After a five year absence, Shanghai International Circuit – host of the Chinese Grand Prix since 2004 – made its return to the F1 calendar this year. The 2025 Chinese Grand Prix is set to take place on April 23.
1127th F1 GRAND PRIX | 18th CHINESE GRAND PRIX | 18th GRAND PRIX AT SHANGHAI INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT
2024 POLESITTER: MAX VERSTAPPEN | 2024 WINNER: MAX VERSTAPPEN
2025 CHINESE GRAND PRIX WEEKEND SCHEDULE
Friday April 21
Free Practice 1 – 11:30am Local Time / 3:30am UK Time
Sprint Qualifying – 3:30pm Local Time / 7:30am UK Time
Saturday April 22
Sprint – 11am Local Time / 3:00am UK Time
Qualifying – 3pm Local Time / 7:00am UK Time
Sunday April 23
The 2025 Chinese Grand Prix – 3pm Local Time / 7am UK Time
2025 CHINESE GRAND PRIX: WEEKEND MILESTONES
Lewis Hamilton holds the record for most Chinese Grand Prix victories and could extend the record for most wins to seven in 2025. Meanwhile, Fernando Alonso could become the second driver to win here on as many as three occasions, while Max Verstappen could become the circuit’s fourth repeat winner. Any other driver winning the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix would make them the 11th different winner at Shanghai International Circuit.
Ferrari currently lead the way for most podium finishes in Shanghai, with 13. Their record could be equalled or overtaken at the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix by Mercedes, who have had 12 top three finishes to date in China.
If he completes the first 30 laps of the race, Fernando Alonso will become the first driver to have raced 900 laps at Shanghai International Circuit.
READ MORE IN MILESTONES AND RECORDS TO BREAK
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE 2025 CHINESE GRAND PRIX
WHAT HAS CHANGED AT THE CIRCUIT SINCE LAST TIME?
Changes to the circuit since last year’s race will be posted here.
HOW MANY DRS ZONES WILL THERE BE AT THE 2025 CHINESE GRAND PRIX?
It’s yet to be announced how many DRS zones there will be at the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix. Last year, activation zones were located on the circuit’s two longest straights.
SHANGHAI INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT TRACK GUIDE
F1 broke into the Chinese market in 2004 with its first race at Shanghai International Circuit. The winding track, with incredible architecture, was an immediate hit with fans and drivers.
The first vision for a Chinese Grand Prix came in the 1990s, when planning had taken place for a circuit to be built to host F1 in the south of China. The result of this was the Zuhai International Circuit, which gained a place on the 1999 calendar. However, the event never happened as the track failed to meet the FIA’s standards.
Undeterred, another circuit was commissioned to be built near Shanghai. Three years after their failed attempt, a deal was announced for the yet to be built Shanghai International Circuit to host a Grand Prix for seven years from 2004.
The Shanghai International Circuit is located twenty miles north of the centre of China’s largest city – Shanghai. It is situated on the banks of the Yangtze River Delta in East China. The track was designed by Hermann Tilke and resembles the Chinese character shang, meaning ‘ascend’. The team buildings resemble the ancient Yuyan-Garden in Shanghai.
READ MORE IN OUR ULTIMATE TRACK GUIDE
WHO WILL BE IN THE 2025 CHINESE GRAND PRIX PRESS CONFERENCES?
The world’s media will have the opportunity to talk to the drivers ahead of the on-track action. The drivers appearing in the press conference for this race are yet to be announced.
The media will also be talking to prominent members of Formula 1’s teams in a separate press conference over the race weekend. The team members appearing in the press conference are yet to be announced.
WHO WILL BE THE RACE DIRECTOR AT THE 2025 CHINESE GRAND PRIX?
Rui Marques will be the race director at the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix.
WHO WILL BE THE DRIVER STEWARD AT THE 2025 CHINESE GRAND PRIX?
Each weekend a former Formula 1 driver, or a driver from another prominent series of motorsport, joins the stewards to help judge any incidents from a drivers’ perspective. The Driver Steward this weekend is yet to be announced.
WHICH TYRE COMPOUNDS WILL BE USED AT THE 2025 CHINESE GRAND PRIX?
Pirelli have not yet announced which tyre compounds will be used at the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix. The C2, C3 and C4 compounds were used in 2024.
WHAT HAPPENED LAST TIME AT THE CHINESE GRAND PRIX?
Verstappen took a clean sweep as F1 returned to China for the first time since 2019, taking victory in the Sprint and Grand Prix.
Following a five year absence, Formula 1 finally returned to China for the fifth round of the 2024 season. The first Sprint weekend of the season, track running was vital in Free Practice – though it wasn’t helped by a fire on the grass at Turn 7, which saw running stopped for five minutes.
Sprint Qualifying was held under the threat of rain, making the track busy. The earlier grass fire from Free Practice reignited at the end of SQ1, leading to a delay for the start of SQ2. The rain put an early end to the second session, with the final stage of Sprint Qualifying held in the wet.
Charles Leclerc spun off in the damp conditions in SQ3, while everyone else struggled to keep it on the tarmac. An action-packed close to SQ3 saw Fernando Alonso climb to the top of the timesheet, before Lewis Hamilton bettered the Aston Martin driver’s effort – but it was Lando Norris who secured pole by over a second. Norris’ lap time was deleted for him exceeding track limits before being reinstated.
Hamilton took the lead at the start of Saturday morning’s Sprint. Norris ran wide through the opening corners, allowing Alonso to move up to second place. By Lap 7, Max Verstappen had closed in on Alonso and secured the position at the hairpin. Two laps later, it was Hamilton’s turn to be passed by Verstappen.
From there, Verstappen was unchallenged for the win. Hamilton finished second but a train had formed behind Alonso by the closing stages. Carlos Sainz went wheel to wheel with his fellow countryman – but while the two Spaniards were battling, Sergio Perez slid by into third place. Alonso picked up a puncture, while the two Ferraris battled over fourth place, with Leclerc gaining the position ahead of the chequered flag.
Saturday afternoon saw qualifying for the main Grand Prix take place. Hamilton was the surprise exit in Q1, while home hero Zhou Guanyu – the first Chinese driver to race at the Chinese Grand Prix – also faced an early exit. Sainz crashed out in Q2, bringing out the red flags – despite being able to make it back to the pits and take part in the rest of qualifying.
There were no surprises as Verstappen secured pole position, while the identity of the driver starting alongside him changed with every passing lap – first Sainz, then Leclerc, then Piastri, then Norris, then Alonso, then Perez, who secured a front row lock-out for Red Bull.
On Sunday, Verstappen led away from pole but it was Alonso who got the jump on Perez as the cars streamed through the opening turns. Nico Hulkenberg passed both Ferraris on Lap 1 – but it was not long before both Sainz and Leclerc re-passed the Haas driver. It also didn’t take long for Perez to re-pass Alonso, with the Mexican making his move on Lap 5.
On Lap 7, Norris took third place with a pass on Alonso at the hairpin. Red Bull double-stacked their cars when they pitted at the end of Lap 13. Valtteri Bottas – who had reached Q3 on Saturday – became the race’s first retiree on Lap 21.
The Virtual Safety Car was called as a result and led to some drivers making an additional pit stop without losing time – including Verstappen, Perez and Norris. Perez lost on-track position to both Norris and Leclerc.
A messy restart saw the Safety Car required once again. First, contact between Lance Stroll and Daniel Ricciardo as the cars concertinaed into the hairpin ultimately put an end to Ricciardo’s race. Then, contact between Yuki Tsunoda and Kevin Magnussen led to a double DNF for the RB team.
The race was underway again on Lap 31. Perez’ fightback began, with Perez taking third place from Leclerc on Lap 39. Alonso had switched to the soft compound at his pit stop, which proved to be the wrong choice and he therefore required another stop. He went on to supply much of the entertainment for the rest of the race, with his fresher tyres aiding him to a seventh place finish.
Verstappen won the Chinese Grand Prix for the first time in his career, while Perez fell short of making it a Red Bull 1-2. Norris claimed second place, with the two Ferrari drivers completing the top five positions.
WHAT’S THE FASTEST EVER LAP AT THE CHINESE GRAND PRIX?
Attending the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix? Learn more about visiting Shanghai International Circuit in the F1Destinations Travel Guide.