Sad news this week as the motorsport world mourns the loss of former F1 team owner and media personality Eddie Jordan. In December last year, he announced his diagnosis of an aggressive form of prostate and bladder cancer. He died peacefully in his Cape Town home on March 20 at the age of 76. Short of cash after trying his hand at racing in the lower formulae, Jordan founded a team in 1979 to compete in Formula 3000 and Formula 3. In 1991, the team rebranded to Jordan Grand Prix and made the leap to Formula One. The team helped kickstart history, giving Michael Schumacher his F1 debut at the 1991 Belgian Grand Prix. Although he was destined to retire on the first lap of the race with a clutch failure, his performance was enough to gain interest from Benetton. The team would see several successful drivers including Rubens Barrichelloe, Eddie Irvine, and Ralf Schumacher. Jordan sold the team to Midland in 2005, which would eventually become the current Aston Martin team. He also served as manager of legendary car designer Adrian Newey, playing a critical role in getting the Brit his new job at Aston Martin. Outside of motorsport management, Jordan also had a media career, first with the BBC and then Channel 4. He also co-presented Top Gear until 2018. Outside of motorsport, he had passion for rock and roll music, cycling, and sailing. He married his wife Marie in 1979 and the couple had four children. He will be missed.
All eleven teams have signed the new Concorde Agreement, which is set to come into effect in 2026. The Concorde Agreement outlines the regulatory framework of the sport and commercial aspects of F1. The agreement needs to be signed by F1, the FIA, and all of the teams competing in the series. As of now, the specifics of what the new agreement entails is not publicly known, but the ten currently competing teams and Cadillac, which will compete next season, have signed it.
Multiple teams suffered freight delays ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix, although everyone was ready by the time practice started on Friday. The delay was the result of issues with flights between Melbourne and Shanghai. It impacted McLaren, Red Bull, Mercedes, Aston Martin, and tyre supplier Pirelli. The late cargo did eventually arrive late Wednesday afternoon, giving teams enough time to build their cars before the first day of running on Friday.
Lando Norris led the sole practice session around the Shanghai International Circuit on Friday morning, with Charles Leclerc coming closest with a distant 0.454s. It was a mad dash for teams and drivers to prepare themselves for the first sprint weekend of the season around the newly resurfaced circuit. Many drivers ended the session well out of position, focusing on other non-pace programmes. Many of the rookies struggled, taking up the bottom four positions on the timing sheets, although Jack Doohan’s session had been cut short be a power steering failure on his Alpine.
Williams received a €50,000 fine for failing to provide video footage recorded by the wireless cameras fitted to the car during free practice for the Chinese Grand Prix. The incident was caused by a misunderstanding by the team, which believed the cameras came with SD cards pre-installed. The team had reported a red flashing light to the FIA Technical Delegate during the session, but they were unaware this meant there was no SD card in the cameras. The team did not notice their mistake until after the session. These cameras are required by the FIA to test the flexibility of bodywork components, specifically the rear wing, which has been subject to stricter regulations and testing this season. However, the FIA made clear that they do not believe the mistake suggests that Williams is not in compliance with the flexibility requirements. Only €10,000 of the fine was required to be paid, with the remaining €40,000 suspended as long as no similar incidents occur for the rest of the year.
Lewis Hamilton qualified for pole in the sprint race, out-pacing old rival Max Verstappen by only 0.018s. McLaren appeared to have a strong pace in the first two qualifying sessions, with Oscar Piastri setting a good time in SQ1 and Lando Norris topping SQ2, but the duo would find themselves in P3 and P6, respectively, by the end of the session. Liam Lawson found himself at the back of the grid once again, losing his time to track limits as the pressure mounts for the youngster to perform.
Lewis Hamilton retained his lead by the end of the sprint race on Saturday, chalking up his first victory with the Scuderia. It was a race of tyre preservation, with the newly resurfaced circuit chewing through rubber. Both Ferrari cars seemed to come alive late in the race, with Hamilton winning by nearly seven seconds and Charles Leclerc applying pressure to George Russell in the closing stages. Max Verstappen struggled to get his tyres to the end of the 19-lap race, losing P2 to Oscar Piastri in the closing laps. Teammate Lando Norris had a tough day, dropping to P9 after dipping a tyre on the grass on the opening lap and only recovering to P8. Click here to read our complete summary of the sprint race.
The second pole position of the weekend was again earned by narrow margins, with Oscar Piastri beating George Russell by just 0.062s. Lando Norris led the first two qualifying sessions, but his teammate was faster in Q3. It was looking like it would be another McLaren front-row lockout, but George Russell managed to slot in between the duo in his final attempt. Norris abandoned his final flying lap attempt, leaving him unable to improve. Isack Hadjar caught the attention of the stewards for an unsafe release into the path of Max Verstappen. Racing Bulls were handed a €5,000 fine after the session.
Oscar Piastri finished the 56-lap race on Sunday in the lead, with Lando Norris helping McLaren to earn their first 1-2 finish of 2025. Piastri was forced to cover off George Russell in the run down to the first corner after the Brit had a better launch. This compromised Russell’s entry into the first corner, allowing Norris to sweep around the outside. Both McLaren’s built a big back to Russell in P3, although Norris dropped back significantly in the closing laps due to a brake issue. The two Ferraris tangled in the first corner as they overtook Max Verstappen, with Charles Leclerc damaging his front wing on Lewis Hamilton’s rear tyre. The damage appeared to make the car perform better, eventually leading the teammates to swap positions after the first pit stops. Although the race had initially seemed to be a two-stop race, the hard tyre performed better than predicted. Hamilton was the only lead driver to take the two-stop strategy, which did not pay off. Verstappen fought his way back up to P4, overtaking Leclerc in the closing laps. Drama ensued after the race, with Pierre Gasly and Leclerc being disqualified for failing to meet the minimum weight. Lewis Hamilton was also disqualified for high wear on the rear skid block of his Ferrari. Click here to read our full summary of the Chinese Grand Prix.
The teams and drivers will have a chance to relax this weekend, but things will jump back into full gear on the weekend of April 6 for the Japanese Grand Prix. This will be the first round in the season’s first triple-header that will also visit Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
It can be challenging for even the most avid fans to keep up with the fast-paced world of Formula One. The Weekly F1 Recap is a series published each Monday that breaks down the action, both on and off the circuit, into bit-sized pieces. It's perfect for casual and experienced fans alike.
