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SHANGHAI: McLaren’s dominance, Lewis Hamilton’s bid to bounce back after a disappointing debut for Ferrari, and the death of Eddie Jordan have generated headlines as Formula 1 prepares for its first Sprint weekend of the season at the Chinese Grand Prix.

Lando Norris arrived in Shanghai atop the drivers’ standings for the first time following his win at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix last Sunday, but it was his qualifying pace for McLaren — and not just holding off Red Bull’s Max Verstappen — that had his rivals on edge ahead of practice.

McLaren’s pace

Mercedes driver George Russell went so far as to say McLaren could win every race this season, describing its raw pace advantage as “bigger than Red Bull has ever had.” But, while Norris’ teammate Oscar Piastri strongly refuted the claim — stating the form would change between rounds — the rest of the paddock wasn’t so sure.

“They’re definitely ahead,” Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc said. “The gap in qualifying, the gap that there was (in Australia, 0.385sec to the nearest non-McLaren) is more or less what there is.”

“I think we are around Mercedes and Red Bull in terms of lap times if we put everything together,” Leclearc said, “so there’s still a big chunk to get McLaren then.”

It’s unclear if a new technical directive will shuffle the order in China, with FIA, the sport’s governing body, cracking down on rear wing flexing with a tougher static load test.

None of the drivers were forthcoming, as to what triggered the FIA’s new interpretation, or who it was most expected to impact.

“We don’t have to change anything,” Norris said. “Ours is fine. In fact, ours was probably too good, and we probably weren’t pushing the limits enough. If this technical directive had been applied last weekend, we would’ve been fine.

“It seems to be directed (at) other teams, which probably means we should push it a little bit more.”

Hamilton primed for improvement

For seven-time world champion Hamilton, China is a chance for a reset after a difficult Ferrari debut at Melbourne’s Albert Park last weekend, where he qualified eighth, briefly took the lead, but couldn’t hold onto it because of the team’s tire strategy.

But the 40-year-old, who is F1’s most successful driver with a record 105 GP wins and 104 pole positions, says he still needs more time to bring the full force of his experience to his new team.

“As I get more comfortable and more knowledgeable about the car, I can start making more decisions,” Hamilton said of his preferred set up. “I’m having those discussions, and I’m going to lean a little bit more with adding my experience hopefully a bit more in it.”

Hamilton is hopeful that the Australian GP was an outlier for him and for Ferrari.

“I hope so,” he said. “I think our car looked pretty decent on Friday (in Australia) and even on Saturday morning. So, I think it’s a bit of a one-off.”

Another tough test for F1’s rookies

China’s Sprint weekend format will be another challenge for F1’s six rookies. The track has been completely resurfaced and there’s just one practice session, making it more difficult to get a baseline setup before Sprint qualifying.

Mercedes rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli said it feels like a return to F2, with its compacted schedule, but the Italian knows what he has to do

“You want to finish free practice and say ‘Okay, like I got to a good level of driving. I’m not so far from the limit and I know where I have to make the step for qualifying,’” Antonelli said. “The important thing is going to be to get as close as possible to the limit without making any big mistakes.”

At Racing Bulls, Isack Hadjar is ready to put the pain of Melbourne behind him, having put his car into the Turn 2 barrier on the formation lap.

In the aftermath of his crash, Hadjar was seen walking back to the garage crying with his hands up to his helmet. Red Bull motorsport consultant Doctor Helmut Marko said it was embarrassing, but Hamilton’s father, Anthony, sought Hadjar out for some reassuring words.

“It was a nice moment, sharing time with someone like Anthony as well — obviously, the dad of my idol,” Hadjar said. “So that was quite a special moment. And Lewis sent me a message later that day. Really classy guys.”

RIP Eddie Jordan

Sadness descended on the F1 community on Thursday with news that ex-team owner Eddie Jordan had died.

Beloved throughout the sport “EJ” ran the Jordan team from 1991 to 2005. His humor, strong opinions and deep contacts made Jordan a popular media pundit after he sold the team – with his most recent project being the “Formula for Success” podcast he co-hosted with ex-F1 driver David Coulthard.

The 76-year-old Jordan also acted as the manager for design great Adrian Newey when he left Red Bull for Aston Martin last year.

Jordan was undergoing cancer treatment before he died. His family issued a statement, published by rugby club London Irish, where Jordan was a patron, to say he “passed away peacefully with family by his side in Cape Town.”

Sky Sports commentator Martin Brundle, who drove for Jordan in 1996, led the emotional tributes from the sport.

“What a character. What a rock star. What a racer,” Brundle posted on social media. “So many drivers owe you so much, you gave us our chances and believed in us.”

Racing

The first Sprint weekend for 2025 begins at the Shanghai International Circuit on Friday, with a single practice session at 11.30 a.m. local time (0330 GMT) before sprint qualifying at 3.30 p.m. (0730 GMT).

ROTTERDAM, Netherlands: European champions Spain salvaged their two-year unbeaten streak in the dying minutes of Thursday’s Nations League quarter-final first leg, denying 10-man Netherlands a famous victory with a 2-2 draw.

Mikel Merino broke Dutch hearts in the third minute of added time, to maintain an unbeaten run that now stretches to 22 competitive games.

The two powerhouses of world football meet again in Valencia on Sunday, with the winner of the tie to face France or Croatia in the semifinal.

The omens were good for the hosts, who had never lost to Spain on home soil, and could count on raucous support from a sold-out De Kuip stadium in Rotterdam.

But Spain also had good memories of the stadium, the scene of their 2023 Nations League triumph, where they beat Croatia 5-4 on penalties.

The visitors struck first, benefitting from some defensive fraility and deft footwork from star winger Nico Williams.

Barcelona’s 17-year-old prodigy Lamine Yamal dispossessed Jorrel Hato on the right side, finding club-mate Pedri who slotted into Williams in the box.

Williams effortlessly turned Lutsharel Geertruida and slid his shot past Bart Verbruggen in the Dutch goal to silence the orange hordes.

The hosts rallied strongly and got their reward on 27 minutes, the ball breaking for Liverpool’s Cody Gakpo who beat Unai Simon at his near post.

The equalizer galvanized the Dutch, who enjoyed possession and pressure, knocking the ball around with confidence and creating several chances.

The best of these fell to Memphis Depay, recalled after a spell in the wilderness and he found himself unmarked in the Spanish box but struck his shot straight at Simon.

An acrobatic strike from AC Milan midfielder Tijjani Reijnders grazed the Spain bar and it was the Dutch who went into half-time in the ascendancy after a free-flowing first period.

The Oranje took the lead less than a minute into the second half, Jeremie Frimpong breaking swiftly down the right and squaring accurately to Reijnders, who swept his shot into the left corner.

Gakpo came close to stretching the lead even further in the 59th minute but Simon got down to his stinging shot along the ground.

Spain manager Luis De la Fuente made three substitutions in a bid to exert some pressure on the Dutch, but Verbruggen was untroubled until the 70th minute when he had to react smartly to a ball deflected off his own defender.

La Rioja pushed for the equalizer with some intricate passing around the penalty box but lacked real penetration.

As pressure built, players on both sides became increasingly scratchy, culminating in a red card for Hato, who lunged at Robin Le Normand, catching his ankle.

That sparked a nervous last few minutes for the Dutch and the pressure eventually told.

Williams again harassed the Dutch defense, cutting inside from the left and releasing a shot that Verbruggen could only parry into the path of Merino for a tap-in.