?? THE 2018 HEINEKEN CHINESE GRAND PRIX
Round 3. 13th-15th April.
979th F1 Grand Prix | 15th Chinese Grand Prix | 14th Grand Prix at the Shanghai International Circuit
2017 POLESITTER: LEWIS HAMILTON | 2017 WINNER: LEWIS HAMILTON
WEEKEND SCHEDULE
Friday 13th April
Free Practice 1 (10am Local Time/ 3am UK Time)
Free Practice 2 (2pm Local Time/ 7am UK Time)
Saturday 14th April
Free Practice 3 (11am Local Time/ 4am UK Time)
Qualifying (2pm Local Time/ 7am UK Time)
Sunday 15th April
The 2018 Chinese Grand Prix (2:10pm Local Time/ 7:10am UK Time)
Stats and Facts
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- Valtteri Bottas will celebrate his 100th Grand Prix start this weekend.
- Mercedes have taken every pole in China since 2012.
- From fourteen Chinese Grands Prix, the race has been won from pole on nine occasions.
- Lewis Hamilton has the most poles of any driver here, with six. Sebastian Vettel has two and Fernando Alonso has one.
- Hamilton also has the most wins of anyone here, with five. Fernando Alonso has taken two victories in Shanghai, while Sebastian Vettel took his sole win here so far in 2009 and Kimi Raikkonen won in 2007.
- The furthest back this race has been won from is sixth, by Michael Schumacher in 2006 – his final F1 victory.
- The Chinese Grand Prix has been won from pole every year since 2014.
- The longest run of different race winners is seven. From the inaugural Chinese Grand Prix through to Jenson Button’s 2010 victory, there were no repeat winners of the race.
- Of the teams, Mercedes have the most wins at this track, with five. Ferrari just trail them with four victories, while McLaren have three victories.
- Red Bull have only ever scored one victory here – their maiden win in 2009. The team have taken three poles here, however.
Find more track facts in the Ultimate Guide to the Shanghai International Circuit!
Press Conference Schedules
The Drivers’ Press Conference will take place on Thursday 12th April. The press conference will be split into two parts, with three drivers appearing in the first part, and a further three in the second part. The drivers appearing in front of the media will be:
| Marcus Ericsson (Sauber) |
| Pierre Gasly (Toro Rosso) |
| Max Verstappen (Red Bull) |
The Team Principals’ Press Conference will take place shortly after Free Practice 2. Appearing in front of the media will be:
| Maurizio Arrivabene (Ferrari) |
| Rob Fernley (Force India) |
| Franz Tost (Toro Rosso) |
Driver Steward
Each weekend a former Formula One driver, or a driver from another prominent series of motorsport, joins the stewards to help judge any incidents from a drivers’ perspective. The Driver Steward for the 2018 Chinese Grand Prix is Danny Sullivan.
Weather Forecast
The weather forecast for the week ahead at the Shanghai International Circuit currently looks like this:
Fastest Ever Lap
1:31.678
The fastest ever lap of the circuit was set by Lewis Hamilton in 2017. Will it be beaten over the 2018 Chinese Grand Prix weekend?
Tyre Choices
Pirelli will supply Medium, Soft, and Ultra Soft tyres for the Chinese Grand Prix.
Here’s wach driver’s choice of tyre for the event:
2017 Fastest Lap in each Session
The table below shows the fastest lap set in each session of the 2017 Chinese Grand Prix weekend:
| Free Practice 1 | 1:50.491 (Max Verstappen) |
| Free Practice 2 | Session Cancelled |
| Free Practice 3 | 1;33.336 (Sebastian Vettel) |
| Qualifying | 1:31.678 (Lewis Hamilton) |
| Grand Prix | 1:35.378 (Lewis Hamilton) |