Chinese Grand Prix – Formula One: Live leaderboard and lap-by-lap updates as Lewis Hamilton makes contact with Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc whereas Oscar Piastri holds agency on the entrance of the grid

The Chinese Grand Prix top five after 12 laps:

1. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)

2. Lando Norris (McLaren)

3. George Russell (Mercedes)

4. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)

5. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

6. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)

7. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)

8. Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls)

9. Alex Albon (Williams)

10. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)

This Red Bull really isn’t great, jeez.

Max Verstappen is falling back at quite a lick, he is now nearly five seconds behind Charles Leclerc, who is in fifth.

His podium hopes can be kissed goodbye, I think.

Ohhhh, hello…

The Ferraris are having a cheeky little battle, which is what we want to see.

Charleaz Leclerc is hunting down Lewis Hamilton and is now less than a second behind his team-mate.

Could we see a line soon?

So far, so good for Oscar Piastri.

The Australian is managing to stay over a second in front of team-mate Lando Norris, and he looks fairly comfortable.

I have a feeling that this race could be one of those that lacks drama, going off the early moments here.

Let’s hope I am wrong, eh?

Oh dear…

Fernando Alonso is already back in the garage after reporting a problem with his brakes.

there is no fixing that and he is forced to retire already – now that is unlucky.

Right, it all seems to be settling down.

Liam Lawson has had a decent start and is now up in 18th. I mean, he has a lot of work to do, but that’s how he would have wanted to get things going.

Isack Hadjar hasn’t had the best of starts mind and he is down in ninth place. two down from where he started.

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari driver, on team radio:

We can survive.

Charles Leclerc has some damage to his front wing after overtaking Max Verstappen.

Lewis Hamilton comes across his team-mate and he clips a little bit off of Leclerc’s front wing on the left-hand side.

Now, that’s not ideal…

Wow, wow, wow.

What a move that is, Lando Norris goes around the outside of George Russell and he flies into second place.

Lewis Hamilton also gets a good start and races past Max Verstappen, who has had a shocker.

What a start!

Here we go then!

It’s lights out and away we go, can Oscar Piastri hold off George Russell into the first corner?

It’s going to be a cracker, whatever happens.

Right then, the drivers are off.

The clock had struck 7am here and Oscar Piastri starts to lead the drivers off on their formation lap.

It’s time to get those tyres warm!

Oh yeah, it’s time to get excited.

Sky Sports are just going through the grid and it has got me pumped up.

I’m not sure what it is about the F1 music, but it just gets me so excited when it plays before a race.

We are closing in on the start of this race.

The fans are ready, I am ready, but are you ready?

The supporters in Shanghai are making a right old racket, and you love to see it.

They are some of the most passionate racing fans I have seen in recent times, they are loving life.

We love a bit of atmosphere at these races, don’t we?

Charles Leclerc Ferrari driver, speaking to Sky Sports:

I’m feeling good, the target is to try and recover in what was a difficult weekend for me. [I want] a good start and then hopefully the pace will be there to come back in front.

How excited are we all?

There are less than 15 minutes until the drivers get those wheels turning, and I, for one, am buzzing.

Max Verstappen looks in the zone and he has a lot of work to do if he wants to get on that podium.

Knowing him, he will find a way, won’t he?

Well, I say that but he has been moaning about his car at every chance he gets, so maybe not.

It’s already been an emotional day in Shanghai.

Drivers and other team staff gathered this morning to pay their respects to Eddie Jordan, who passed away aged 76 on Thursday.

Jordan was one of the biggest and best personalities in the sport, and the grid is in mourning.

Oh dear, oh dear…

I hate to join the pile-on, but my word Liam Lawson is having a stinking start to life at Red Bull.

After finishing 14th in the sprint race, the New Zealander finished dead last in qualifying.

That second Red Bull seat may not be easy, but you can’t be finishing last in the grid… it’s just not good enough.

And now news has come through that he will start the Grand Prix from the pit lane.

He is going to have to play a blinder if he wants any points…

The Chinese Grand Prix is one of the most exciting races to watch on the calendar, it really is.

There is a reason Lewis Hamilton loves the track in Shanghai so much, it’s because of how fast it is.

Expect to see some crazy racing when it all kicks off at 7am, China always brings the heat.

With that being said, here are some facts about Shanghai you may want to know:

• Track Length – 5.451km
• Most wins – Lewis Hamilton (6)
• Safety Car probability – 75%
• Virtual Safety Car probability – 75%
• Pit stop time loss – 23.9 seconds (including 2.5s stationary)

Yesterday was busy, busy, busy.

Oscar Piastri may have taken pole but before that, we got to watch the sprint race, which is always great fun.

And well, it was certainly great fun for Lewis Hamilton.

The Briton held off Piastri and Max Verstappen to win for the first time in Red after a superb drive.

After how he performed in Australia, it was a much-needed victory to boost the hopes of Ferrari.

Qualifying did not quite go as well for Hamilton after, but the eight points are good enough for the Scuderia.

If he can drive like he did in the sprint race, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Hamilton rise u the leaderboard.

But can he challenge for a podium?

Oscar Piastri, McLaren driver, speaking after qualifying:

I’m glad it looked like that [being hooked up] because it didn’t feel like that. In Q3 I just found a lot of pace, in Q1 and Q2 I was genuinely struggling but the car just came alive in Q3 and I came alive.

I’m happy with what I did in the end, the laps were still a bit scruffy but I’m just pumped to be on pole. It’s a lot of fun, with the new surface it’s extremely grippy which for us is the best feeling in the world.

The only thing that comes with that is if you lose grip it bites and you’ve probably seen a lot of snaps and a lot of moments this weekend; with the surface we’ve got it’s pretty tricky. When you hook it up, it feels pretty mega, so I will take the fastest lap of Shanghai.

Oscar Piastri may be in pole position, but that doesn’t mean this race is wrapped up already.

I’m pretty sure George Russell will have something to say about that.

Look, we all know that McLaren have the best car in the early stage of this season, so Piastri certainly has an advantage.

The Australian must be confident too as it was his first-ever polse in Formula One.

But Russell did look very good in qualifying after the sprint race, I have to say, and he will be hunting Piastri down from the start.

Lando Norris, who won last week in Australia, will also be having a pop too, I’m sure of it.

It could be a chaotic first corner, and I can’t wait to see how it plays out.

The Chinese Grand Prix starting grid:

1. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)

2. George Russell (Mercedes)

3. Lando Norris (McLaren)

4. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)

5. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)

6. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

7. Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls)

8. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)

9. Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls)

10. Alex Albon (Williams)

11. Esteban Ocon (Haas)

12. Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber)

13. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)

14. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)

15. Carlos Sainz (Williams)

16. Pierre Gasly (Alpine)

17. Oliver Bearman (Haas)

18. Jack Doohan (Alpine)

19. Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber)

20. Liam Lawson (Red Bull)

Well, hello there!

If you are up this early then you must be a huge F1 fan, it’s the only explanation for being up at 6am on a Sunday.

We are in for a cracker of a morning as the drivers take to the track in Hanghai for the Chinese Grand Prix.

Oscar Piastri is the man to beat after putting in a record-breaking lap to take pole ahead of George Russell.

It’s going to be a very entertaining 56 laps as the drivers attack the Australian from the get-go.

It’s the perfect day for it too, the sunshine is beaming down on the track in Shanghai – it’s beautiful.

Let’s get this show on the road.