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00:00 What's going to happen in 2024?
00:02 We are set now for the first sprint of the season
00:05 here in front of 60,000 fans in Shanghai.
00:08 It's lights out and away we go.
00:10 It's a great start from Lewis Hamilton.
00:12 He's already alongside Lando Norris.
00:14 Norris tries to cut him off.
00:16 Hamilton swoops into the lead,
00:18 but Norris round the outside will keep fighting this.
00:21 And now we'll have the inside line as he then runs off.
00:24 Just as he was trying to get past Lewis Hamilton,
00:26 he's run wide and he's lost five or six places.
00:29 Alonso in second place.
00:31 We're on board with Max Verstappen in third.
00:33 That was the worst possible start for Lando Norris.
00:36 Wow, what a smart move from Lewis there.
00:38 Just running him out wide that extra little bit,
00:41 which brought him the lead.
00:42 That was a really phenomenal job there from Lewis.
00:44 Kevin Magnussen making a move down the inside on Valtteri Bottas
00:47 as Joe Guan Yu runs wide.
00:49 And we're now into the swooping S's section,
00:52 watching Sergio Perez behind Carlos Sainz.
00:54 There's Charles Leclerc now going wheel to wheel with Lando Norris.
00:58 Norris just manages to stay ahead.
01:00 But what a start, what drama here on the first lap of the sprint
01:04 as we watch down to see Carlos Sainz in hot pursuit of Max Verstappen.
01:09 Out in front, it is Lewis Hamilton,
01:11 the leader of this race, from Fernando Alonso,
01:14 then Verstappen, then Sainz, then Perez, then Leclerc,
01:16 and then Piastri and Norris.
01:18 Norris ahead of Piastri, and we're on board with Fernando Alonso.
01:22 Maybe we're going to see it in this race,
01:24 but it was an excellent start from Hamilton.
01:26 Better reaction.
01:27 Yeah, it was just Lando.
01:28 You saw it already on the formation lap
01:30 that he was having a little bit of trouble.
01:32 He tried to hang it around the outside.
01:34 He has a little bit quicker car, so it was working.
01:37 But look how Lewis, he just runs him off.
01:38 I mean, very, very smart from Lewis there.
01:40 Super smart tactics.
01:42 He did a great job.
01:43 And great reaction time also.
01:45 Lewis was super on it.
01:46 Instant reaction, great delivery there on the traction.
01:50 And then on the inside, yeah, it was always going to be difficult.
01:52 Look how Lando's trying there.
01:53 And look how Lewis doesn't even try to go for the apex.
01:56 Look how far the apex is.
01:57 He never even tried to get to the apex.
02:00 But yeah, that's the way to do it.
02:02 It certainly is.
02:03 So one one-hundredth of a second slower reaction time for Lando Norris.
02:07 And by the time they got to 200 kilometers an hour,
02:09 he was two tenths down on Hamilton.
02:10 And by the time he tried to cut off the Mercedes,
02:12 there was no way he was going to do that.
02:14 - Yep. - And had to bail out.
02:16 It's his own fault there also,
02:17 because you saw he was just going too fast eventually and lost the car.
02:20 So Lewis didn't do anything wrong.
02:22 It was, of course, fierce, but nothing wrong.
02:25 Verstappen and Sainz.
02:27 Could they be teammates next year?
02:29 Red Bull say they can't match the offer that Audi have put on the table for Carlos Sainz.
02:33 But will we see this battle in a Red Bull?
02:35 We're seeing it in a Ferrari and a Red Bull currently.
02:37 And it's the battle for third place.
02:39 Can we just say that Verstappen looks to be struggling?
02:41 Like, what's going on?
02:42 He can't even keep up with Alonso at the moment.
02:45 And Sainz is putting the pressure on from behind.
02:47 - Incredible to watch. - And Sainz locking up going into the hairpin too.
02:50 Karin Chandhok to you.
02:52 Yeah, I think Verstappen is struggling with
02:54 some of the engine settings, Crofty.
02:55 There's a lot of radio chatter between the pit walls.
02:58 Giampiero Lampesi, he's race engineer there,
03:00 giving him a whole bunch of switch changes to make.
03:03 And he's not sounding particularly happy.
03:05 So I think they've just got to get...
03:07 Don't forget, they only have one practice session.
03:09 And perhaps it's still not quite optimized in terms of the engine and the hybrid systems
03:14 for the opening lap after the start.
03:16 So Fernando Alonso, 9 tenths now behind Lewis Hamilton.
03:22 Mode 8, please, mate. Mode 8.
03:24 And that's the problem that Karin Chandhok was alluding to there.
03:30 Really wrapped it up now.
03:32 He's becoming super rapid at the moment out there.
03:35 This is George Russell earlier on in the race.
03:38 And that is the incident that he saw with Valtteri Bottas and Joe Guagnu.
03:42 No further investigation, say the stewards,
03:45 despite Valtteri Bottas sustaining, as you can tell,
03:48 quite a substantial bit of damage to his front wing.
03:52 Here comes Max Verstappen on Fernando Alonso.
03:55 Pulls out from behind the Aston Martin.
03:57 And that is a very simple pass indeed.
04:00 Max Verstappen now up into second place.
04:03 We are not even at half distance here.
04:06 And Lewis Hamilton now has his old foe, Max Verstappen, behind him and closing.
04:11 This is what we want to see.
04:12 But come on, Lewis.
04:13 Come on, keep him behind today.
04:15 That would be awesome.
04:16 But yeah, you could see Fernando there.
04:18 He didn't even try also to defend
04:20 because he just realized, okay, Max is now so much quicker that it makes no sense.
04:25 It is the 50th Grand Prix since Lewis Hamilton last won in Formula 1 this weekend.
04:32 The 50th Grand Prix weekend since he last stood on top of a podium.
04:36 And Karun Chandhok, he's not very happy with the way his car's performing in those low-speed corners.
04:44 So you can turn better into this low-speed corner.
04:47 Oh, Lewis Hamilton's gone wide.
04:49 Hamilton went wide at the hairpin.
04:51 And as you can see, Max Verstappen is that much closer now.
04:55 The gap was twice the distance it is now as they pass the line.
05:00 And whatever caused that moment for Lewis Hamilton,
05:02 he's going to be under pressure very, very soon from Verstappen chasing him hard in second place.
05:08 Yeah, it's the wind because the wind is from the back now into that corner in the hairpin there at the end of the straight.
05:12 So it's super difficult.
05:13 You can see Lewis, he's just absolutely on the limit.
05:16 You can see his back end moving out there.
05:18 He's just trying everything to keep Max behind.
05:21 And he has nothing to lose, Lewis, obviously, you know.
05:23 So I hope he goes aggressive now.
05:25 Lewis Hamilton came into this race in ninth in the Drivers' Championship.
05:30 Max Verstappen obviously leading the Drivers' Championship, early stages in the season.
05:35 And we're at half race distance now with Hamilton leading by a few car lengths from Verstappen.
05:41 Alonso has been dropped by these two in third place.
05:44 Carlos Sainz runs fourth under pressure from Sergio Perez.
05:47 Then comes Leclerc, Norris, Piastri and George Russell, who's got past Joe Guainu
05:52 and is now chasing Piastri for that final points position.
05:56 But as we approach now the next slow speed corner at Turn 11,
06:01 Lewis Hamilton can see that Red Bull in his wing mirrors.
06:03 "Half behind, 41.1"
06:05 "Leave me to it, man. I can see him."
06:08 It was a 42.1 for Lewis Hamilton last lap.
06:14 41.0 or 41.1, give or take a few hundredths for Max Verstappen.
06:18 Now it's a few car lengths.
06:20 Now DRS is open.
06:21 Verstappen at the place where he managed to get past Fernando Alonso to move in a second.
06:26 Pulls out from behind the Mercedes and moves into the lead of this race.
06:30 Hamilton will try and get him on the switchback, but Verstappen is away leading this race.
06:35 And Hamilton stints for the first time ever, leading a sprint race in Formula 1.
06:40 Comes to an end on lap nine.
06:42 "He's struggling for traction. I think he's got more pace than the cars are from.
06:46 Look at this replay here of Gasly going past HĂŒlkenberg down into the hairpin.
06:51 So that was to a 16th and 17th place."
06:53 DRS doesn't seem to be the advantage that he would be hoping for at the moment.
06:57 Two Williams are right at the back, sadly for them.
07:00 Logan Sargent running last and Alex Albon running down in 19th.
07:04 But this is Alex trying to do something about that.
07:07 And he did, getting past Nico HĂŒlkenberg.
07:09 I wonder if HĂŒlkenberg got a bit of damage early on in this race.
07:12 He's not been a factor at all, as there comes Fernando Alonso.
07:16 Behind him, though, Charles Leclerc, a lot closer to Sergio PĂ©rez.
07:19 Leclerc trying to catch PĂ©rez by surprise and take the outside line.
07:23 And struggling for traction somewhat out of that hairpin.
07:27 Doesn't manage to do the old switcheroo and get past the Red Bull.
07:30 "Yeah, the cutback, I mean, looked like a great idea,
07:32 but somehow he had no traction out of that corner.
07:35 Or, I mean, as we know, the Red Bull just had amazing traction.
07:38 So that didn't work at all.
07:41 Oh, look, we see signs offsetting now his line.
07:43 So he's staying out.
07:44 So he has clean air on the outside.
07:46 And he's very, very close to Fernando now."
07:49 But it's here, it's the exit out of this corner that he needs really good traction
07:53 to put pressure down on Fernando Alonso.
07:55 But Sergio PĂ©rez running a bit wide, might have had a bit more speed.
07:58 Coming out at Turn 4.
08:00 And this is going to get very spicy indeed.
08:03 "Yeah, Sergio, but believe me, the others have even less."
08:09 Yeah, he's got his struggles, they've got their struggles.
08:12 You know, it all offsets each other.
08:14 But it's a great battle for third between the two Spaniards,
08:17 Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz,
08:19 the Mexican Sergio PĂ©rez and the Monagask of Charles Leclerc,
08:23 who's currently running in sixth.
08:25 And they just dropped Lando Norris a little bit.
08:28 He's not in DRS range of this quartet any longer.
08:32 It's this battle for third place.
08:34 And then effectively his third place here.
08:36 I mean, you dare say if Leclerc--
08:38 Fernando missed the apex there. Carlos is very close.
08:40 But look how wide Sergio PĂ©rez goes.
08:42 Aggressively, Carlos could try a little bit of a lunge now.
08:45 Look, look, look.
08:46 Well, he's getting closer.
08:47 He could try a lunge now.
08:48 See Fernando close the door.
08:50 Fernando closed the door.
08:51 Very nicely done. Fully anticipated.
08:53 Struggling on the exit.
08:55 But here comes Carlos Sainz then on the exit.
08:57 He was thwarted into the hairpin.
08:59 Now tries to go around the outside at Turn 7.
09:02 Can he hang on in?
09:03 And they touch!
09:04 Fernando Alonso has to concede
09:06 as Carlos Sainz takes third place off the Aston Martin.
09:10 But now he dives down the inside
09:12 and he forces Sainz wide.
09:13 PĂ©rez goes through on the inside
09:16 and he grabs third place from Fernando Alonso.
09:19 Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc now battling his teammates.
09:22 And down the inside goes Sainz on Alonso.
09:24 Alonso's struggling and he's lost another place here
09:27 as Leclerc goes past Alonso
09:30 who was third at the start of lap 16
09:32 and now runs in sixth place.
09:34 What incredible racing there.
09:36 Fernando was so aggressive.
09:38 But Carlos had the last say
09:40 and did a beautiful last lunge down the inside there.
09:43 Really phenomenal driving.
09:45 But, I mean, who benefited most?
09:46 Sergio, no?
09:47 PĂ©rez got through them all, no?
09:49 Well, he certainly did.
09:51 PĂ©rez in the third.
09:52 The two Ferraris almost touching.
09:54 Leclerc's gone wide
09:55 and Fernando Alonso's got a puncture.
09:57 He is struggling there
09:59 and might have to limp into the pits here
10:01 as Leclerc behind his teammate.
10:02 And Alonso has gone into the pits.
10:04 He got a puncture with all the barging and the banging
10:07 that was going on
10:08 and his race that could have ended in third here
10:11 has been ruined by that.
10:13 The Ferraris keep on battling
10:15 and this is brilliant stuff here
10:17 as Carlos Sainz drifting around turn two
10:20 but drifting too wide.
10:21 And his teammate Charles Leclerc manages to move through
10:24 and up into fourth place.
10:25 No, no, no, it wasn't...
10:27 No, it's not unfair, but...
10:28 Let's watch this again.
10:31 So Carlos beautifully switches back.
10:33 Alonso has a bit of a moment on the rear there,
10:35 snaps out,
10:36 but he hangs it in there
10:37 and stays on the inside now,
10:39 forcing Carlos wide.
10:41 - There he goes. - Wow, they touch!
10:44 That was where he got his puncture.
10:45 They touch
10:46 and then they continue fighting through the next corner
10:49 and Sergio is the big winner.
10:51 He goes through the inside here now.
10:53 Thank you very much, everybody.
10:54 You've just got to hang in there long enough
10:56 and something might just open up for you
10:58 - and it really did. - We missed the last lunge.
11:00 It did open up for Sergio Perez.
11:02 Retirement from this Chinese Grand Prix sprint race.
11:06 So let's watch this.
11:07 Look how Carlos, he misses the apex completely.
11:09 He doesn't even try.
11:11 He doesn't even try to get to the apex,
11:13 just runs him out wide.
11:14 Okay, that might be worthy of a penalty, actually.
11:17 He used his teammate to stay on the track there.
11:21 Yeah, that might be worthy of a penalty.
11:23 Shocking, maybe.
11:24 Satisfying, definitely, for Max Verstappen.
11:27 It's been a dominant performance
11:29 once he got into the lead.
11:30 Verstappen starts the 2024 Sprints with victory
11:34 in Shanghai.
11:35 It's another one to add to the tally
11:38 for Max Verstappen.
11:40 Round the final corner,
11:41 Lewis Hamilton for his best finish this season so far.
11:45 He led the Sprint.
11:46 He comes home to finish in second place.
11:48 And it's going to be Sergio Perez for Red Bull,
11:51 completing the top three.
11:53 And for once, that might be a slight smile
11:55 on the face of Toto Wolff.
11:57 Charles Leclerc, ahead of Carlos Sainz,
11:59 who holds off Lando Norris,
12:00 Oscar Piastra and George Russell
12:02 to the line to finish off the points places.
12:05 That was 19 laps of high action,
12:08 high adrenaline, brilliant racing.
12:11 And across the line comes Magnussen,
12:13 Ricciardo, Bottas, Ocon and Stroll,
12:16 Gasly, Tsunoda and Albon,
12:18 Sargent and HĂŒlkenberg,
12:19 one retirement, Fernando Alonso.
12:21 He came back third with the Red Bull,
12:22 so that's okay.
12:23 That's decent.
12:25 He picked up the pieces, didn't he, Sergio Perez,
12:27 when Carlos Sainz and Fernando Alonso
12:29 went wheel to wheel
12:31 and managed to swoop through on the inside.
12:33 The top three, Verstappen, Hamilton and Perez.
12:36 Charles Leclerc coming home to finish in fourth place,
12:40 which is exactly what he did, of course, in Japan
12:42 a couple of weeks ago.
12:43 Carlos Sainz, his teammate, in fifth.
12:46 From Lando Norris, he started on pole,
12:48 came home in sixth.
12:49 Oscar Piastri, seventh.
12:50 George Russell picking up the last points place
12:53 in eighth ahead of the Shanghai home hero,
12:56 Zhou Guan Yu.
12:57 And then there was a bit of a DRS train
12:59 below the top ten,
13:01 with no one really able to improve
13:04 their standings too much.
13:05 One retirement, and it was Fernando Alonso