2025 F1 Chinese GP Qualifying: Winners and Losers

The 2025 F1 Chinese GP qualifying session had Oscar Piastri on pole position, and will be joined by George Russell on the front row after a last-ditch attempt worked perfectly for the Brit. On the second row, we have Lando Norris from McLaren with Max Verstappen alongside him.

Sprint race winner Lewis Hamilton could only put together a P5 in qualifying while teammate Charles Leclerc was right behind him. With the F1 Chinese GP being a sprint weekend, it has been a bit of a whirlwind for sure.

Now with the grid set for Sunday, who would be disappointed with how the session went, and who would be excited by their prospects on Sunday? Let's take a look.

2025 F1 Chinese GP Qualifying

Winner

Oscar Piastri

This has been a long time coming for Oscar Piastri. More importantly, he needed this at this very moment to make sure he didn't get left behind in the battle for the title against Lando Norris.

The biggest weakness for the Australian has been his qualifying, an area where Norris has relentlessly had an edge over him. Not in the F1 Chinese GP, though, as Piastri nailed both of his laps while his teammate just couldn't keep up.

Oscar needed this result after the debacle of last week, and this should put him in a good position for Sunday.

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Loser

Lando Norris

From the highs of Melbourne to the lows of Shanghai, Lando Norris seems to be going through a wild range of emotions in the F1 Chinese GP race weekend. The driver has been vocal about not having a car that's easy to drive. He's talked about how the difficult nature of the car causes frequent errors to be made over a lap.

In a championship battle, overcoming struggling phases over the weekend is the ultimate differentiator between winning and losing. Norris would be hoping to turn the tide on Sunday for sure, but it would be interesting to see if he can bounce back.

Winner

George Russell

George Russell has currently been doing all that he can to show the world that he's capable of leading Mercedes. The result in the F1 Chinese GP qualifying was just another result of that. The British driver will start the race from the front row on Sunday.

Does he have the pace to maybe challenge for the win? It's unlikely. But it was also unlikely to see George on the front row within a tenth of the McLaren.

Loser

Ferrari

Ferrari has seemingly made a few changes to the car, and it looks like the car is maybe not as agile as it was in the sprint shootout. The fact that Lewis Hamilton could not even match his lap time from qualifying while others went quicker is an indicator that maybe the team has not nailed everything that the package was providing.

Winner

Racing Bulls

It's safe to say that Racing Bulls has been the fifth fastest car in both races this season, and the F1 Chinese GP qualifying was just another proof of it. The car seems agile, it is very strong in the middle sector, and it tends to generate a strong lap time overall.

The team from Faenza also has two impressive drivers who are eager to put everything together and impress. Things are looking up for the team, and this is the best time for the squad to cash in.

Loser

Alpine

Alpine was the first team to admit that it had been forced to make changes to the rear wing after the FIA intervention. As it turns out, the intervention has just dropped the team right to the back. The sprint pace from Pierre Gasly was decent, but the F1 Chinese GP was just another indication of the car just not being in a good window for either of the two.

A bigger sample size is needed for sure, but for now, Alpine has been massively hampered by the FIA intervention.