Round 2 of the 2025 FIA Formula 1 World Championship takes MoneyGram Haas F1 Team to the Shanghai International Circuit for the Chinese Grand Prix.

MoneyGram Haas F1 Team is seeking to rebound from a disappointing season-opening round in Melbourne, where Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman chased performance throughout the weekend across various conditions, providing several lessons to take into the second event of the new campaign.

China first joined Formula 1's calendar in 2004, and remained part of the schedule through 2019, prior to a four-season absence due to the pandemic and associated travel restrictions. China finally, and successfully, returned to the schedule in 2024, with MoneyGram Haas F1 Team claiming top 10 finishes in both the Sprint Race and grand prix.

F1 Sprint will again feature at the Chinese Grand Prix, its first of six planned events across the course of the 2025 season. As per 2024 Sprint Qualifying on Friday will set the grid for Saturday morning's Sprint Race, before qualifying for the grand prix takes place as usual on Saturday afternoon. There will consequently be just a single one-hour practice session on Friday.

Ocon has participated in three grands prix in China, scoring a top 10 finish in 2017, while for rookie Bearman it will be his first taste of the Shanghai International Circuit.

Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal: "After a difficult weekend, we come straight to Shanghai for the first Sprint of the season. Shanghai is a very different circuit to Melbourne; it has many low-speed corners and a long straight. We need to put everything we learned in the opening round into our car set-up to have a decent weekend here. Esteban had a solid weekend in Australia, so we're looking forward to build from that and I'm also looking forward to seeing the real Ollie in Shanghai after an uncharacteristically messy weekend in Melbourne."

Ollie Bearman: "I'm very excited to go to China, I went there last year as a reserve driver and I'm fascinated by the city and the circuit, which is very unique. I'm looking forward to the first Sprint - it's definitely going to be a challenge as I haven't driven the track before - but it's a challenge I'm ready to take on. It's an incredibly large city, in the top five in the world, and it's incredible to see the amount of culture and fantastic architecture along with everything else in Shanghai. The fans were great to me last year, so I'm looking forward to being behind the wheel this year."

Esteban Ocon: "Shanghai is a very interesting track. It has a very technical layout and it's great to have it back on the calendar - having not been there for a few years until 2024. There's a lot to get right and a lot of differences to any other track on the calendar. Turn 1, in particular, is extremely long with high entry speeds, so you really need to trust the car. It makes it quite a complex weekend, especially as it's the first Sprint of the year. We need to get everything right with only one session, especially so early in the year, so it's going to be an interesting one. Sprints are intense, but I like racing more, it's definitely good to have two chances to race and score points."