Max Verstappen shines in the rain, more woe for McLaren: Chinese Grand Prix talking points

Max Verstappen crosses the Chinese Grand Prix finish line in third place ahead of Red Bull Racing teammate Daniel Ricciardo. Mark Thompson / Getty Images

Following the second race of the 2017 Formula One season, the Chinese Grand Prix, Graham Caygill addresses the big talking points from Shanghai.

Verstappen’s charge

Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen. Roman Pilipey / EPA

On the basis of Sunday’s Chinese Grand Prix, Formula One fans and Max Verstappen will be hoping for more rain at races over the rest of the year. The Dutchman again highlighted his skill in the wet as, having started 17th, he was up to seventh in the damp conditions by the end of Lap 1, ran as high as second, before settling for third as his pace fell away compared to Mercedes-GP and Ferrari on a fully dry track. It was fun and unpredictable racing, and hopefully Red Bull Racing can improve their package so Verstappen does not have to rely on rain to be a challenger at the front.

Sainz rewarded for risk

Torro Rosso driver Carlos Sainz. Mark Thompson / Getty Images

If Verstappen stole the attention, the other driver punching above his weight was Toro Rosso’s Carlos Sainz. The Spaniard took the risky decision to start the race on dry tyres when parts of the track were still very wet. Although he made a slow getaway, he was quickly up to sixth, and though he was passed for that place by the Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas, he finished seventh, the only racer not driving a Mercedes, Ferrari or Red Bull to finish on the lead lap. A fine achievement.

Reliability hurts McLaren

McLaren driver Fernando Alonso. Johannes Eisele / AFP

McLaren, when the car is operating, is a decent little machine, at least under Fernando Alonso. He was running in the top 10 before a transmission failure stopped him, while teammate Stoffel Vandoorne also failed to finish. The team and engine supplier Honda have major reliability issues, and the lack of testing miles in February, as Alonso confirmed, is hurting them.

Woe for Williams

Williams driver Felipe Massa. Mark Thompson / Getty Images

The biggest disappointment was the Williams team. They impressed in qualifying with Felipe Massa sixth quickest and rookie Lance Stroll in 10th, but Stroll spun out on Lap 1 after contact with the Force India of Sergio Perez, while Massa struggled to heat up his tyres behind the safety car early in the race in the damp conditions and lost ground he was unable to regain, finishing 14th of the 15 cars to be classified.

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