Background
After extended debate over the legality of the Mercedes F1 W03 's "front wing F-duct" design in Australia and Malaysia , that ended with the FIA declaring the design to be legal, Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner stated that his team was still seeking clarification on the matter, which he expected to be resolved in Shanghai, despite having previously sought a "final ruling" in Malaysia. On the Thursday before the race, Lotus F1 filed a formal p...
Race
The FIA confirmed that the Drag Reduction System (DRS) zone will be unchanged from 2011 , with the detection point located at Turn 12 and the activation point positioned along the back straight. Like the Australian Grand Prix, tyre supplier Pirelli brought its white-banded medium compound tyre as the harder "prime" tyre and the yellow-banded soft compound tyre as the softer "option" tyre, whereas in 2011, the "prime" compound was the silver-banded hard compound tyre. Michael Schumacher was forced to retire after a miscommunication resulted in him leaving the pit lane before his right front wheel was properly fitted. The wheel-gun man knew he made an error and immediately tried to call Schumacher back, but it was too late. He was subsequently the only retirement of the race, leaving Mercedes to ponder what could have been at least a podium finish. On lap 14, pole sitter and leader Rosberg pitted for mediums tyres leaving an unpitted Pérez in the lead. Following the pit stops, Nico Rosberg once again emerged as the leader, followed by Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton, Mark Webber, and Kimi Räikkönen. Lap 21 saw everyone in their adjusted positions after everyone had completed one pit stop. On lap 22, Webber stopped for fresh medium tyres, and set a new fastest lap upon emerging. Button and Hamilton followed suit soon after. Räikkönen pitted from 2nd on lap 29, dropping him down to 13th. At this stage of the race, Jenson Button had great pace and ... Rosberg, having continued running on his hard tyres for 21 laps, finally decided to pit on lap 34 for his second and final stop - meaning he would need 22 laps from this set of medium tyres. This allowed Button to take the lead, followed by Rosberg and Hamilton, who was closely pressed by Alonso for third. At this stage of the race, a 'train' of cars started to form (seen clearly down the back straight). From Massa in 5th, who had only stopped once, the next three cars all had their DRS open, me... The train continued to grow by lap 38 as Grosjean in 10th joined Massa, Räikkönen, Kobayshi, and Vettel in the battle for 5th. Jenson Button asked his engineer "what time is Rosberg doing?", to which his engineer replied "Rosberg is seven-tenths slower than us". However, this was before Rosberg pitted for new tyres, and now Rosberg was six-tenths a lap up on Button. Lap 38 saw Hamilton pit from 3rd, closely followed in by Alonso, dropping them to 10th and 11th respectively. Button's final pit stop while 7 seconds ahead, on lap 39, was delayed due to an error on the left rear wheel and allowed Rosberg back into the lead. Following Button's pit stop, Rosberg now led Massa by 19.1 seconds in clear command and within sight of victory as highlighted by his engineer saying "most important thing is your looking after the tyres". Finally Massa pitted from second pl...
Q1
The first session begun with Force India driver Paul di Resta posting the first timed lap of the session. Other drivers followed soon after; all on the harder medium 'prime' tyre. The difference between the medium and the soft compounds was predicted around 0.8 seconds per lap. Leaving their run late, eight minutes into the session both the Red Bull and Mercedes cars had yet to post timed laps. Sebastian Vettel 's engineer was heard saying that the lap time he did of 1:36.9 would be good enough ...
Q2
For the second session, the two Saubers and Kimi Räikkönen were first to set timed laps. Romain Grosjean was late to post a lap as he made a mistake on his first attempt and pitted for a new set of option tyres. Vettel, in 6th midway through the session, was told on the radio that his current time would probably not make it into Q3. With less than 2 minutes remaining only the Mercedes (P1 and P2), Lewis Hamilton (P3) and Räikkönen (P4) remained in the pits, while everyone else scrambled to get i...
Q3
For the final session, the track was cooling down and German Nico Rosberg was told to think about that in his warm up lap. He was the first to set a timed lap early on with six minutes remaining in the session. The top speed of his car down the long back straight was only 314 km/h as he hit the 7th gear rev-limiter meaning that Mercedes cars didn't have the highest top speed but rather made up time through a better acceleration through the f-duct system as he was one of the quickest past the sta...
Race Result
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Constructor | Part 1 | Part 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes | 1:36.875 | 1:35.725 |
| 2 | 4 | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:36.763 | 1:35.902 |
| 3 | 7 | Michael Schumacher | Mercedes | 1:36.797 | 1:35.794 |
| 4 | 14 | Kamui Kobayashi | Sauber-Ferrari | 1:36.863 | 1:35.853 |
| 5 | 9 | Kimi Räikkönen | Lotus-Renault | 1:36.850 | 1:35.921 |
| 6 | 3 | Jenson Button | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:36.746 | 1:35.942 |
| 7 | 2 | Mark Webber | Red Bull-Renault | 1:36.682 | 1:35.700 |
| 8 | 15 | Sergio Pérez | Sauber-Ferrari | 1:36.198 | 1:35.831 |
| 9 | 5 | Fernando Alonso | Ferrari | 1:36.292 | 1:35.982 |
| 10 | 10 | Romain Grosjean | Lotus-Renault | 1:36.343 | 1:35.903 |
Championship Standings After This Race
The Paddock Breakdown
Barry · Gary · KatGary — 33 · Three Fantasy F1 leagues
Let's examine Rosberg's Mercedes – the engine's 1. 6-liter V6 turbo-hybrid unit delivered approximately 608 horsepower at its peak, a figure dictated by the regulations, yet the differential's locking system was demonstrably working overtime, evidenced by telemetry readings suggesting a consistent 12. 8% torque differential between the rear axles. The McLaren team, running Bridgestone tires, appeared to be aggressively managing degradation, evidenced by a significantly higher tire wear rate – 1. 4mm per lap – compared to Mercedes' 0. 8mm. Red Bull's Renault powertrain, though powerful at 640bhp, struggled for traction, particularly in the tighter corners, hinting at potential issues with the engine's mapping and the gearbox's cog ratios. Sauber-Ferrari, meanwhile, exhibited a remarkably consistent, if somewhat muted, power delivery, likely a consequence of their tire selection strategy.
Let's examine the data. Rosberg's victory, securing his first Formula One win since 2006, represents a statistically significant divergence from the established dominance of Red Bull-Renault. Across the entire weekend, Renault power units logged zero podium finishes, a complete absence compared to the combined three achieved by Mercedes and Ferrari. This absence of Renault performance highlights a critical shift in the power unit landscape, suggesting a considerable technological gap.
Kat — 30 · Technical journalist
Rosberg's tires… a critical question. The degradation has been savage, hasn't it? Look at the blistering on the right-front – a sustained 1. 8 seconds per lap increase since the opening stint began. The cooling system's struggling to keep pace with the thermal load; the differential's temperature readout is spiking. A slight adjustment to the pump speed—a mere 2. 3 percent—might alleviate the pressure build-up, but the risk of upsetting the balance is substantial. The simulation data suggests a potential loss of 0. 08 seconds per lap if the current trajectory continues.
Rosberg's calm, almost detached, observation of Hamilton's struggling tire management… it's a masterclass in strategic awareness. The telemetry reveals a subtle but consistent loss of rear grip – likely exacerbated by the track's abrasive asphalt. Hamilton's push for the overtake, a calculated risk with a heavily scrubbed set of Pirellis, ultimately proved unsustainable. The Mercedes team's immediate response, deploying the undercut with Bottas, speaks volumes about their operational philosophy. A fascinating divergence in tire strategy, predicated on a remarkably precise understanding of degradation rates. Consider the data: the front-end performance remained consistent, a testament to the W08's inherent balance. It's a crucial element, this ability to anticipate and react – a difference between victory and a solid, respectable finish.