Shanghai (China), April 20 (IANS) Red Bull’s Max Verstappen rose from fourth on the grid to take victory in Saturday’s entertaining 2024 Formula 1 Sprint race in Shanghai, ahead of Sunday’s Chinese Grand Prix main race.
Verstappen, the defending Drivers’ Champion, had started only fourth after an error in Friday’s wet qualifying session, and spent the opening laps of the Sprint in third, at one point complaining to his team about a lack of battery power. However, the Dutchman soon found his rhythm, closing up on and passing Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso for second on lap 7, before disposing of Lewis Hamilton for the lead two laps later after the Briton had lost time running wide at the Turn 15 hairpin.
From then on, Verstappen was not unduly troubled and ultimately crossed the line 13 seconds ahead of Mercedes’ Hamilton, reports Xinhua.
“The first few laps were quite hectic, they were pushing quite hard at the front, and I had Carlos behind with new tyres so it was very difficult initially,” said Verstappen afterwards. “But we became stronger, and I felt more comfortable with the balance of the car as well, and I could look after my tyres, so very pleased with that.”
Behind the top two, Verstappen’s teammate Sergio Perez took third place after several laps of close racing between himself, Alonso and the two Ferraris of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc. Alonso had been third and was defending from Sainz when the two touched, allowing Perez to vault past both of them and landing Alonso with a puncture, after which Aston Martin directed the Spaniard to retire his car.
Leclerc and Sainz ultimately took fourth and fifth, with Leclerc seemingly unhappy that his teammate had run him off the road at Turn 15. Polesitter Lando Norris salvaged sixth for McLaren, after having lost several places at the first corner as he ran off track defending from Hamilton, with Norris’ teammate Oscar Piastri ultimately taking seventh.
George Russell took eighth and the final points place for Mercedes, with local hero Zhou Guanyu falling agonizingly short of points in his Sauber with ninth place.
Following the Sprint, Verstappen still leads the Drivers’ Championship with 85 points. Perez remains second on 70, with Leclerc third on 64 points.
In the Constructors’ Championship, Red Bull’s total now stands at 155 points. Ferrari is second on 129, with McLaren third on 74 points.
With the dust having settled on the Sprint race, attention now turns to the main qualifying session later on Saturday, which will determine the starting grid for Sunday’s Chinese Grand Prix.
–IANS
bsk/
Disclaimer
The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by TodayIndia.news and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.
In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of, or in connection with, the use of this website.
Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of TodayIndia.news We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.
Every effort is made to keep the website up and running smoothly. However, TodayIndia.news takes no responsibility for, and will not be liable for, the website being temporarily unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control.
For any legal details or query please visit original source link given with news or click on Go to Source.
Our translation service aims to offer the most accurate translation possible and we rarely experience any issues with news post. However, as the translation is carried out by third part tool there is a possibility for error to cause the occasional inaccuracy. We therefore require you to accept this disclaimer before confirming any translation news with us.
If you are not willing to accept this disclaimer then we recommend reading news post in its original language.
