Mercedes secured their third one-two victory with Lewis Hamilton securing victory after a great start and Bottas finishing second. Sebastian Vettel completed the podium in third.
Behind the Mercedes pair, Vettel’s podium position was effectively secured when Ferrari team orders saw Charles Leclerc moved over early in the race, with the Bahrain near-victor ending up a frustrating fifth, behind the Red Bull of Max Verstappen. Read the full Race Analysis and new Standings here.
Race Results
| POS | DRIVER | CAR | LAPS | GAP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 56 | 1h32m06.350s |
| 2 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | 56 | 6.552s |
| 3 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | 56 | 13.744s |
| 4 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull/Honda | 56 | 27.627s |
| 5 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 56 | 31.276s |
| 6 | Pierre Gasly | Red Bull/Honda | 56 | 1m29.307s |
| 7 | Daniel Ricciardo | Renault | 55 | 1 Lap |
| 8 | Sergio Perez | Racing Point/Mercedes | 55 | 1 Lap |
| 9 | Kimi Raikkonen | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 55 | 1 Lap |
| 10 | Alexander Albon | Toro Rosso/Honda | 55 | 1 Lap |
| 11 | Romain Grosjean | Haas/Ferrari | 55 | 1 Lap |
| 12 | Lance Stroll | Racing Point/Mercedes | 55 | 1 Lap |
| 13 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas/Ferrari | 55 | 1 Lap |
| 14 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | McLaren/Renault | 55 | 1 Lap |
| 15 | Antonio Giovinazzi | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 55 | 1 Lap |
| 16 | George Russell | Williams/Mercedes | 54 | 2 Laps |
| 17 | Robert Kubica | Williams/Mercedes | 54 | 2 Laps |
| 18 | Lando Norris | McLaren/Renault | 50 | Not running |
| – | Daniil Kvyat | Toro Rosso/Honda | 41 | Retirement |
| – | Nico Hulkenberg | Renault | 16 | Retirement |
Qualifying Results
Bottas beats Hamilton to pole by just 0.023s as Mercedes lock out front row in China.
Having never started on the front row before in Shanghai, current world championship leader Bottas put in a confident performance in Q3 to lap the Shanghai International Circuit in 1m 31.547s, and give Mercedes the advantage heading into Sunday’s race.
In fifth place was the Red Bull of Max Verstappen, the Dutchman left unhappy after backed up traffic prevented him from making a final attempt. His teammate Pierre Gasly, making his first appearance of Q3 this year, was sixth, but a full 0.841s off Verstappen’s pace.
This is the 7th pole position for Bottas in F1. His first after the Russian Grand Prix last year
Provisional Starting Grid
| POS | DRIVER | CAR | TIME | GAP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | 1m31.547s | – |
| 2 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1m31.570s | 0.023s |
| 3 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | 1m31.848s | 0.301s |
| 4 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1m31.865s | 0.318s |
| 5 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull/Honda | 1m32.089s | 0.542s |
| 6 | Pierre Gasly | Red Bull/Honda | 1m32.930s | 1.383s |
| 7 | Daniel Ricciardo | Renault | 1m32.958s | 1.411s |
| 8 | Nico Hulkenberg | Renault | 1m32.962s | 1.415s |
| 9 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas/Ferrari | – | – |
| 10 | Romain Grosjean | Haas/Ferrari | – | – |
| 11 | Daniil Kvyat | Toro Rosso/Honda | 1m33.236s | – |
| 12 | Sergio Perez | Racing Point/Mercedes | 1m33.299s | – |
| 13 | Kimi Raikkonen | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 1m33.419s | – |
| 14 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | McLaren/Renault | 1m33.523s | – |
| 15 | Lando Norris | McLaren/Renault | 1m33.967s | – |
| 16 | Lance Stroll | Racing Point/Mercedes | 1m34.292s | – |
| 17 | George Russell | Williams/Mercedes | 1m35.253s | – |
| 18 | Robert Kubica | Williams/Mercedes | 1m35.281s | – |
| 19 | Antonio Giovinazzi | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | – | – |
| 20 | Alexander Albon | Toro Rosso/Honda | – | – |
Friday: 3rd Free Practice
Bottas fastest before fatal Albon crash. 3rd Practice session was immediately stopped.
Albon thumps into the wall as FP3 draws to a close
Great to see him walk away ?
Toro Rosso will need a minor miracle to get the car ready for qualifying ?#ChineseGP ?? #Race1000 pic.twitter.com/guBKgi7AlH— Formula 1 (@F1) 13. April 2019
| POS | DRIVER | CAR | TIME | GAP | LAPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | 1m32.830s | – | 11 |
| 2 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | 1m33.222s | 0.392s | 12 |
| 3 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1m33.248s | 0.418s | 10 |
| 4 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1m33.689s | 0.859s | 10 |
| 5 | Nico Hulkenberg | Renault | 1m33.974s | 1.144s | 11 |
| 6 | Kimi Raikkonen | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 1m34.246s | 1.416s | 14 |
| 7 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull/Honda | 1m34.447s | 1.617s | 5 |
| 8 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | McLaren/Renault | 1m34.510s | 1.680s | 9 |
| 9 | Alexander Albon | Toro Rosso/Honda | 1m34.600s | 1.770s | 11 |
| 10 | Daniil Kvyat | Toro Rosso/Honda | 1m34.783s | 1.953s | 10 |
| 11 | Lando Norris | McLaren/Renault | 1m34.938s | 2.108s | 11 |
| 12 | Sergio Perez | Racing Point/Mercedes | 1m35.078s | 2.248s | 9 |
| 13 | Daniel Ricciardo | Renault | 1m35.142s | 2.312s | 11 |
| 14 | Lance Stroll | Racing Point/Mercedes | 1m35.223s | 2.393s | 10 |
| 15 | Pierre Gasly | Red Bull/Honda | 1m35.326s | 2.496s | 8 |
| 16 | Antonio Giovinazzi | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 1m35.726s | 2.896s | 12 |
| 17 | Romain Grosjean | Haas/Ferrari | 1m35.771s | 2.941s | 14 |
| 18 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas/Ferrari | 1m35.998s | 3.168s | 15 |
| 19 | George Russell | Williams/Mercedes | 1m36.124s | 3.294s | 10 |
| 20 | Robert Kubica | Williams/Mercedes | 1m36.176s | 3.346s | 11 |
Friday: FP2
Sebastian Vettel had two good practice sessions on Friday. He was second behind a strong Valtteri Bottos (+0.027s) in FP2. Charles Leclerc only 7th but optimistic for today’s qualifying. Lewis Hamilton not completely satisfied with his set-up yet. As usually, Max Verstappen is there if any of those gentlemen make a mistake (P3).
| POS | DRIVER | CAR | TIME | GAP | LAPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | 1m33.330s | – | 37 |
| 2 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | 1m33.357s | 0.027s | 33 |
| 3 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull/Honda | 1m33.551s | 0.221s | 29 |
| 4 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1m34.037s | 0.707s | 32 |
| 5 | Nico Hulkenberg | Renault | 1m34.096s | 0.766s | 31 |
| 6 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | McLaren/Renault | 1m34.141s | 0.811s | 36 |
| 7 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1m34.158s | 0.828s | 13 |
| 8 | Lando Norris | McLaren/Renault | 1m34.296s | 0.966s | 38 |
| 9 | Daniel Ricciardo | Renault | 1m34.336s | 1.006s | 32 |
| 10 | Pierre Gasly | Red Bull/Honda | 1m34.455s | 1.125s | 32 |
| 11 | Kimi Raikkonen | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 1m34.551s | 1.221s | 33 |
| 12 | Alexander Albon | Toro Rosso/Honda | 1m34.634s | 1.304s | 37 |
| 13 | Daniil Kvyat | Toro Rosso/Honda | 1m34.694s | 1.364s | 20 |
| 14 | Lance Stroll | Racing Point/Mercedes | 1m34.779s | 1.449s | 37 |
| 15 | Sergio Perez | Racing Point/Mercedes | 1m34.784s | 1.454s | 35 |
| 16 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas/Ferrari | 1m34.788s | 1.458s | 34 |
| 17 | Romain Grosjean | Haas/Ferrari | 1m35.704s | 2.374s | 32 |
| 18 | Antonio Giovinazzi | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 1m35.914s | 2.584s | 40 |
| 19 | Robert Kubica | Williams/Mercedes | 1m36.121s | 2.791s | 38 |
| 20 | George Russell | Williams/Mercedes | 1m36.229s | 2.899s | 35 |
Friday: FP1
Nico Hülkenberg P12 and P5 in his Renault and new helmet design. Credit: Renault
| POS | DRIVER | CAR | TIME | GAP | LAPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | 1m33.911s | – | 19 |
| 2 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1m34.118s | 0.207s | 21 |
| 3 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1m34.167s | 0.256s | 21 |
| 4 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull/Honda | 1m34.334s | 0.423s | 20 |
| 5 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | 1m34.653s | 0.742s | 23 |
| 6 | Daniel Ricciardo | Renault | 1m35.239s | 1.328s | 23 |
| 7 | Pierre Gasly | Red Bull/Honda | 1m35.428s | 1.517s | 23 |
| 8 | Daniil Kvyat | Toro Rosso/Honda | 1m35.447s | 1.536s | 24 |
| 9 | Lance Stroll | Racing Point/Mercedes | 1m35.466s | 1.555s | 25 |
| 10 | Romain Grosjean | Haas/Ferrari | 1m35.507s | 1.596s | 24 |
| 11 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas/Ferrari | 1m35.517s | 1.606s | 25 |
| 12 | Nico Hulkenberg | Renault | 1m35.591s | 1.680s | 22 |
| 13 | Lando Norris | McLaren/Renault | 1m35.631s | 1.720s | 24 |
| 14 | Alexander Albon | Toro Rosso/Honda | 1m35.695s | 1.784s | 26 |
| 15 | Kimi Raikkonen | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 1m35.729s | 1.818s | 23 |
| 16 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | McLaren/Renault | 1m35.756s | 1.845s | 24 |
| 17 | Sergio Perez | Racing Point/Mercedes | 1m35.820s | 1.909s | 24 |
| 18 | Robert Kubica | Williams/Mercedes | 1m36.847s | 2.936s | 27 |
| 19 | George Russell | Williams/Mercedes | 1m37.619s | 3.708s | 29 |
| 20 | Antonio Giovinazzi | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | – | – | 2 |
