2018 Chinese Grand Prix: Full Weekend Report & Highlights

The 2018 Chinese Grand Prix (officially the Formula 1 2018 Heineken Chinese Grand Prix) took place on 15 April 2018 at the Shanghai International Circuit in Shanghai. It marked the third round of the 2018 FIA Formula One World Championship and the 15th time the event had featured on the championship calendar.

Pole position
Driver	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari
Time	1:31.095
Fastest lap
Driver	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing
Time	1:35.785 on lap 55
Podium
First	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing
Second	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes
Third	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
13 April 2018	Practice 1	10:00 – 11:30
13 April 2018	Practice 2	14:00 – 15:30
14 April 2018	Practice 3	11:00 – 12:00
14 April 2018	Qualifying	14:00 – 15:00
15 April 2018	Race	14:10

All times are local (UTC+08:00). The race time is the scheduled start.

Championship background

Sebastian Vettel led Lewis Hamilton by 17 points after two Ferrari victories. Mercedes was still seeking its first win, and Red Bull Racing needed a response to its double retirement in Bahrain.

Race entries

All 20 regular drivers contested the weekend, with no practice substitutes. The consecutive Bahrain and Chinese rounds gave the teams little time to recover from the previous race’s problems.

Free Practice

Lewis Hamilton led FP1 in 1:33.999 ahead of Kimi Räikkönen and Valtteri Bottas, putting Mercedes at the top of the opening session.

Hamilton also led FP2, improving to 1:33.482. Räikkönen was just 0.007 seconds behind and Bottas another 0.026 seconds further back, suggesting a very close contest.

Sebastian Vettel headed a Ferrari one-two in FP3 with a 1:33.018. Daniel Ricciardo suffered a turbo failure, leaving Red Bull Racing with an urgent rebuild before qualifying.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2018 Chinese Grand Prix FP1, 13 April 2018

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:33.999	22
2	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.359s	14
3	77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes	+0.458s	28
4	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+0.538s	22
5	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	+0.669s	22
6	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	+0.862s	18
7	20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas	+1.179s	21
8	55	Carlos Sainz	Renault	+1.617s	23
9	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	+1.719s	21
10	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Renault	+1.801s	18
11	10	Pierre Gasly	Toro Rosso	+2.038s	21
12	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	+2.045s	29
13	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+2.052s	28
14	31	Esteban Ocon	Force India	+2.352s	32
15	35	Sergey Sirotkin	Williams	+2.692s	31
16	28	Brendon Hartley	Toro Rosso	+2.716s	23
17	16	Charles Leclerc	Sauber	+2.724s	23
18	2	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren	+2.757s	25
19	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+2.910s	21
20	18	Lance Stroll	Williams	+3.278s	28

Free Practice 2 Classification

2018 Chinese Grand Prix FP2, 13 April 2018

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:33.482	26
2	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.007s	26
3	77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes	+0.033s	27
4	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	+0.108s	27
5	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	+0.341s	26
6	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Renault	+0.831s	30
7	20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas	+0.976s	26
8	55	Carlos Sainz	Renault	+0.991s	28
9	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+1.075s	26
10	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	+1.150s	23
11	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+1.310s	30
12	10	Pierre Gasly	Toro Rosso	+1.367s	33
13	31	Esteban Ocon	Force India	+1.392s	30
14	2	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren	+1.681s	22
15	28	Brendon Hartley	Toro Rosso	+1.851s	37
16	35	Sergey Sirotkin	Williams	+1.858s	31
17	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+2.142s	29
18	16	Charles Leclerc	Sauber	+2.434s	26
19	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	+2.989s	26
20	18	Lance Stroll	Williams	+3.665s	19

Free Practice 3 Classification

2018 Chinese Grand Prix FP3, 14 April 2018

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	1:33.018	14
2	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.451s	21
3	77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes	+0.743s	16
4	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	+0.951s	14
5	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	+1.039s	14
6	20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas	+1.311s	25
7	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+1.427s	14
8	31	Esteban Ocon	Force India	+1.438s	16
9	55	Carlos Sainz	Renault	+1.564s	20
10	35	Sergey Sirotkin	Williams	+1.723s	13
11	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Renault	+1.823s	16
12	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	+1.833s	13
13	2	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren	+1.959s	16
14	28	Brendon Hartley	Toro Rosso	+1.973s	20
15	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+2.043s	4
16	10	Pierre Gasly	Toro Rosso	+2.061s	16
17	18	Lance Stroll	Williams	+2.357s	16
18	16	Charles Leclerc	Sauber	+2.479s	14
19	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+2.661s	13
20	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	+2.738s	6

Qualifying

Sebastian Vettel secured pole in 1:31.095 ahead of Kimi Räikkönen, giving Ferrari consecutive front-row lockouts. Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton filled the second row, with Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo behind them.

Ricciardo’s mechanics completed their work just in time for him to escape Q1. Marcus Ericsson received a grid penalty for ignoring yellow flags, while Charles Leclerc‘s spin contributed to a difficult session for Sauber.

Qualifying Classification

2018 Chinese Grand Prix Qualifying, 14 April 2018

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	1:32.171	1:32.385	1:31.095	15
2	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	1:32.474	1:32.286	1:31.182	17
3	77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes	1:32.921	1:32.063	1:31.625	20
4	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:33.283	1:31.914	1:31.675	17
5	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	1:32.932	1:32.809	1:31.796	12
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	1:33.877	1:32.688	1:31.948	12
7	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Renault	1:33.545	1:32.494	1:32.532	15
8	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	1:33.464	1:32.931	1:32.758	13
9	55	Carlos Sainz	Renault	1:33.315	1:32.970	1:32.819	18
10	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	1:33.238	1:32.524	1:32.855	19
11	20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas	1:33.359	1:32.986	—	13
12	31	Esteban Ocon	Force India	1:33.585	1:33.057	—	9
13	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	1:33.428	1:33.232	—	11
14	2	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren	1:33.824	1:33.505	—	11
15	28	Brendon Hartley	Toro Rosso	1:34.013	1:33.795	—	15
16	35	Sergey Sirotkin	Williams	1:34.062	—	—	7
17	10	Pierre Gasly	Toro Rosso	1:34.101	—	—	9
18	18	Lance Stroll	Williams	1:34.285	—	—	7
19	16	Charles Leclerc	Sauber	1:34.454	—	—	9
20	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	1:34.914	—	—	9

Marcus Ericsson was given a five-place grid penalty for ignoring yellow flags during qualifying.

What happened in the 2018 Chinese Grand Prix?

At the start, Vettel launched cleanly from pole, but Räikkönen was immediately on the back foot—passed by Bottas into Turn 1 and then by Verstappen shortly after. Hamilton slipped to fifth, while Ricciardo settled into sixth.

The first round of pit stops reshaped the race. Bottas executed a perfectly timed undercut on Vettel and then swept past Räikkönen—still yet to stop—around the outside of Turn 1 to take the lead. Vettel capitalised on the same moment to move back into second.

Then came the turning point. On lap 30, Toro Rosso teammates Brendon Hartley and Gasly collided at the hairpin, scattering debris across the track and triggering a safety car. Gasly received a 10-second penalty, but the bigger impact was strategic.

Red Bull reacted instantly, pitting both cars on the same lap for fresh tyres. Mercedes, by contrast, chose to keep Hamilton out, prioritising track position over tyre advantage.

When racing resumed, the Red Bulls were armed—and dangerous. Verstappen attacked Hamilton aggressively but ran wide on lap 39, allowing Ricciardo—who had already passed Räikkönen—to slip through. From there, Ricciardo launched a relentless charge.

Within two laps, both Red Bulls dispatched Hamilton. Ricciardo then hunted down Vettel, sweeping past him for second with a decisive move. Moments later, Verstappen attempted a bold overtake on Vettel at the hairpin—but misjudged it, spinning both cars. Vettel suffered floor damage and dropped down the order, while Verstappen was handed a 10-second penalty.

That incident effectively ended Vettel’s race as a front-runner.

Up front, Ricciardo set his sights on Bottas. On lap 45, he made the race-winning move—diving past the Mercedes to take the lead. From there, he controlled the race to the finish.

Behind him, the drama continued. Vettel, struggling with damage, slipped further back and was overtaken by Fernando Alonso on the penultimate lap, consigning the Ferrari driver to eighth place.

The Finish

Ricciardo crossed the line to claim a spectacular victory—one built on sharp strategy, fearless overtaking, and perfect timing.

Bottas held on for second, while Räikkönen completed the podium in third. Hamilton finished outside the top three, while Vettel’s late-race struggles saw his championship lead significantly reduced.

On the podium, Ricciardo celebrated in signature style with a “shoey”, joined by Red Bull mechanic Chris Gent, who collected the constructors’ trophy alongside him.

Aftermath

The race proved to be a pivotal early-season moment. Vettel remained the championship leader, but his advantage over Hamilton was cut from 17 points to just nine.

More importantly, the race underlined Red Bull’s threat—not just on pace, but on strategy and racecraft. Ricciardo’s performance was widely regarded as one of the standout drives of the season, combining opportunism with clinical execution.

2018 Chinese Grand Prix race results

The 2018 Chinese Grand Prix was held on 15 April 2018, with a scheduled start of 14:10 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	56	1:35:36.380	25
2	77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes	56	+8.894s	18
3	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	56	+9.637s	15
4	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	56	+16.985s	12
5	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	56	+20.436s	10
6	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Renault	56	+21.052s	8
7	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	56	+30.639s	6
8	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	56	+35.286s	4
9	55	Carlos Sainz	Renault	56	+35.763s	2
10	20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas	56	+39.594s	1
11	31	Esteban Ocon	Force India	56	+44.050s	0
12	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	56	+44.725s	0
13	2	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren	56	+49.373s	0
14	18	Lance Stroll	Williams	56	+55.490s	0
15	35	Sergey Sirotkin	Williams	56	+58.241s	0
16	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	56	+62.604s	0
17	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	56	+65.296s	0
18	10	Pierre Gasly	Toro Rosso	56	+66.330s	0
19	16	Charles Leclerc	Sauber	56	+82.575s	0
20	28	Brendon Hartley	Toro Rosso	51	Gearbox	0

Max Verstappen originally finished in fourth place, but had ten seconds added to his race time for causing an avoidable collision.

Pierre Gasly originally finished in fifteenth place, but had ten seconds added to his race time for causing an avoidable collision.

Brendon Hartley did not finish the race, but was classified as he completed 90% of the winner’s race distance.

2018 Chinese Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time of Day	Time	Avg. Speed
1	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	55	15:47:35	1:35.785	204.871
2	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	50	15:39:41	1:36.206	203.974
3	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	48	15:36:25	1:36.456	203.446
4	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	20	14:47:07	1:36.878	202.559
5	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Renault	56	15:49:33	1:36.881	202.553
6	77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes	50	15:39:37	1:36.987	202.332
7	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	56	15:49:42	1:37.234	201.818
8	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	51	15:42:08	1:37.410	201.453
9	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	24	14:53:29	1:37.479	201.311
10	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	54	15:46:37	1:37.673	200.911
11	55	Carlos Sainz	Renault	54	15:46:30	1:37.754	200.744
12	31	Esteban Ocon	Force India	47	15:35:10	1:37.985	200.271
13	2	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren	54	15:46:44	1:38.137	199.961
14	20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas	54	15:46:34	1:38.152	199.930
15	10	Pierre Gasly	Toro Rosso	54	15:46:50	1:38.367	199.493
16	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	52	15:43:39	1:38.386	199.455
17	18	Lance Stroll	Williams	54	15:46:49	1:38.500	199.224
18	35	Sergey Sirotkin	Williams	47	15:35:20	1:38.624	198.973
19	16	Charles Leclerc	Sauber	23	14:53:07	1:38.808	198.603
20	28	Brendon Hartley	Toro Rosso	50	15:40:35	1:39.376	197.468

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear in this table. Time of Day is local time; average speeds are in km/h. No championship point was awarded for fastest lap in 2018.

2018 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings for drivers and teams after the 2018 Chinese Grand Prix.

2018 Post-Race F1 Drivers’ Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Sebastian Vettel	GER	Ferrari	54
2	Lewis Hamilton	GBR	Mercedes	45
3	Valtteri Bottas	FIN	Mercedes	40
4	Daniel Ricciardo	AUS	Red Bull Racing	37
5	Kimi Räikkönen	FIN	Ferrari	30
6	Fernando Alonso	ESP	McLaren	22
7	Nico Hulkenberg	GER	Renault	22
8	Max Verstappen	NED	Red Bull Racing	18
9	Pierre Gasly	FRA	Toro Rosso	12
10	Kevin Magnussen	DEN	Haas	11
11	Stoffel Vandoorne	BEL	McLaren	6
12	Carlos Sainz	ESP	Renault	3
13	Marcus Ericsson	SWE	Sauber	2
14	Esteban Ocon	FRA	Force India	1
15	Sergio Perez	MEX	Force India	0
16	Charles Leclerc	MON	Sauber	0
17	Romain Grosjean	FRA	Haas	0
18	Lance Stroll	CAN	Williams	0
19	Sergey Sirotkin	RUS	Williams	0
20	Brendon Hartley	NZL	Toro Rosso	0

2018 Post-Race F1 Constructors’ Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Mercedes	85
2	Ferrari	84
3	Red Bull Racing	55
4	McLaren	28
5	Renault	25
6	Toro Rosso	12
7	Haas	11
8	Sauber	2
9	Force India	1
10	Williams	0

2018 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2018 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne	25 March
2	2018 Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir	8 April
3	2018 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	15 April
4	2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix	Baku City Circuit, Baku	29 April
5	2018 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Montmeló	13 May
6	2018 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	27 May
7	2018 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	10 June
8	2018 French Grand Prix	Circuit Paul Ricard, Le Castellet	24 June
9	2018 Austrian Grand Prix	Red Bull Ring, Spielberg	1 July
10	2018 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	8 July
11	2018 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	22 July
12	2018 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	29 July
13	2018 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	26 August
14	2018 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale Monza, Monza	2 September
15	2018 Singapore Grand Prix	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	16 September
16	2018 Russian Grand Prix	Sochi Autodrom, Sochi	30 September
17	2018 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	7 October
18	2018 United States Grand Prix	Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas	21 October
19	2018 Mexican Grand Prix	Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, Mexico City	28 October
20	2018 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	11 November
21	2018 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi	25 November