F1 Chinese Grand Prix Qualifying Highlights: Oscar Piastri Earns First-Ever Pole; George Russell Takes P2

Q1 will go green at 12:30pm IST, so buckle up for the qualifying race which will determine the grid for Sunday's race. The qualifying should last for about an hour and will be live streamed on the FanCode app and website in India.

While we wait for the start of the qualifying race, let us take stock of the developments unfolding elsewhere, in the form of the F1 Academy. A women-only, Formula 4-level single-seater racing championship led by former Williams test driver Susie Wolff, the F1 Academy aims to bring a female driver to the Formula 1 grid. All teams compete with an identical Tatuus F4-T421 chassis and tyre compounds developed by Pirelli. It began in 2023 and the 2024 drivers' championship was won by Rodin Motorsport's Abbi Pulling, whilst Prema Racing retained the team's championship for 2024.

McLaren are currently on top in the constructors championship with 35 points, just ahead of Mercedes who have 34. Red Bull are in third with 24, and Ferrari have leapfrogged three places thanks to Hamilton's victory to stand at fourth with 17.

We are off in Shanghai as the qualifying session gets underway amid sunny conditions.

Defending champion Max Verstappen records the fastest time so far, clocking 1:31.424 on the back of a surge in the final sector. The Red Bull Racing driver is ahead of Mclaren's Oscar Piastri and Mercedes' Andrea Kimi Antonelli, with today's sprint victor Lewis Hamilton in fourth.

Quite an eventful finish to Q1, which sees McLaren driver Lando Norris zoom into the top spot and Racing Bulls' Yuki Tsunoda behind him. The big news, meanwhile is that Red Bull's Liam Lawson has crashed out. The drivers out after Q1 after Pierre Gasly (Alpine), Oliver Bearman (Haas), Jack Doohan (Alpine), Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber) and Lawson.

Aston Martin's star driver Fernando Alonso crashes out in the second phase of qualifying, and so does Williams' Carlos Sainz. The other three to go out are Esteban Ocon (Haas), Nico Hulkenberg and Alonso's teammate Lance Stroll.

Here is the top 10 which is fighting it out for pole position at the end of Q2:

1st: Lando Norris

2nd: Max Verstappen

3rd: Oscar Piastri

4th: Isack Hadjar

5th: Yuki Tsunoda

6th: George Russell

7th: Charles Leclerc

8th: Lewis Hamilton

9th: Kimi Antonelli

10th: Alex Albon

The 23-year-old Oscar Piastri has bounced back from the disappointment at his home race, the Australian Grand Prix, in style. The McLaren driver takes pole for the first time in an F1 race. Right behind him is Mercedes' George Russell, who comes within 0.082 seconds of pole himself but has to be content with P2.

Here's how the grid will look like tomorrow in Shanghai, following a frenetic qualifying session:

1. Oscar Piastri

2. George Russell

3. Lando Norris

4. Max Verstappen

5. Lewis Hamilton

6. Charles Leclerc

7. Isack Hadjar

8. Andrea Kimi Antonelli

9. Yuki Tsunoda

10. Alex Albon