Ferrari very much in the championship fight after strong Chinese GP

Only two races into the 2026 Formula One season and something of a pattern is beginning to develop.

Ferrari start strongly, rocket into the lead and an early scrap between themselves and rivals Mercedes plays out over the opening laps before Mercedes lead them home in symmetrical order.

The Chinese Grand Prix played out almost identically to the Australian Grand Prix in that respect, Lewis Hamilton flying into the lead off the lights before the strength of Mercedes eventually told.

After a Safety Car situation, Kimi Antonelli led home George Russell to become the youngest every grand prix winner with his maiden F1 victory.

A hectic start in China 😅⏮️ pic.twitter.com/IKmdUEWSQw

— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) March 15, 2026

But Hamilton’s impressive third place finish allied to Charles Leclerc’s fourth close behind means that it may not be too long before Ferrari are on the top step of the podium once again.

“Huge congratulations to Kimi (Antonelli), I’m really happy to share this moment and podium with him,” said Hamilton after his first full race podium in Ferrari colours.

“Overall, it’s been a very positive weekend for us; we’ve learned a lot and improved the way we optimise the car. Today was one of the most enjoyable races I’ve had in years, with hard but fair battles, especially with Charles.

“We still have work to do, but we’re on the right path, and I’m hugely grateful to everyone back in Maranello as we push to take the fight to Mercedes even more in the weeks ahead.”

These two 🤣 pic.twitter.com/14Jh0OQw4F

— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) March 15, 2026

For Leclerc, the sentiments were similar despite the fact that this time the results were reversed.

“It was a really exciting race with a lot of fights,” added the Monegasque. “These new cars are really fun to race, it’s all about tactics and energy deployment, and you can really play with that to get ahead of your competitors.

“Lewis was strong all weekend, so it’s not a surprise he’s P3, he deserves it. We had some great fights, and I am sure we will continue to see some more good battles this year.

“Congratulations to Kimi (Antonelli) for his first victory. It’s always touching to see raw emotion like that, and he did an exceptional job today, so I’m very happy for him.”

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And for team principal Fred Vasseur there was also cause for optimism, although he remains wary of the power unit advantage the Mercedes car seems to possess.

It was a positive weekend overall and I’m happy for Lewis, as this first podium with Ferrari is an important step for him.

“Of course we are still a long way off Mercedes and we need to work very hard in the coming weeks.

“We are working on all elements of our package, although it is a bit more difficult on the power unit as it is frozen at the moment, so we need to make progress in different areas.”

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