Picture Credit: X/@F1
While Australia’s inclement weather brought out rains and with it, a wet and wild race, it’s over to China where the brightly-shining sun is further opened up the possibility of witnessing a dry run for the twenty cars and their ten teams over a prolonged period of time.
The first Grand Prix of the season to have already featured a sprint battle and what an exciting one that was, China’s Shanghai International circuit will thrill and exhaust, entertain and hopefully even enthrall us to good measure.
But what could be the possible outcomes at the forthcoming 2025 Chinese Grand Prix? Worry not for SportsTiger have that covered for you in their top predictions.
Piastri will outrun Norris
At the season opening Australian Grand Prix, it was, in all an out and out Lando Norris dominated show. Not only did the young Briton grab pole at Melbourne, he finished second-placed Verstappen by a margin of eight tenths of a second at the checkered flag and thus implied the fact that discussions centred around the imperious McLaren speed weren’t a fiction. However, in that same time, Piastri, who did struggle during qualifying would end up ninth in the race (right behind Leclerc). However, a new track seems to have revived Oscar Piastri’s lackluster form a bit; the local hero at Australia who failed to fire a punch is now likely set to be the top draw at McLaren for this particular race weekend.
After finishing a comfortable and very competitive P2 at the sprint race, Oscar Piastri’s confidence has only grown further. Come the actual Chinese race, he’ll likely outperform his more experienced teammate at McLaren. Even during the sprint battle, there were scraps with none other than Max Verstappen that Piastri initiated and in the end, aced.
Ferrari will say hi to Shanghai with head held high
Lewis Hamilton didn’t exactly have an illustrious opening round of the F1 in 2025 when he finished comfortably behind his teammate, Charles Leclerc. A car finish just inside points was much like a low-key consolation than a finish with no points, whatsoever. But come China and one saw the racing legend driving akin to a true titan of the sport.
Not only did the seven-time world champion driver go fastest during the sprint race qualifying thus bagging at the behest of that effort his maiden pole position in red, he would also eventually ace the Chinese Grand Prix’s sprint battle.
The clear gap he created up first and eventually reigned with over his pursuers served a fine example of the fact that even at 40, Lewis Hamilton still has much to offer the sport he has beautified with his illustrious success. And may that success continue, fans of Ferrari would hope, for the times to come. 2025 being that very first opportunity!
On Sunday, Hamilton will go for the big win but a big challenge that shall claw at him will be the menacing pace of the McLaren cars.
Sainz’s struggles will continue
Carlos Sainz Jr did cut a strange; forlorn figure upon the completion of his qualifying run last weekend at the Albert Park, based in Melbourne, Australia. Ultimately, it didn’t help that all he could gather from the race were no points whatever with hardly a race kilometer distance travelled under his belt before a sliding and skirmish into the barriers under heavy rains gnawed his Australian Grand Prix contest.
But later, upon arrival in China, Sainz encountered newer issues such as the balancing issues with his new FW47 car of 2025. At one point, the famous man from Spain did actually share that the car’s seat came off from its usual position. All of that during the sprint race may not have been the exact high points to enter a racing contest, regardless of its brief nature.
Eventually, Carlos, who scored no points whatsoever at Australia’s season opener scored none coming seventeenth at the end of the sprint, making at the very back of the grid, three vital places all thanks to Hadjar coming into contact with Bortoleto. And that’s all that there was to Carlos Sainz; a P17 in the sprint race.
On race day, the often underrated Alex Albon will continue to drive faster and seem in better control of the settings of his Williams machine than his new Spanish teammate and the Madrid-born’s race could well be another disappointing one. Something his fans, self included will begrudge.
Max Verstappen will, at best, grab a podium at China
Max Verstappen may survey want to have a dominant season this time around as well, but in all likelihood, it seems that his closest competitor, including the twin McLarens as also the Ferrari of Lewis Hamilton have finally risen to tackle his onerous challenge.
Earlier on Saturday, though not before showing glimpses of blazing speed, Verstappen, forget not a four time world champion, could only as high as third upon the completion of the sprint race. That was aced by Ferrari newcomer Sir Lewis Hamilton and when you look at it from an “orange lens”, then a Max adversary.
Having said that with the way the current Red Bull machine is holding up (with the little we have seen thus far), it can’t be said for certain whether that is the most imperiously quick car out there. During the Sprint race on the straights, Max Verstappen struggled to catch hold of Oscar Piastri whose definitive move towards the latter part of the short race meant that the Dutchman continued to stay in the orange liveried car’s rear view mirrors.
Will that be the kind of narrative that Sunday will bring along? It could just be it. Desire evident struggles, Max will still give glimpses of his immense capability; although all of that will only be able to afford him at podium finish at the end.
