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Formula 1 Chinese GP

Chinese GP final practice and qualifying

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Sirotkin gets back up to 11th.
Grosjean launches himself up to fifth - ahead of Hamilton!
The Haas pair - with Magnussen now on ultrasofts rather than softs - are first to begin their final Q1 shots.
Pats on the back for the Red Bull mechanics for turning that car around.
Radio Comms
"You're going to get one timed lap" Red Bull tells him.
Into Q1 with less than three minutes to go!
Here comes Ricciardo.
Replays show Leclerc lost it over the exit kerb.
Information
Drop zone: 16 Hartley; 17 Ericsson; 18 Stroll; 19 Leclerc; 20 Ricciardo (no time)
Information
Slightly anxious zone: 11 Sainz; 12 Gasly; 13 Grosjean; 14 Vandoorne; 15 Sirotkin
Crash
Big spin for Leclerc at the final turn, but he's pointing the right way and is off and running again.
Information
Order: 1 Vettel; 2 Raikkonen; 3 Bottas; 4 Verstappen; 5 Hamilton; 6 Perez; 7 Hulkenberg; 8 Ocon; 9 Alonso; 10 Magnussen
Sainz can only manage 11th, six tenths off team-mate Hulkenberg in seventh.
Hulkenberg gets Renault straight in the best-of-the-rest mix with seventh, between the Force Indias.
Apart from the still-in-the-garage Ricciardo, it's just the Renaults yet to do times.
Verstappen goes fourth, right on Bottas's tail and comfortably ahead of Hamilton.
Rain
Raikkonen reports rain falling in China.
Information
So best of the rest is now: 5 Perez; 6 Ocon; 7 Alonso; 8 Magnussen; 9 Grosjean; 10 Vandoorne
Alonso takes fifth for McLaren, then immediately gets pipped for the place by Ocon. Then Perez desposes them both.
Sirotkin has got within 0.015s of sixth-placed Grosjean with that lap.
The Williams are seventh and ninth, Sirotkin ahead and Gasly between them.
Ricciardo climbing into his Red Bull now. Ten minutes to go. He should make it out for at least one flying lap.
Magnussen has gone ahead of team-mate Grosjean for fifth, despite using softs when everyone else is on ultrasofts.
Information
So it's 1 Vettel; 2 Raikkonen +0.303s; 3 Bottas +0.750s; 4 Hamilton +1.112s.
Stopwatch
Vettel deposes Raikkonen in a Ferrari one-two up front - Vettel's 1m32.171s is 0.303s faster than his team-mate.
Grosjean goes fourth for Haas, 1.9s off the pace.
Radio Comms
"We lost out of 10, 13 and the last corner" Sauber tells Ericsson, who was almost half a second off Leclerc on that first run.

By: Geoff Creighton

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