Red Bull will be looking for a better performance in Shanghai after a disappointing result at the Australian Grand Prix.
Home favourite Daniel Ricciardo struggled in qualifying as he started in tenth position on the grid due to crashing his car in third practice.
Things didn’t get much better for the 27-year-old as his car stopped on the way to the grid, and although Ricciardo was able to eventually start the race, after just thirty laps his RB13 stopped on track and brought his day to a close.
Ricciardo started on the front row in China last year, and hoping for a good showing this time around he said: “When I first went [to Shanghai] it wasn’t one of my favourites and I wasn’t normally that competitive but since I’ve been with Red Bull Racing the circuit has been a real strength of mine and I’ve had some good results. Now I enjoy the circuit and going back there.”
Max Verstappen in 2016 finished the race in eighth position for Toro Rosso prior to his move to Red Bull: “I always enjoy to go back to China as it’s a special place and it’s a very nice track.
“I’m just looking forward to going there at this early stage of the season as everything is still very new and nothing has really been decided yet.”
Dominic Rust, F1 correspondent