Shanghai International Circuit guide

Chinese Grand Prix

Round 2 · Chinese Grand Prix

Shanghai International Circuit

Name: Shanghai International Circuit
Address: Shanghai, China

Shanghai, China

5.451 km

Lap length

Corners

7 left, 9 right

Clockwise

Direction

F1 races held

since 2004

What makes it different

Turns 1–3 form a single 270-degree corner that tightens all the way through, so a car is turning for about nine seconds and the entry speed you pick is committed before you can see the exit.
The back straight is close to 1.2 km - one of the longest full-throttle stretches in F1, which forces a wing level the twisty final sector does not want.
The circuit was built on reclaimed rice-paddy marshland, which took roughly 40,000 concrete piles sunk into the ground to support the track ahead of its 2004 debut.

The records

351.4 km/h

Top speed (2022–now)

Lewis Hamilton, 2025

344.1 km/h

Top speed, all time

Pastor Maldonado, 2015

1:32.238

Fastest race lap (2004–now)

Michael Schumacher, 2004

Lewis Hamilton · 6 wins

Most wins

2019, 2017, 2015, 2014, 2011, 2008

1:32.064

Latest pole time

Andrea Kimi Antonelli, 2026

Different winners

from 19 races

63% (12 of 19)

Pole converted to win

since 2004

Youngest winner

Andrea Kimi Antonelli, 2026

Oldest winner

Michael Schumacher, 2006

23% — roughly 1 car in 4

Cars that don't finish

last 3 races here, since 2024

3.0 places

How much the order changes

up or down from the grid slot, on average — about the calendar average

"Cars that don't finish" and "How much the order changes" both cover the 3 Grands Prix run here since 2024. Movement is the distance between a car’s grid slot and its finish, in either direction — not a count of overtakes, since a car retiring ahead of a driver moves that driver up too.

This grid’s history here

Driver	Wins	Podiums	Poles
Lewis Hamilton	6 wins · 2019, 2017, 2015, 2014, 2011, 2008	10 podiums · 2026, 2019, 2017, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2008	6 poles · 2017, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2008, 2007
Fernando Alonso	2 wins · 2013, 2005	5 podiums · 2014, 2013, 2007, 2006, 2005	2 poles · 2006, 2005
Max Verstappen	1 win · 2024	2 podiums · 2024, 2017	1 pole · 2024
Andrea Kimi Antonelli	1 win · 2026	1 podium · 2026	1 pole · 2026
Oscar Piastri	1 win · 2025	1 podium · 2025	1 pole · 2025
Valtteri Bottas	—	2 podiums · 2019, 2018	1 pole · 2019
George Russell	—	2 podiums · 2026, 2025	—
Lando Norris	—	2 podiums · 2025, 2024	—
Sergio Pérez	—	1 podium · 2024	—

Recent form at this circuit

Last winners

2026Andrea Kimi Antonelli · Mercedes
2025Oscar Piastri · McLaren
2024Max Verstappen · Red Bull
2019Lewis Hamilton · Mercedes
2018Daniel Ricciardo · Red Bull

Last pole times

2026Andrea Kimi Antonelli · Mercedes · 1:32.064
2025Oscar Piastri · McLaren · 1:30.641
2024Max Verstappen · Red Bull · 1:33.660
2019Valtteri Bottas · Mercedes · 1:31.547
2018Sebastian Vettel · Ferrari · 1:31.095

Historic moments

2025 · Three cars thrown out after the flag

Oscar Piastri led a McLaren one-two, and then scrutineering gutted the rest of the order: Charles Leclerc and Pierre Gasly were disqualified for cars a kilogram under the 800 kg minimum, and Lewis Hamilton for a skid block worn past the legal limit. It was the first time both Ferraris had been disqualified from the same Grand Prix.

2007 · Hamilton's title slips away in the gravel

Championship leader Lewis Hamilton, in his rookie season, slid off at the pit entry on a worn set of intermediate tyres and beached his McLaren in the gravel trap, retiring on the spot. Kimi Räikkönen won the race and closed to within seven points, a gap that decided the title in Ferrari's favour a week later.

2004 · Built to spell a character

Designer Hermann Tilke shaped the opening corners after the Chinese character 上 - meaning "ascend" - for China's first-ever Grand Prix in 2004, won from pole by Rubens Barrichello.