teams called us to say we need a safety car, which happens nearly every time.

"I asked the clerk of the course if they could get it in a gap in the traffic, and he said: ‘No, it’s too much.’ We had to make sure it was justified."

[MIKA27]

Alonso admits Vettel fight was "not fair"

Fernando Alonso admitted his battle with Sebastian Vettel in the Chinese Grand Prix was "not fair" because of the damage the Ferrari driver had on his car.
McLaren driver Alonso was able to erase a six-second gap to Vettel in the closing stages of the race and pass the German down the inside of Turn 1 to take seventh position.

Vettel had dropped down the order after his crash with Red Bull's Max Verstappen, the Ferrari showing visible damage on the right side of the floor area.

Alonso conceded the pass was not a fair reflection of the cars' actual respective pace.

"It was good. Obviously it was not a fair fight because Sebastian had damage on his car and I was a little bit quicker on the corners," said Alonso.

"I was surprised when I saw a Ferrari not going too fast at the end. I asked what was the problem and apparently he had damage on his car so he was struggling a little bit on the corners.

"He was running very wide in the corners, so in the first opportunity I saw the door open and went for it.

"And in the end at one point the track finished so he kept going until there was grass, so you need to back off at one point."

Vettel went off the circuit after running out of room when Alonso overtook him, but the German said he was just happy to make it to the end of the race.

"I was very vulnerable so he could have passed me another time," Vettel added.

"I think the way he dived in was now or never, and I obviously had to back off, otherwise we would have just crashed. I was just happy to finish."

Alonso, who has scored points in all three races so far this year, believes he could have enjoyed a better result if not for the safety car, which was deployed right after he had made his only pitstop.

"The safety car didn't help, definitely," he said.

"We were executing a one-stop strategy a little bit differently, with a very long first stint that I think would have paid off in the end, but I think the safety car opened the opportunity for everybody to put a new set of tyres and that was a shame for us.

"At the same time I think it was a great battle and we were able to overtake. It was a nice feeling and great result for the team again."

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Vettel praises Verstappen's swift apology after crash

Formula 1 world championship leader Sebastian Vettel says he appreciated Max Verstappen's handling of their Chinese Grand Prix collision and the Red Bull driver's prompt apology.
Vettel, winner of the first two grands prix of the 2018 F1 season, was tapped into a spin by Verstappen 13 laps from the end of the Shanghai race as the Red Bull caught his third-placed Ferrari having taken on fresh tyres during a safety car period.

Verstappen accepted full responsibility for the incident and approached Vettel to discuss it immediately after the race finished.

"He came up straight after. He realised that he did a mistake," said Vettel.

"I said to him 'look, the races are long and you threw your podium away'. He was lucky to continue, I was lucky to continue, but it was not necessary.

"I think he got it. He was quite composed and realised that he messed up.

"People were asking if it was a question of age, but it's not. He's done so many races.

"We had a bit of tailwind the whole race and after 41 laps you know that it's tricky to stop the car there. But it happens.

"I appreciate the fact that he came to me straight away. I told him that was the way to solve it, face to face and not through the media or blowing something up."

Vettel, who had led the first part of the race before being jumped by Valtteri Bottas in the initial pitstops, underlined that he would have let Verstappen past without a fight given their respective tyre situations.

Verstappen's teammate Daniel Ricciardo used the same strategy to charge from sixth to victory in the final part of the race.

"It was clear that the Red Bulls were faster," said Vettel.

"The way Daniel approached from behind there was no point to resist much and the same with Max.

"I think he had a bad exit onto the big straight, otherwise I was just ready to let him go. He wasn't there, so then you stay in front.

"I gave a bit of room just in case he had a tiny lock-up and then obviously he had a big lock-up... That's when we crashed."

Vettel resumed in sixth after the clash but struggled with a damaged car for the rest of the race and fell to eighth behind Nico Hulkenberg's Renault and Fernando Alonso's McLaren.

"I think in a way I'm lucky that I got to the end of it," Vettel added. "After a collision like that we might've stopped there.

"The lucky thing was the car was still working. Obviously the floor was damaged and the balance was gone.

"The car wasn't the same after that. It had a lot of understeer."

Verstappen was given a 10-second time penalty for the collision, demoting him from fourth to fifth in the results.

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HORNER: WHY WOULD RICCIARDO WANT TO BE ANYWHERE ELSE?

Amid mounting interest from Mercedes and Ferrari, Red Bull hope they can convince Daniel Ricciardo to stay with them after giving the Australian a winning car in the Chinese Grand Prix.

The victory, from sixth on the starting grid, was a morale-booster for the 28-year-old after a frustrating start to the season and comes as he is deciding his next career move.

Out of contract at the end of the year, Ricciardo has been linked in media speculation to Ferrari and Formula One champions Mercedes.

“I think Daniel’s happy in the environment. If we can give him a car like we did today, why would he want to be anywhere else?,” Red Bull team boss Christian Horner told reporters in Shanghai.

“He had the energy store failure in Bahrain, he had a turbo failure here yesterday, losing him important track time,” recognised the Briton.

“You get to a point where you think ‘what next?’. But it’s a great confidence booster for him, to get this result now in this point in the year. Everything is wide open.”

Mercedes, the dominant team in Formula One for the past four seasons, have yet to win in three races.

Ferrari won in Australia and Bahrain with four-times champion Sebastian Vettel, who may not relish the prospect of his former Red Bull team mate joining him at Maranello.

Red Bull’s future engine partner remains uncertain, however, with the team mulling whether to continue with Renault or switch to the Honda units now being used by the energy drink company’s Toro Rosso outfit.

The Honda engine, while seemingly much improved this year after three years of failure in the back of a McLaren, remains behind rivals on power.

Red Bull have made clear since last year that they want Ricciardo to stay alongside 20-year-old Dutch driver Max Verstappen, a hot prospect whose race on Sunday was marred by needless overtaking errors.

“He’s a very rounded driver now. He’s absolutely at the top of his game and I think he has been for the last couple of years,” Horner said of the Australian.

“He’s hit that balance of experience and pace. He’s one of the best overtakers in the business and his judgement is impeccable in terms of judging a gap.

“I feel he’s in a different part of his career to where Max is at the moment, who is still very young and fresh and going through that experience.”

[MIKA27]

ARE FERRARI AND RED BULL FINALLY ON PAR WITH MERCEDES?

It may be premature to call the end of an era of Mercedes domination but Daniel Ricciardo’s thrilling win for Red Bull at the Chinese Grand Prix marks a clear shift in the Formula 1 landscape.

Even if Mercedes were back on top of the constructors’ standings, the world champions were beaten for the third race in a row at the Chinese Grand Prix — a first for the V6 turbo hybrid era that started in 2014.

“It’s inevitable in all sports that at some point, the winning becomes harder or stops,” commented Christian Horner, Ricciardo’s team boss, as the celebrations continued.

“Mercedes still have a quick car. It’s incredible that after three races they haven’t won a Grand Prix yet,” added the Briton, whose team won four successive double titles between 2010 and 2013.

The sheer depth of talent and resources at Mercedes’ disposal, and the fact that there are 18 races still to run in this gruelling 21-round season, means it is too early to trumpet a changing of the guard.

Gloomy pre-season predictions, based on testing form, that Lewis Hamilton and his Anglo-German team would run away with this championship can be laid to rest, however.

“It certainly does look like the tide has turned… in this turbo-hybrid era,” commented 1996 world champion Damon Hill after Ferrari swept the front row in qualifying for the second race in succession.

Red Bull’s success in the race, following on from two Ferrari victories, emphasised that this will be more than just a two-team battle.

For Mercedes, who for the first time since 2013 also failed to have both drivers appear on the podium together in at least two of the opening three rounds, Sunday’s race will keep the alarm bells ringing.

As a measure of form, Shanghai was more significant than Australia or Bahrain — both won last year by Ferrari’s current championship leader Sebastian Vettel.

Seen as much more of a Mercedes circuit, the champions had won for the past four years in China while Hamilton boasts an unprecedented five victories there.

While Vettel had looked good for a hat-trick of wins on Sunday morning, Ricciardo cashed in on a safety car period that put Red Bull in the driving seat.

They could have had both drivers on the podium had Max Verstappen not wrecked his chances with some rash overtaking attempts, including a collision with Vettel that ultimately dropped the German down to eighth.

Mercedes might also have won without the safety car, with Mercedes getting Valtteri Bottas ahead of Vettel on strategy, but they know the real score.

“Sebastian in my opinion controlled the race at the beginning, and then the Red Bulls after the stop had just a mighty pace,” said Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff.

“The whole weekend we were just not good enough, everywhere,” he added. “This weekend we were probably third and fourth (behind Ferrari), so we just need to get our act together.”

The trajectory of Hamilton’s season has been downward since Melbourne, with the 33-year-old second, third and now fourth.

He has not won for six races, his last being the United States Grand Prix in Austin last October, which represents his longest such run since the end of 2015/start of 2016 when he was off the top step for eight in a row.

“It is clear from this weekend that we are not the quickest,” said Hamilton, who did not spare himself blame either.”

“We’ve lost performance since Melbourne and maybe more so this weekend. We are the second, or third fastest team at the moment so we have some improving to do, but that’s not impossible.”

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ITALIAN MEDIA BEGIN CALLS FOR FERRARI TO SIGN RICCIARDO

In the wake of Daniel Ricciardo’s brilliant victory of the Chinese Grand Prix, Italian media outlets are starting to call for Ferrari to sign the out of contract Red Bull driver to replace Kimi Raikkonen at the end of this season.

The Italian media are notoriously powerful when it comes to Ferrari and Formula 1. Over the years, as a collective, they have managed to influence many major decisions taken by the Scuderia.

After the Australian remarkable drive in Shanghai, media in Italy have showered the Australian (of Italian origin) with plaudits and are questioning why the 28-year-old has not been snapped up by their beloved Ferrari.

Autosprint’s Alberto Sabbatini wrote: “Ferrari should take Ricciardo. The incredible thing about him is that he is still without a contract for the future. If I were Marchionne I would seriously consider Ricciardo.”

“He is at the height of his competitive splendour. He is not yet 29-years-old but he is a mature driver who knows how to bring in the big points for his team. There are enough certainties to say that Vettel and Ricciardo would form the strongest driver line-up in Formula 1.”

“Risk of problems? Yes, in the past when they were teammates Red Bull and there was friction, but times have changed. They are no longer two impulsive kids as in 2013/14 when they shared a garage. Ricciardo and Vettel have grown up.”

“Both are useful for the Ferrari cause. Vettel strongly aggressive in qualifying and in the race when at the front alongside Ricciardo who is a great fighter and capable of prodigious comebacks. With all due respect to Raikkonen, Marchionne should seriously think of such a dream team.”

Luca Budel of Sport Mediaset wrote: “While Max remains a potential phenomenon, the one who wins and keeps Red Bull going is Daniel Ricciardo, a driver who deserves Ferrari’s attention for quality and substance that he has been delivering on track for years.”

Piero Ladisa of Motori Online wrote: “Ricciardo is a free agent next year and among the teams interested in him are Ferrari. A move to Maranello will team him up with Sebastian Vettel and would give Ferrari reliability and quality. The pairing could be the most complete and potent on the grid.”

“True, they were teammates at Red Bull in 2014, and it was not a bed of roses, but both have matured enough to understand that internal fighting would be senseless. They could work together for the common good of Ferrari, first and foremost.”

Ferrari insider Leo Turrini wrote in his column for Quotidiano: “Not that it was needed because Daniel Ricciardo was already at the centre of the drivers market, but the spectacular victory in China, highlighted by exciting overtaking, has raised his stakes substantially.”

“Red Bull has decided to focus their future on Max Verstappen with a contract extension, while the Australian has no commitments for the next season and did not like the decision of his bosses [when they signed Verstappen to a three-year deal].”

“We know that he has already spoken both with Ferrari and with Mercedes. Kimi Raikkonen could retire at the end of the current season, while Valtteri Bottas has yet to completely convince his bosses in Stuttgart.”

Luigi Lencioni of Superscommesse wrote: “In 2019 Ferrari will have a new driver who will join Vettel. Raikkonen is close to retirement. Ricciardo could be the ideal substitute.”

Interestingly, just about every Italian publication also quoted 2016 F1 World Champion Nico Rosberg, who said after the race on Sky Sports: “If I was him, I’d go to Ferrari. It’s the best car at the moment and he knows he can beat Sebastian. I remember hating having him behind me in the races.”

The above are extracts from columns in several Italian media less than 24-hours after the race in Shanghai, suggesting that a collective demand for Ricciardo at Ferrari is growing in momentum among Italian scribes.

Ricciardo himself has made no secret – like just about every other top driver – that Ferrari is on his wishlist but at the same time does not want to be rushed into a decision.

He said recently, “I don’t really see myself racing in Formula 1 until my mid or late thirties. So more so I want to make the next period of my career work and make it right. I’m not just happy ticking over and just being here.”

“If I can get a good deal, with the right team, if that is Red Bull or someone else, then I feel it’s worth waiting,” explained the big smiling Aussie.

Whatever Ricciardo’s decision, all in the F1 paddock know of his abilities for some time and with his latest jaw-dropping escapades, on the road to victory at the Chinese Grand Prix, his shares have skyrocketed overnight.

It would be fair to assume his phone will be busy in the weeks to come… starting this morning!

[MIKA27]

GASLY: I APOLOGISE TO BRENDON FOR THE CONTACT WE HAD

What a difference a week makes! Toro Rosso rookie Pierre Gasly’s Bahrain Grand Prix heroics were a distant memory in China after he was penalised for colliding with teammate Brendon Hartley.

The French driver, an impressive fourth at Sakhir last weekend for the Honda-powered Italian Formula One team, finished last but one in Shanghai while New Zealander Hartley retired with gearbox damage.

Stewards added 10 seconds to Gasly’s time at the finish and also gave him two penalty points, his first in Formula 1, for an incident the team put down to miscommunication.

“I apologise to Brendon for the contact we had, the team told me that they were going to switch our positions so I went on the inside of the back straight thinking he would give me space,” said Gasly.

“Unfortunately I don’t think he saw me and once I was inside there was nothing I could do,” added the rookie, who was awarded ‘Driver of the Day’ for his race in Bahrain.

The incident scattered debris across the track, bringing out the safety car, with Gasly suffering a broken front wing and bent steering.

Hartley, who has yet to score a point since his debut late last year, had started near the back and was struggling on the ultrasoft tyres, “I think the accident with Pierre was down to a miscommunication.”

“The team asked us to swap positions because we were on completely different strategies, so I was going to let him by on the exit of turn 14 like I did at the start of the race.”

[MIKA27]

Why drivers still make a difference in Formula 1

"A great, entertaining and thorough analysis of strategy and tyre choice. But don’t you miss the days when those mattered little, and driver talent was the biggest determining factor in a victory? I sure do. Do you ever see that coming back?"

I encountered this comment below the line in an article analysing Friday practice for the Chinese Grand Prix just passed. I don’t quote it to pick on its author, as it’s a common refrain. And who could argue? The drivers are the stars. And there is a consensus view that in F1 they have become less of a discriminator across time.

But perhaps the extent that “those days” vary from now is overstated. The first point to make is that there have always been equipment haves and have nots. In the pre-war days as well as the 1950s the gaps between cars were wider than now in the main; same goes for a few other eras too.

It’s hard also – in any era – to point at instances where races were won by the driver in spite of their machine, though analysis is muddied by that the best drivers tend to find their way into the best cars.

We like to talk about Stirling Moss taking an underpowered Rob Walker entered Lotus to victory in Monaco and the Nurburgring – two drivers’ tracks – in 1961. But that seems an outlier. The norm instead is even celebrated driving talent can sink to nowhere if the car is not underneath them, and that’s almost always been the case.

Rule changes provide good examples. Jack Brabham got two titles on the bounce with Cooper in 1959 and ’60, but the next season the 1.5 litre formula came in and Black Jack got a total of four points. Jim Clark was untouchable in 1965 but with the 3 litre formula of the following year and Lotus’s drop-off in competitiveness Clark wasn’t a contender and bagged only one win.

The brilliant Chris Amon could not get his Tecno, Amon or whatever near the front-runners. Emerson Fittipaldi won two titles young in the early seventies but then could do nothing in five seasons in his brother’s tail end machine.

And the cliff face development of the ground effect really shook things up in the late seventies - 1978 champion Mario Andretti got just 14 points in the following year of ‘79. That year’s champion Jody Scheckter got just two points the year after that. The likes of Niki Lauda and James Hunt became midfield men too. Presumably in none of these cases did they become suddenly bad drivers.

“I doubt that there has previously been an era when a great driver was so impotent in the face of mediocre machinery,” declared Nigel Roebuck in 1980 as if to demonstrate that little changes. “There must be the possibility of an unexpected result, the chance of seeing that inspired drive which can make the day memorable.”

And in recent seasons we’ve had the extreme case study of Fernando Alonso – likely still in the top driver bracket – driving a series of desperate McLarens. He’s got the car frequently into places it has no right to be, but occasional meagre point-scoring has been his lot even so.

Yet it’s likely the case also that we overstate the extent that the modern F1 driver is redundant, simply along for the ride and dependent on what their car is doing. Even amid modern F1’s tortuous technology drivers still make a difference. Not to the extent that Moss did granted. Rather it’s in the margins. But in F1, particularly at the front, results are decided in the margins.

We’ve had plenty of examples this season. In all three race weekends there was little between the two Ferraris, if anything Kimi Raikkonen looked the faster much of the time. Yet it has been Sebastian Vettel who has pipped him when it matters. In both Bahrain and China despite being behind after the first Q3 runs Seb nosed ahead of Kimi at the last to take pole.

And he’s been faster in each race as well. Yes, I hear you cry, Seb got a massive slab of luck to get ahead in Australia, but consider that when the safety car went in Seb had less than four seconds on Kimi, and he then stretched his lead on his team-mate to nearly 10 at its peak.

In Bahrain he was six seconds clear when Kimi had his pitstop related retirement. In China he was 12 seconds clear after 15 laps, long before Kimi was used as a strategic pawn (delivering at qualifying’s crunch point as well as throughout a race distance has been Kimi’s problem for a while now).

“I feel so much for Kimi today,” said Nico Rosberg after China’s qualifying. “I know exactly how it is, when you’re the whole weekend in front, and Lewis used to do that to me, when it mattered pull one out of the bag and just nail it. It hurts.”

Little wonder that F1’s mantras use terms that hint at making a difference in the margins: ‘Nailing it’, ‘delivering’, ‘getting the job done’…

Similar applies at Mercedes. Valtteri Bottas did a solid job in Bahrain, but few could resist asking the question of what Lewis Hamilton would have done in the same situation in those dramatic late laps, or even what any number of suitors linked with the Merc drive would have done? Would it have been the difference between claiming victory and the actual defeat by half a second? Possibly. Daniel Ricciardo confirmed he would have stuck his car up the inside of Vettel’s on the last lap and asked questions later.

If you’re wondering why teams spend top dollar on top driving talent, rather than investing that money in car development, this is why.

What about those teams not at the front though – is it worth them prioritising driving talent? Many rue that Robert Kubica was not given a Williams race seat this year, and there was a resultant lengthy debate around the subject among Sky’s commentators in its coverage of one of the practice sessions in China. Anthony Davidson made the not unreasonable point that drivers are the least of Williams’ problems right now, and therefore it made little sense for a team such as Williams to outlay cash on a celebrated driver given the handful of tenths shaved from laptimes would make little effective difference in the immediate term.

But the driver can make a difference further down too, albeit it applies in slightly different ways.

Force India is hardly flush with cash but has for years had a policy of not compromising on driving talent and it’s reaped the awards in points and constructors’ placings (and therefore prize money). Williams – despite Claire Williams’ slightly intelligence-insulting proclamations – has this year picked two pilots whose cases owe at least something to the money they bring. Not everyone is convinced this leaves them up all things considered, given the downside of fewer points and lower prestige (and the many knock-on impacts of both). Williams could have learned from its own history too, as in 2012 a ‘pay driver’ pairing didn’t begin to make the best of a promising car. It was murmured that the loss of prize money and paying for Pastor Maldonado’s wrecks negated whatever money it got from the drivers in any case.

“The drivers are inexperienced,” said Paul di Resta on the very subject of Williams in China, “they can’t lead the team in that respect. You’ve got Alonso who can pull McLaren along…”

Partly it’s leading the team, providing motivation and direction as di Resta says, but one imagines it also hardly helps a car’s technical development to not be clear on how much of a lack of pace is down to the car and how much is the driver. McLaren can at least be content that every time Alonso takes the car out he’s taking it along as fast as it is possible for that car to go (or faster).

Moreover McLaren sticks with Alonso as having a top drawer driving talent is its most tangible link to its glorious past, which in turn helps keep up investment and other interest in the team. It was in part for the very same reason that it retained Jenson Button when the likes of Kevin Magnussen and Stoffel Vandoorne for years were knocking impatiently on the door.

McLaren of course is wary of the slippery slope experienced by Williams and plenty others before it. As previously discussed nothing succeeds like failure in F1; downward spirals are very easy to enter.

Alonso’s making his direct difference at McLaren as well, qualifying as the lead Woking car three times from three this season with an average advantage of a quarter of a second. And he has 22 points to Stoffel’s six.

It may not seem this way, but even in current day’s F1 drivers still make a difference.

[MIKA27]

Hulkenberg encouraged by Renault display in China

Renault's Nico Hulkenberg expressed further encouragement at the manufacturer's pace as he comfortably led the midfield group at the Chinese Grand Prix.

After starting in seventh place for the sixth race in a row, the 30-year-old driver held position, and profited from Sebastian Vettel's clash with Max Verstappen to move ahead of his compatriot and collect sixth place.

The result means Hulkenberg has amassed 22 points from the opening trio of races, his best start to a season since 2014.

"Everyone seemed to have low grip at the start with cars sliding all over the place," said the German.

"We were on a two-stop strategy from the beginning, so we had to make the tyre last while maintaining a strong pace. It paid off well, the safety car played into our hands and made things easier, but even without the safety car, I think we would have come out on top.

"The pace was good and we were on top of the midfield, so not a bad day overall. Eight points, we’ll take that home. It was an entertaining one, that’s for sure!"

Renault chief Cyril Abiteboul echoed Hulkenberg's sentiments and believes even without the intervention of the Safety Car, both Carlos Sainz and Hulkenberg would have been able to have the pace to pull off the same result, given the speed of the R.S.18.

"It was obviously a good day for the team which shows we are gaining in maturity," added Abiteboul.

"We had decent starting positions with both cars in the top 10, but that actually put us in a difficult position with our race strategy as we knew we would have to do two stops when the competitors around us were in a position to complete the race with one.

"But thanks to a strong first lap and many very clean overtaking moves from our drivers we made that work.

"The safety car helped slightly but I don’t think it would have changed much. The team is building and getting stronger across the board. Our pace was encouraging."

[MIKA27]

Stoffel Vandoorne: Start and strategy scuppered points hopes

McLaren’s Stoffel Vandoorne says a poor getaway and his strategy prevented him from continuing his points run at the Chinese Grand Prix.

Vandoorne started from 14th place but dropped a couple of positions on the opening lap and ran a one-stop Soft / Medium strategy, pitting on lap 22 of 56.

Vandoorne’s prospects of points were scuppered by the deployment of the Safety Car shortly afterwards, while vibrations with his MCL33 ultimately nullified his chances.

The Belgian crossed the line in 13th position, failing to bring home points for the first time in 2018.

“I didn’t have a great start and lost a few places on the opening lap,” said Vandoorne.

“I managed to make three solid overtakes to make a few positions back before the pit stop.

“The question for us was whether to make one or two stops when racing the other cars around us.

“Unfortunately our one-stop strategy didn’t really pay off in the end because the others around us benefitted from pitting under the Safety Car. 

“We thought there might be more opportunities at the end, but we didn’t have the pace and I felt a strong vibration in the car which made the last few laps difficult.”

Vandoorne was nonetheless lifted by McLaren’s race pace, as team-mate Fernando Alonso rose to collect more points in seventh position.

“It wasn’t the day we were hoping for, but despite this, we still showed that our race pace was stronger than our qualifying pace,” said Vandoorne.

“We’re working hard to improve this and our performance on Saturdays, and hopefully we can have a stronger weekend in Baku.”

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Safety car destroyed our race - Guenther Steiner

Haas team principal Guenther Steiner believes the timing of the Safety Car period at the Chinese Grand Prix destroyed any chances of another solid result for the American team.

After debris left on the race track due to the collision between the Toro Rosso drivers at the Turn 14 hairpin brought out the Safety Car, the split strategy Haas had adopted for both cars in the race meant any hope of a solid result was left in tatters.

Steiner was hopeful of a much better performance, but after the safety car period, the team was forced to adopt different tactics for the remainder of the race as both cars were left with less than ideal strategies to fight with their rivals.

"The safety car destroyed our race, obviously, said Steiner.

"I think we were on the way to be seventh with Kevin [Magnussen], and eighth or ninth with Romain [Grosjean]. The Renaults got a free pit stop and, therefore, we ended up where we were. We couldn’t get the tires back up to temperature after the Safety Car.

"Kevin fought hard to finish 10th, and Romain just had to change tires again as we couldn’t get any temperature into them anymore."

Romain Grosjean was left on worn Medium tyres at the Safety Car restart having pitted for Medium tyres on lap 16; this left him exposed to the threats coming from behind and unable to defend his position.

He eventually fell to the back of the pack after making another pit stop with 10 laps to go and clawed his way back to 17th place.

"We made a ballsy strategy going on the ultrasofts to mediums," added the Frenchman. "Unfortunately, the misfortune kept going with me because I knew from the safety car in the middle of the race – when I was on the very long stint on the medium – we were not going to pit. I knew it would be very difficult at the restart, and it was. I tried to hang on to P11 as long as I could but, eventually, the two Force Indias passed me. 

"We came in for another set of ultrasofts for the last 10 laps. They were encouraging as there was very low degradation, and the car felt really good. I knew things were going to be very difficult at the safety car, though.”

Magnussen rounded out the top 10, having been in the fight for seventh when the Safety Car was deployed.

"I just got unlucky with the safety car," Magnussen added. "Our strategy was paying off to begin with, but then we got the safety car at a bad time. We didn’t get the advantage out of the strategy that we would’ve had otherwise. I don’t know if we should’ve pitted. It was a tough choice.

"I just think the safety car came at a very unlucky time and it meant we couldn’t score more than the one point. That’s still okay, but we had hoped for a bit more. It’s a long season and, hopefully, we’ll keep scoring points. I’m proud of how we’re performing as a team. We need to keep that up."

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Force India "hit hard" by first-lap dramas

Force India deputy team principal Bob Fernley says first-lap dramas have made things look worse than they are for the Silverstone-based squad in the first races of the F1 season.
Sergio Perez fell from eighth to 14th on lap one of last weekend's Chinese GP amid a brush with Fernando Alonso that also held up the second Force India of Esteban Ocon.

That came a week after Perez was delayed by a first-lap collision with Toro Rosso's Brendon Hartley in Bahrain.

Ocon's 10th place at Sakhir is Force India's only point of 2018 so far, leaving it ninth in the constructors' championship at present.

"We've had two races where the first lap has hit us hard," Fernley told Motorsport.com.

"The difficulty is that once you go back like that, with the midfield competition so tight, it's very difficult to recover. I think that's the key to it.

"Alonso and the Renaults have done a good job clearing that trouble in the first laps, and are getting the benefit of it.

"The pace of everybody is so close it doesn't take much to really push you right the way back.

"It's just how it falls. If you get out of position from your starting place it's very difficult to recover if everybody finishes."

Ocon and Perez ended up 11th and 12th in China, but Fernley felt one of them would have still scored if they had been able to clear Haas' Romain Grosjean quicker in the final part of the race.

The Frenchman was trying to run to the finish on a one-stop strategy while the Force Indias had pitted for fresh tyres under the safety car.

"We did a very aggressive strategy at the safety car which wasn't necessarily against us," said Fernley. "We lost time trying to get past Grosjean. Had we been able to do that, I think we would have got into the points.

"It still would have been a 10th place, but the strategy would have worked. It proved longer to get past Grosjean than we thought it would."

The first lap delay in China prompted a frustrated radio message from Ocon about Perez, but Fernley said that did not mean tensions between his drivers were increasing again, pointing out that they respected team orders later in the race.

"I don't think there was anything particular in there, it was just a sloppy first lap," he said of the radio exchange.

"It just set them both back. Once you see the video replays you can see where it's all gone wrong and it's one of those things. The boys worked really well. We tried to switch them to get a move on to [Kevin] Magnussen.

"We moved Checo [Perez] through on Esteban, and then at the end we swapped them back. Everything worked very well from that point of view. The problem is that first lap just hurt us."