The Formula 1 edit

This Saturday was the Chinese Grand Prix Qualifying race, and it did not disappoint! Some drivers shocked fans and showed that they are worthy of respect and appreciation, while others felt the pressure and underdelivered.

qualifying round 1

In the first 18-minute round, Lando Norris, Yuki Tsunoda, and Jack Doohan lost lap times when they exceeded the track limits. Can you blame them, though? Imagine having to slow down a racecar that’s going 235 MPH in mere seconds to make a turn! My opinion clearly does not matter, because all three drivers had to reset the clock to 0 and restart their lap. Max, of course, flew to the top of the grid when the time started. Shockingly, both VCARB racers made it into P4 and P5. After the Australian Grand Prix when Isack Hadjar crashed his car in the formation lap, the French rookie stepped up his game! Speaking of rookies, Liam Lawson secured last place. It’s starting to look like Sergio Perez, Red Bull’s 2024 driver, deserves an apology. Max Verstappen can do wonderful every single race, but it won’t matter in the championships if both drivers aren’t getting points every Grand Prix. Since both McLaren cars are doing insanely well this year, I believe that the British racing team has a high chance of winning the Constructors Championship and well as the Drivers Championship. In order to move on to Qualifying Round 2, the bottom five racers were knocked out so that only 15 racers were in the next race. Pierre Gasly, Oliver Bearman, Jack Doohan, Gabriel Bortoleto, and Liam Lawson are starting the Grand Prix from the back of the pack.

qualifying round 2

The second round was slimmed down to 15 drivers. Lando Norris flew through 1 mile in 30.787 seconds, only half a second ahead of his fellow McLaren driver, Oscar Piastri. Both VCARB, Ferrari, McLaren, and Mercedes cars found their way into Qualifying round three. Esteban Ocon, Nico Hulkenberg, Fernando Alonso, Lance Stroll, and Carlos Sainz were kicked out this round.

Qualifying round 3

After the last 18-minute drive, the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix grid was set! Oscar Piastri leads the race in pole position, the first time that the man from Melbourne has ever done so! Behind him is British Mercedes driver George Russell, followed by the Oscar’s teammate Lando Norris in P3. The world champion of Max Verstappen secured P4, with both Ferrari cars behind him, Lewis Hamilton in 5th and Charles Leclerc in 6th. French rookie Isack Hadjar has climbed in the rankings to P7, his fellow rookie Kimi Antonelli starts the race in P8. Hadjar’s teammate Yuki Tsunoda landed in P9, and Thai Williams driver Alex Albon completes the top ten.

This is sure to be a very entertaining race! Even if I have to stay up until 2 o’clock in the morning to watch it live…oh the joys of being an American F1 fan!