Lewis Hamilton silenced his critics with an emphatic Sprint victory in Shanghai before calling out those “yapping”, who don’t understand the huge challenge of changing teams.

Hamilton raced from lights to flag in Saturday’s Sprint at the Chinese Grand Prix, taking the chequered flag almost seven seconds ahead of Oscar Piastri.

Lewis Hamilton silences ‘yapping’ critics

Arriving in Shanghai after a difficult Ferrari debut at a wet Australian Grand Prix where he scored just a single point, Hamilton clinched his first pole position in red on Friday afternoon before following that up with Saturday’s victory.

Overcoming intense pressure from Max Verstappen in the first half of the Sprint, the Briton’s tyre management skills came into play as he dropped the Dutchman in the second half.

Hamilton’s lead was up to 2.6s when Piastri overtook Verstappen for second, with the Briton putting a further four seconds between himself and the McLaren driver in the final four laps.

The important numbers after the Chinese GP Sprint

👉 2025 Chinese Grand Prix – Sprint race F1 results (Shanghai)

👉 The updated Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championship standings

Speaking to 1997 World Champion Jacques Villeuve in parc ferme, the Briton called out his “yapping” critics.

“The first race was difficult,” Hamilton said, “and I really do feel a lot of people underestimated the steep climb it is to get into a new team, to become acclimatise within the team, understanding, communication, all sorts of things.

“The amount of critics and people I’ve heard yapping along the way just clearly not understanding maybe because they’ve never had the experience, or just unaware.

“So it felt great to come here and feel more comfortable in the car because in Melbourne I really didn’t feel comfortable in the car.

“From lap one here this weekend, I really felt on it. The engineers have done a great job, the mechanics have done a great job to fine-tune the car, and it felt great.

“I got a good start and there’s so much grip on this new tarmac. It’s really hard to look after these new tyres, but I think everyone was struggling the same.”

But while Hamilton is now officially a Ferrari race winner, the Briton urged “calm” as the cheers from the Chinese fans rang out loud.

“I don’t feel the pressure,” he insisted. “I know the Tifosi, I know the fans, I know the team want to win, and it means everything to them.

“But I said the other day, Rome wasn’t built in one day, one step at a time and we’re not going to get ahead of ourselves. We cannot.

“We’re going to continue to push, be diligent, just remain focused, stay calm – most importantly stay calm – because these moments get us all excited.

“But we’ll be back at our desks after this, focused on qualifying. It’s a long, long way. It’s a marathon, not a sprint so we’ve just got to take our time.”

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