2011 Chinese Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Lewis Hamilton ended Sebastian Vettel‘s winning start to the season with a late pass in China. Mark Webber delivered an outstanding recovery from eighteenth to third as contrasting tyre strategies produced a lively race.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing
Pole time	1:33.706
Fastest lap	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing
Fastest-lap time	1:38.993 on lap 42
First	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren
Second	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing
Third	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
15 April 2011	Practice 1	10:00 – 11:30
15 April 2011	Practice 2	14:00 – 15:30
16 April 2011	Practice 3	11:00 – 12:00
16 April 2011	Qualifying	14:00
17 April 2011	Race	15:00

All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.

Championship background

Sebastian Vettel arrived at round 3 leading the 2011 F1 World Championship on 50 points, with Jenson Button on 26. Red Bull Racing headed the constructors’ standings with 72 points.

Race entries

The 12 teams kept the same race line-ups for the Chinese Grand Prix. Daniel Ricciardo, Luiz Razia, Nico Hulkenberg also took part in practice.

Free Practice

Red Bull dominated FP1 while rival teams evaluated upgrades. McLaren tested its revised floor, and Ferrari used aerodynamic paint to investigate its performance shortfall. Nick Heidfeld damaged his Renault after spinning into a barrier, while Pastor Maldonado became stranded on a kerb near the finish, costing both drivers useful preparation.

Sebastian Vettel stayed ahead in FP2 as Fernando Alonso lost time to hydraulics trouble before concentrating on longer runs. Nick Heidfeld damaged another front wing but returned after repairs. Force India had a more complete interruption: a fuel-pressure problem prevented Paul di Resta from taking part in the session at all.

Sebastian Vettel completed a practice clean sweep, but Mark Webber’s electrical and KERS problems prevented a soft-tyre run before qualifying. McLaren remained the closest challenger while continuing its aerodynamic development. Nick Heidfeld had to revert to an older front wing after damaging the newer examples in his two Friday incidents.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2011 Chinese Grand Prix FP1, 15 April 2011

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:38.739	23
2	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.615s	27
3	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+2.106s	21
4	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	+2.201s	22
5	9	Nick Heidfeld	Renault	+2.248s	5
6	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+2.307s	25
7	17	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+2.450s	20
8	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+2.483s	20
9	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	+2.492s	16
10	18	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+2.589s	21
11	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+2.622s	23
12	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+2.695s	15
13	14	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+2.755s	20
14	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	+2.840s	13
15	15	Paul di Resta	Force India	+2.871s	18
16	19	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	+3.013s	20
17	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	+3.200s	25
18	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+3.562s	23
19	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+5.053s	20
20	25	Jerome d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	+5.350s	20
21	23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	HRT	+5.620s	18
22	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	+5.699s	11
23	21	Luiz Razia	Team Lotus	+5.803s	9
24	22	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	+6.280s	23

Free Practice 2 Classification

2011 Chinese Grand Prix FP2, 15 April 2011

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:37.688	34
2	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+0.166s	22
3	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	+0.247s	31
4	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+0.255s	34
5	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+0.417s	29
6	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.819s	36
7	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+1.047s	35
8	9	Nick Heidfeld	Renault	+1.117s	26
9	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	+1.171s	31
10	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+1.639s	33
11	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+1.850s	33
12	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+1.979s	37
13	18	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+2.083s	18
14	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+2.091s	17
15	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	+2.140s	25
16	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	+2.237s	32
17	17	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+2.265s	30
18	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	+2.788s	30
19	21	Jarno Trulli	Team Lotus	+3.794s	32
20	22	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	+5.214s	25
21	23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	HRT	+6.162s	3
22	25	Jerome d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	+6.320s	35
23	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	+7.059s	12

Free Practice 3 Classification

2011 Chinese Grand Prix FP3, 16 April 2011

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:34.968	13
2	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	+0.208s	15
3	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+0.405s	14
4	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+0.709s	18
5	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+0.850s	17
6	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+1.003s	15
7	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	+1.130s	18
8	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+1.157s	15
9	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+1.173s	14
10	15	Paul di Resta	Force India	+1.402s	18
11	9	Nick Heidfeld	Renault	+1.436s	16
12	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+1.614s	18
13	17	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+1.628s	17
14	18	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+1.749s	16
15	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+1.928s	5
16	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	+1.985s	14
17	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	+2.039s	20
18	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+2.336s	18
19	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	+3.208s	12
20	21	Jarno Trulli	Team Lotus	+3.771s	12
21	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	+4.970s	17
22	25	Jerome d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	+5.030s	16
23	23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	HRT	+5.625s	17
24	22	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	+5.913s	18

Qualifying

Sebastian Vettel headed qualifying for Red Bull Racing, with Jenson Button second and Lewis Hamilton third.

Sebastian Vettel took pole ahead of Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton. Webber was eliminated in Q1 after a disrupted practice programme, while Vitaly Petrov reached Q3 but could not run after stopping on track.

Qualifying Classification

2011 Chinese Grand Prix Qualifying, 16 April 2011

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:35.674	1:34.776	1:33.706	14
2	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	1:35.924	1:34.662	1:34.421	13
3	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1:36.091	1:34.486	1:34.463	11
4	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:35.272	1:35.850	1:34.670	19
5	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	1:35.389	1:35.165	1:35.119	18
6	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	1:35.478	1:35.437	1:35.145	18
7	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	1:36.133	1:35.563	1:36.158	16
8	15	Paul di Resta	Force India	1:35.702	1:35.858	1:36.190	17
9	18	Sébastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	1:36.110	1:35.500	1:36.203	16
10	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	1:35.370	1:35.149	no time	11
11	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	1:36.092	1:35.874	—	14
12	17	Sergio Pérez	Sauber	1:36.046	1:36.053	—	16
13	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	1:36.147	1:36.236	—	11
14	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	1:35.508	1:36.457	—	16
15	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	1:35.911	1:36.465	—	15
16	9	Nick Heidfeld	Renault	1:35.910	1:36.611	—	11
17	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	1:36.121	1:36.956	—	17
18	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	1:36.468	—	—	8
19	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	1:37.894	—	—	7
20	21	Jarno Trulli	Team Lotus	1:38.318	—	—	10
21	25	Jérôme d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	1:39.119	—	—	8
22	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	1:39.708	—	—	8
23	23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	HRT	1:40.212	—	—	9
24	22	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	1:40.445	—	—	9

Vitaly Petrov stopped on track during Q2. While the lap time he posted managed to get him into Q3, he was not able to take further part in the qualifying session.

What happened in the 2011 Chinese Grand Prix?

McLaren resolved a late fuel-system problem just in time to get Hamilton onto the grid. Both McLarens passed Vettel at the start, with Button leading as the race immediately departed from the pole-sitter’s plan.

Button lost time by briefly stopping at Red Bull‘s pit box during his first stop. Hamilton pursued a three-stop strategy, while Vettel tried to complete the race with only two tyre changes.

Hamilton’s fresher tyres proved decisive late on. He passed his team-mate and other contenders before catching Vettel and taking the lead with only a few laps remaining.

Webber used fresh tyres and strong pace to recover to third ahead of Button, with Rosberg fifth and Massa sixth. Hamilton reduced Vettel’s championship lead, while only Jaime Alguersuari retired after losing a wheel following a pit stop.

Further down the points places, Fernando Alonso, Michael Schumacher, Vitaly Petrov and Kamui Kobayashi completed the scoring positions. Mark Webber set the fastest lap, but no bonus point was awarded under the 2011 rules.

After the race, Sebastian Vettel headed the drivers’ standings with 68 points, followed by Lewis Hamilton on 47. Red Bull Racing led the constructors’ table on 105, with McLaren on 85.

2011 Chinese Grand Prix race results

The 2011 Chinese Grand Prix was held on 17 April 2011, with a scheduled start of 15:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	56	1:36:58.226	25
2	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	56	+5.198	18
3	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	56	+7.555	15
4	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	56	+10.000	12
5	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	56	+13.448	10
6	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	56	+15.840	8
7	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	56	+30.622	6
8	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	56	+31.026	4
9	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	56	+57.404	2
10	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	56	+1:03.273	1
11	15	Paul di Resta	Force India	56	+1:08.757	0
12	9	Nick Heidfeld	Renault	56	+1:12.739	0
13	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	56	+1:30.189	0
14	18	Sébastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	56	+1:30.671	0
15	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	55	+1 Lap	0
16	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	55	+1 Lap	0
17	17	Sergio Pérez	Sauber	55	+1 Lap	0
18	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	55	+1 Lap	0
19	21	Jarno Trulli	Team Lotus	55	+1 Lap	0
20	25	Jérôme d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	54	+2 Laps	0
21	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	54	+2 Laps	0
22	23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	HRT	54	+2 Laps	0
23	22	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	54	+2 Laps	0
Ret	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	9	Wheel	0

2011 Chinese Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time	Avg. Speed
1	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	42	1:38.993	198.232
2	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	48	1:40.415	195.424
3	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	39	1:40.623	195.021
4	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	54	1:41.157	193.991
5	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	41	1:41.166	193.974
6	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	46	1:41.215	193.880
7	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	50	1:41.261	193.792
8	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	47	1:41.321	193.677
9	17	Sergio Perez	Sauber	39	1:41.643	193.063
10	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	39	1:41.678	192.997
11	18	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	45	1:41.696	192.963
12	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	46	1:41.702	192.951
13	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	45	1:42.031	192.329
14	21	Jarno Trulli	Team Lotus	53	1:42.052	192.290
15	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	41	1:42.070	192.256
16	9	Nick Heidfeld	Renault	51	1:42.406	191.625
17	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	32	1:42.577	191.306
18	15	Paul di Resta	Force India	45	1:42.614	191.237
19	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	45	1:42.672	191.129
20	23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	HRT	52	1:43.384	189.812
21	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	54	1:44.381	187.999
22	25	Jerome d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	45	1:44.806	187.237
23	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	5	1:45.700	185.653
24	22	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	41	1:46.081	184.986

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. Average speeds are in km/h. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded.

2011 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 2011 Chinese Grand Prix.

2011 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Sebastian Vettel	German	Red Bull Racing	68
2	Lewis Hamilton	British	McLaren	47
3	Jenson Button	British	McLaren	38
4	Mark Webber	Australian	Red Bull Racing	37
5	Fernando Alonso	Spanish	Ferrari	26
6	Felipe Massa	Brazilian	Ferrari	24
7	Vitaly Petrov	Russian	Renault	17
8	Nick Heidfeld	German	Renault	15
9	Nico Rosberg	German	Mercedes	10
10	Kamui Kobayashi	Japanese	Sauber	7
11	Michael Schumacher	German	Mercedes	6
12	Sébastien Buemi	Swiss	Toro Rosso	4
13	Adrian Sutil	German	Force India	2
14	Paul di Resta	British	Force India	2
15	Jaime Alguersuari	Spanish	Toro Rosso	0
16	Jarno Trulli	Italian	Team Lotus	0
17	Rubens Barrichello	Brazilian	Williams	0
18	Jérôme d'Ambrosio	Belgian	Virgin Racing	0
19	Heikki Kovalainen	Finnish	Team Lotus	0
20	Timo Glock	German	Virgin Racing	0
21	Sergio Pérez	Mexican	Sauber	0
22	Pastor Maldonado	Venezuelan	Williams	0
23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Italian	HRT	0
24	Narain Karthikeyan	Indian	HRT	0

2011 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Red Bull Racing	105
2	McLaren	85
3	Ferrari	50
4	Renault	32
5	Mercedes	16
6	Sauber	7
7	Toro Rosso	4
8	Force India	4
9	Team Lotus	0
10	Williams	0
11	Virgin Racing	0
12	HRT	0

2011 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2011 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne	27 March
2	2011 Malaysian Grand Prix	Sepang International Circuit, Sepang	10 April
3	2011 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	17 April
4	2011 Turkish Grand Prix	Istanbul Park, Istanbul	8 May
5	2011 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Catalunya, Montmeló	22 May
6	2011 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	29 May
7	2011 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	12 June
8	2011 European Grand Prix	Valencia Street Circuit, Valencia	26 June
9	2011 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	10 July
10	2011 German Grand Prix	Nürburgring, Nürburg	24 July
11	2011 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	31 July
12	2011 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	28 August
13	2011 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	11 September
14	2011 Singapore Grand Prix	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	25 September
15	2011 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	9 October
16	2011 Korean Grand Prix	Korea International Circuit, Yeongam	16 October
17	2011 Indian Grand Prix	Buddh International Circuit, Greater Noida	30 October
18	2011 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi	13 November
19	2011 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	27 November