Britain’s Lando Norris was delighted to be proved wrong after he finished second, his best result of the season, at the Chinese Grand Prix.
World champion Max Verstappen claimed his fourth win from five races this year to extend his lead in the Formula 1 driver standings to 25 points.
But Norris defied his own gloomy pre-race predictions to finish just 14 seconds behind Verstappen and ahead of the Dutchman’s Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez.
“It felt great. I am surprised and very happy. The team deserve it. Today worked out,” said the McLaren driver, who was third in Australia last month.
“I wasn’t expecting it, but I got comfortable and I could push. Good day, good points and another podium.
“I made a bet before the race as to how far behind the Ferrari drivers we would finish, and I said ’35 seconds’. So, I am happy to be wrong.”
Norris’s compatriot Lewis Hamilton endured a miserable return to Shanghai, finishing ninth on a track where he had previously won six times.
Hamilton pitted early after complaining about his soft tyres but continued to struggle with a Mercedes that has been left further behind this year.
“The car is just sliding around everywhere,” he told his team during the race. “It just feels like something is broken. It is really bad.”
Two safety car periods could do nothing to prevent Verstappen from taking his 38th win from the last 49 grands prix in ominous fashion.
“We have been incredibly quick here,” said the three-time champion. “The car is always enjoyable to drive, and I could do whatever I wanted with it. It is fantastic.”
Ferrari pair Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz took fourth and fifth ahead of Hamilton’s colleague George Russell, Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso and the other McLaren of Oscar Piastri.
