Liam Lawson of Red Bull Racing Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Kiwi Liam Lawson has driven aggressively in the Chinese Grand Prix, finishing 14th in an improved showing after a difficult start to his time with the Red Bull main team.
Lewis Hamilton won the 19-lap sprint, his first Formula One win for Ferrari, ahead of the main race in Shanghai.
Lawson had been graded to start last of the 20 cars in the sprint after a tough day in qualifying yesterday, which saw his best last lap deleted for exceeding track limits. This followed his spin out with 10 laps to go in the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne last week.
But his start position improved to 19th when Nico Hulkenberg was ordered to start from the pit land after a late change was made to his Sauber car.
Lawson showed he meant business, having bumps with both Jack Doohan and Gabriel Bortoleto as he took on those in the back half of the field.
It just showed how important "starting further up the grid" was, he told Sky Sport in an interview after the sprint, with an improved showing in tonight's final qualifying session vital ahead of the Grand Prix tomorrow.
"Even if you are faster it is still quite hard to overtake, just from the grain on the tyres, following other cars."
"We also know qualifying is important and this really shows it."
Red Bull boss Christian Horner encouraged him over the radio.
"Good drive, Liam. A very good effort. Good recovery."
Hamilton led from start to finish in only his second race for Ferrari.
The seven-times world champion, on pole position, managed his tyres superbly to take the chequered flag 6.889 seconds clear of McLaren's Oscar Piastri with Red Bull's Max Verstappen finishing third in the 100km race, Reuters reported.
McLaren's Lando Norris, winner of the season-opener in Australia, stayed top of the standings after struggling to seize a point in eighth. Norris now has 26 to Verstappen's 24.
Hamilton's Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc was fifth, behind Mercedes' George Russell.
"I woke up feeling great today," Hamilton said.
"The first race (in Melbourne) was difficult. I really did feel a lot of people underestimated the steep climb it is to get into a new team, to become acclimatised within the team, understanding and communication - all sorts of things.
"The amount of critics and people I've heard yapping along the way, clearly not understanding maybe because they'd never had the experience or just were unaware.
"So it felt great to come here and be more comfortable in the car because in Melbourne I didn't feel comfortable in the car. From lap one here this weekend, (I was) really feeling on it. The engineers and mechanics have done a great job."
- RNZ/Reuters
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