Verstappen adds China to his list of Formula One victories

Triple world champion Max Verstappen won Formula One's first Chinese Grand Prix in five years on Sunday with McLaren's Lando Norris finishing a surprise second to deny Red Bull the one-two.

The comfortable victory from pole position at a Shanghai circuit that last hosted a grand prix in 2019 was Verstappen's fourth in five races in 2024 and came after he also won the season's first Saturday sprint.

Mexican team mate Sergio Perez, Verstappen's closest championship rival but now 25 points behind, completed the podium after a dry race with two safety car periods to bunch up the field.

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz finished fourth and fifth respectively with Mercedes's George Russell sixth and Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso seventh with a bonus point for fastest lap.

The victory was the 58th of Verstappen's career and Shanghai became the 26th track he has won at.

Norris ensured China was the season's first race without one team finishing first and second -- Ferrari having taken the one-two in Australia and Red Bull the rest -- with his 15th career podium and eighth second place.

His only wrong moves came after the finish when he returned to the pit lane rather than parking up alongside Verstappen and Perez on the straight, and later when he picked up the cap for third-placed driver.

China's first and only driver Zhou Guanyu, in his first home race, had the honour of parking behind the Red Bulls and crouched in tears before saluting the crowd. The Sauber driver finished 14th.

McLaren's Oscar Piastri finished eighth, with Mercedes's seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton going from 18th on the grid to ninth and Nico Hulkenberg taking the final point for Haas.

MAX VERSTAPPEN WINS IN SHANGHAI 🏆

That's Max's first victory in China 🤩

Lando Norris takes second behind the Dutchman with Sergio Perez finishing third 👏👏#F1 #ChineseGP pic.twitter.com/UasqOy8PG7

— Formula 1 (@F1) April 21, 2024