Dogfight between Red Bull and Ferrari? Chinese GP promises spectacle

Rarely have Formula 1 teams entered a Grand Prix with so many question marks as they will have in Shanghai, China. Only one free practice session is scheduled - which might be completed in rain - before qualifying for the first sprint race of the season. A day later, the Sprint can be seen as a race simulation run in the run-up to the GP, but going for a completely new course in terms of set-up - although permitted - is likely to be impossible. So does a surprise beckon in China?

The characteristics of the circuit in China mean that Red Bull Racing and Ferrari are going to feel like the proverbial fish out of water. The margins to the rest of the field, who downplay all their chances in advance, are large. Take McLaren, for instance, which has already said through team boss Andrea Stella that next weekend, the main task is to limit the damage.

Red Bull and Ferrari are likely to call the shots

Aston Martin are not (yet) as strong as they were in 2023, nor are they under any illusions with the long straight in China. Fernando Alonso knows it will be impossible to keep the Red Bulls and Ferraris behind him there. Mercedes, although taking tentative steps in the right direction, are probably already happy with a place in the top five. In order to get on the podium, Red Bull and Ferrari really need to do something.

A scenario like Melbourne seems realistic: Red Bull are the favourite, but Ferrari can probably make things quite difficult for the Austrians in both qualifying and the races. In any case, Max Verstappen manages to get just that little bit extra out of his RB20 every race, which makes him the clear favourite in advance for every race.

Huge race for Chinese driver Zhou

There is no doubt there will be a lot of attention in Shanghai for local hero Guanyu Zhou. For the first time, Chinese fans will actually get to see the Stake F1 driver at work. Indeed, the Chinese Grand Prix has been missing from the F1 calendar in recent years.

Chinese fans are advised to enjoy the moment as it could well be Zhou's last home race. The driver is by no means the first choice at Audi - which is taking over Sauber (Stake F1) completely in 2026. It seems they want to have the driver line-up sorted ahead of time in 2025.