The Formula 1 constructors’ championship has a rather bizarre look to it ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix. McLaren are top – as many expected – after Lando Norris’ victory, but there are surprises thereafter.
Mercedes are level on points with the leaders – the best position they’ve been since their eight-in-a-row streak concluded in 2021. Below Red Bull sit Williams, one of the stories of the weekend.
While debutant Carlos Sainz crashed out, Alex Albon converted a third-row grid spot to P5, the team’s best result since George Russell’s podium at the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix.
| Position | Constructors’ Standings | Points |
| 1 |
McLaren Racing |
27 |
| 2 |
Mercedes-AMG Petronas |
27 |
| 3 |
Red Bull Racing |
18 |
| 4 |
Williams F1 Team |
10 |
| 5 |
Aston Martin F1 Team |
8 |
| 6 |
Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber |
6 |
| 7 |
Scuderia Ferrari |
5 |
| 8 |
Alpine F1 Team |
0 |
| 9 |
Racing Bulls |
0 |
| 10 |
Haas F1 Team |
0 |
Aston Martin looked miserable after testing but they sit fifth after a fine drive from Lance Stroll, while Sauber have already bettered their points haul from the entirety of 2024 after Nico Hulkenberg’s P7.
Both of those teams sit above the hugely disappointing Ferrari. Alpine, Racing Bulls and Haas have yet to score.
Guenther Steiner has ‘no words’ for Haas, dismayed at Oliver Bearman showing
Haas took an unusual approach in winter testing, focusing almost solely on race runs and avoiding qualifying simulations. After their strong P7 finish last year, they were expected to be in the Q3 picture at Albert Park.
Instead, Oliver Bearman and Esteban Ocon locked out the back row. Bearman didn’t even take part in qualifying after damaging his gearbox, while Ocon’s 1:17.1 was some six-tenths adrift of the time he needed to progress to Q2.
Speaking on the Red Flags podcast, the team’s former boss Guenther Steiner shook his head in disbelief. He believes they are ‘quite a bit’ adrift at the bottom of the order right now.
Steiner said: “What can you say? Speechless. No words. It’s pretty clear. After Bahrain, they didn’t look strong, but they didn’t look like they do at the moment. They are quite a bit behind Sauber, who are second last.”
Steiner then turned attention to Bearman’s disastrous weekend, his first as a full-time F1 driver. Two dramatic mistakes meant he was hardly able to run in practice, and he was the last classified car in the race.
“It was very exciting in a negative way,” Steiner said. “I was very surprised. He did, before the race, 12 laps in two days. That is some achievement – a negative one, obviously.
“He crashed in FP1, they couldn’t get the car ready for FP2, and then in FP3 he crashed on the first or second lap. In the race, he did what he needed to do. There was nothing more there. I was surprised that he made so many mistakes.”
Oliver Bearman sounded ‘broken’ in one radio message to Haas
Haas were baffled by their Australian Grand Prix performance, one journalist says. That’s a worrying statement, suggesting they may need time to find a solution.
Normally, when a team opens the season in this fashion, they are prepared for it. But Haas did not see it coming.
David Croft says Bearman sounded ‘broken’ when he confirmed that his gearbox had failed at the start of qualifying. Perhaps it’s a blessing for the teenager that the F1 paddock moved straight onto China.
He’ll look to banish the memories of Australia, but like the rest of the rookies, he’s unfamiliar with the circuit. If Haas remain adrift, then his sole target has to be beating Ocon.
