Formula One

Oscar Piastri wins 2025 Chinese Grand Prix

The Australian converted his first ever grand prix pole position to victory in Shanghai.

Andrew Rickert

23 Mar 2025 — 3 min read

Australian Oscar Piastri converted his first ever grand prix pole position to victory in the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix. (McLaren F1 Team)

SHANGHAI–Oscar Piastri converted a dominant pole position to victory in the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix.

The McLaren driver lined up for his first ever grand prix pole position and held off a challenge from Mercedes driver George Russell at the start before building a healthy lead in a race again dominated by tyre management.

Oscar Piastri battles with George Russell off the start at the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix. *(McLaren F1 Team)*

"It’s been an incredible weekend from start to finish," said Piastri.

"The car’s been pretty mega the whole time. I think today was a bit of a surprise with how the tyres behaved, but I’m just super proud of the whole weekend. This is what I feel like I deserved from last week. The team did a mega job with the 1-2. I’m very, very happy."

Piastri managed his pace and the gap back to teammate Lando Norris, who passed Russell for second but lost valuable time in the pit stop sequence and fell back to third.

With his teammate passing Russell and back up to second, the Australian in the lead assisted him in leaving a gap of clear air for him to build a healthy defence.

It was a fortunate turn of events for Norris, who was then able to manage a critical brake issue that emerged in the later stages of the race.

The Australian Grand Prix winner held on for second place to mark a McLaren 1-2 finish, with Russell completing the podium.

Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, and George Russell celebrate on the podium in Shanghai. *(McLaren F1 Team)*

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen caught Ferrari's Charles Leclerc in the final stages of the race to take fourth, after a surprisingly quick day for the Monegasque driver despite missing a front wing endplate.

Lewis Hamilton followed his teammate across the line in sixth, after having the early pace but allowing Leclerc to go ahead after the team instructed them to change positions due to different strategies.

Esteban Ocon, Kimi Antonelli, Alex Albon, and Ollie Bearman completed the points.

Meanwhile, Kiwi Liam Lawson was able to convert a pit lane start to a 15th-place finish in a slightly improved result that showed he was able to make some progress through the field, while Aussie Jack Doohan finished 16th for Alpine after a 10-second time penalty for forcing another driver off the track.

The Formula One World Championship returns 4-6 April for the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka.