Hamilton and George Russell had an epic battle in the opening stages of the Sprint Race in Shanghai, but it was the Mercedes driver who took the win, while Hamilton fell behind to P3 after an aggressive fight with teammate Charles Leclerc.

In his post-race interview, Hamilton explained Mercedes have a clear pace advantage on the straights, and in the press conference, further emphasised where Ferrari and co. are falling behind.

In Saturday's post-sprint press conference, Hamilton spoke to media, including GPblog, about Mercedes' 'party mode' in qualifying when asked on the Silver Arrows' pace advantage.

Hamilton said: "The difference is, I mean, I was with Mercedes for a long time, so I know how it works there. In qualifying, they have another mode that they're able to go to. like party mode back in the day.

Despite Hamilton's frustration with Ferrari's lack of pace to Mercedes, the Scuderia did gain points on their rivals after the Sprint Race, where Leclerc and Hamilton finished on the podium behind Russell.

It was a torrid day for Red Bull, however, as Max Verstappen's team went point-less in Shanghai.

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