Chinese Grand Prix 2015 Preview: Start Time, TV Times, Weather, Schedule, Odds
After the drama and excitement of the last race in Malaysia, it's Shanghai's turn to put its mark on the Formula One season when it hosts the 2015 Chinese Grand Prix.
Held at the Shanghai International Circuit since 2004, the race has a history of producing somewhat unexpected winners. Only four of the 11 races so far have seen that year's champion mount the top step of the podium—2005, 2007, 2008 and 2014.
Sebastian Vettel, victor last time out in Sepang, didn't win this event in any of his championship years. By contrast, Lewis Hamilton won it in both of his.
With cooler conditions expected, Mercedes should be back on top, and Hamilton is the odds-on favourite to secure his fourth Chinese success. But Nico Rosberg will have something to say about that, and Ferrari won't be too far away.
Read on for a full preview of the weekend ahead, including TV times, session times, tyre compound and DRS information, weather forecast, odds, current standings, and a track guide.
Current Standings
1 of 6
Hamilton leads the drivers' championship by just three points. Vettel is the surprise name in second, while Rosberg is close behind in third.
The current top 10:
| 1 | Lewis Hamilton | 43 |
| 2 | Sebastian Vettel | 40 |
| 3 | Nico Rosberg | 33 |
| 4 | Felipe Massa | 20 |
| 5 | Kimi Raikkonen | 12 |
| 6 | Felipe Nasr | 10 |
| 7 | Valtteri Bottas | 10 |
| 8 | Daniel Ricciardo | 9 |
| 9 | Nico Hulkenberg | 6 |
| 10 | Max Verstappen | 6 |
In the constructors' championship, Mercedes have a healthy but not huge lead over Ferrari. Toro Rosso are ahead of Red Bull, and three teams are yet to score. The current standings:
| 1 | Mercedes | 76 |
| 2 | Ferrari | 52 |
| 3 | Williams | 30 |
| 4 | Sauber | 14 |
| 5 | Toro Rosso | 12 |
| 6 | Red Bull | 11 |
| 7 | Force India | 7 |
Data sourced from the official F1 website.
Shanghai International Circuit
2 of 6
The Shanghai International Circuit has been a feature of the F1 calendar since 2004. Designed by Hermann Tilke to resemble the Chinese character shang, it was the first of the German's circuits to feature what has now become a hallmark of his layouts—a very long straight.
At 1,170 metres, it's one of the longest currently used in the sport.
The rest of the circuit consists of the usual blend of slow, medium and fast corners. Most aren't anything special, but some stand out.
Turns 1, 2, 3 and 4
A lap begins on the medium-length pit straight. After an average-length run from the start line, the drivers throw their cars into the fast entry of Turn 1. This incredibly long right-hander requires speed to be bled off slowly as it gradually tightens in a manner not dissimilar to a snail's shell.
Each driver will have his own preferred line through here, but all will aim to hit the tight, late apex (officially Turn 2) in a similar manner for the best line into another tight corner, the left-hand Turn 3.
It's then back on the throttle through the left-hand kink of Turn 4 and onto a short straight.
The layout, entry speed and different lines in this sector can result in contact on the first lap, especially when a driver has taken a chance around the outside of Turn 2 for the inside line in the next corner.
Turns 5 and 6
Turn 5 is a flat-out right-hand kink that conveniently places the cars on the outside of the track for the braking zone of the hairpin right of Turn 6. Passing here is possible but not common.
Getting the power down as early as they can, the drivers head onto another tiny straight.
Turns 7 and 8
Having picked up a reasonable bit of speed, next up is the fast left-right combination of Turns 7 and 8. The first of the two is quicker, with a hefty lift required before turning into the second.
While not quite as visually impressive as Turns 5 and 6 of Sepang, these corners are still a good place to see the awesome capabilities of an F1 car in action.
Turns 9 and 10
Coming out of Turn 8, the drivers take an unusual line, hugging the right-hand side of the track for the best entry into the slow, tight left-hander of Turn 9. Harder than it looks, this corner often sees minor errors that can ruin qualifying laps.
Turn 10 is a flat-out left-hander almost immediately after the exit of Turn 9, and it leads out onto a medium-length straight.
Turns 11, 12 and 13
At the end of the straight, the drivers brake hard for the tight left-hand hairpin of Turn 11. As soon as they've cleared the apex, they're turning right through the slow Turn 12, putting the pedal to the metal immediately at the exit as they enter the long, fast Turn 13.
With two low-speed direction changes followed by an acceleration zone, worn tyres can be especially problematic at this point.
The slightly banked Turn 13 goes on and on, with the cars picking up speed all the time until they are fired out into the long back straight.
Turns 14, 15 and 16
Already travelling at a rate of knots as they enter the straight, the cars are doing close to 340 kilometres an hour as they approach the end and one of the toughest braking zones on the calendar.
Slamming on the brakes, the drivers decelerate to just 70 kilometres an hour to negotiate the tight hairpin right of Turn 14. Overtaking here is very much possible, though DRS means many moves will have been completed long before the braking zone.
As the drivers get the power down at the exit, they pass through the barely there right-hand kink of Turn 15 and head onto a medium-length straight.
At the end, they brake and turn hard into the tricky final corner, the left-hand Turn 16. It's not unusual to see cars run wide here in both qualifying and the race.
The track falls away downhill just before the timing beam and the start of another lap.
Pit Lane
The pit-lane entry is on the outside of Turn 16, and the entry is on the inside before Turn 1.
Slide image: Creative Commons.
Tyres and DRS Zones
3 of 6
Tyres played a huge part in determining the outcome of the last race but are not expected to be quite so influential at the Chinese Grand Prix.
The circuit features a variety of twists and turns, with the left-front receiving the most punishment in the long, fast right-handers such as Turns 1 and 13. Significant acceleration zones out of Turns 3, 6, 12 and 14 give the rear something to think about too.
Pirelli are bringing the yellow-marked soft and white-marked medium compound tyres. These should suit the relatively low temperatures expected for the weekend, and Pirelli expect a performance gap between the two compounds of around 1.3 seconds per lap.
Teams able to get through Q1 on the medium tyre, saving a set of softs, may have an advantage on race day.
The winning strategy last season was a two-stopper, and something along the same lines is expected in this year's race.
DRS Zones
There will be two DRS zones at the Chinese Grand Prix, each running from its own detection point.
Per the FIA's circuit map, the first zone will have a detection point in Turn 12, with an activation point 450 metres after the exit of Turn 13. It runs for the remainder of the back straight, ending with braking at Turn 14.
The second zone's activation point will be 35 metres before the apex of the final corner, with an activation point 98 metres after the final corner. It will run the length of the pit straight and end at Turn 1.
Both zones can expect to see action, but the first will take the lion's share.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Chinese Grand Prix Weather Forecast
4 of 6
Shanghai has a humid, subtropical climate, with hot summers and mild winters. Rainfall occurs all year, peaking in the summer. The weather in April is usually somewhere between mild and warm; average daytime temperatures are a touch below 20 degrees Celsius, with rain falling on an average of one day in three.
The coming weekend looks set to be on the cool side for F1, a sport that tends to follow the sunshine. Friday and Saturday will see overcast skies and temperatures noticeably below the average (no higher than 15 degrees). The warmest day looks like Sunday, with temperatures a little bit closer to normal.
No significant rain is expected, but a little drop or two of the wet stuff can't be ruled out at this stage.
BBC Weather will have the latest as we get closer to the race.
Chinese Grand Prix Odds
5 of 6
As always (well, since the start of 2014), Hamilton goes into the weekend as the favourite. Rosberg occupies his usual spot in second, while Vettel's win in Malaysia has seen his odds cut far shorter than they've been for a long time.
The top 10 favourites:
| Lewis Hamilton | 7-10 |
| Nico Rosberg | 3-1 |
| Sebastian Vettel | 5-1 |
| Kimi Raikkonen | 12-1 |
| Valtteri Bottas | 40-1 |
| Felipe Massa | 50-1 |
| Daniel Ricciardo | 200-1 |
| Daniil Kvyat | 200-1 |
| Carlos Sainz Jr. | 300-1 |
| Max Verstappen | 300-1 |
Selected Others
It's interesting to note the difference in the odds for a Vettel win (5-1) and a Vettel pole (10-1). Though there's some belief the Scuderia can perform over a race distance, their single-lap pace remains well behind that of Mercedes—or so we think.
Three teams are without a point so far in 2015. Lotus (Romain Grosjean 10-11) are considered most likely to break their duck in Shanghai, with McLaren (Fernando Alonso 15-4) more of an outside bet. Manor (either driver 50-1) are not expected to score.
2015 has seen a 100 percent safety car rate so far. It's 11-13 the third Mercedes makes a Sunday appearance to keep up the record and the same 11-13 it does not.
Odds sourced from Oddschecker and correct at the time of publication.
Session and TV Times
6 of 6
As always, the Chinese Grand Prix weekend will consist of three free practice sessions, qualifying and the race.
The session times are as follows:
| Practice 1 | Friday | 10 a.m. |
| Practice 2 | Friday | 2 p.m. |
| Practice 3 | Saturday | 12 p.m. |
| Qualifying | Saturday | 3 p.m. |
| Race | Sunday | 2 p.m. |
All times given are Shanghai local time (CST, UTC +8). Formula1.com has a useful tool on its homepage to convert them to other time zones.
TV Times
In the United Kingdom, live coverage of all sessions will be provided by Sky Sports F1. The programming times are as follows (all times BST):
| Practice 1 | Friday | 3 a.m. | 2:45 a.m. |
| Practice 2 | Friday | 7 a.m. | 6:45 a.m. |
| Practice 3 | Saturday | 5 a.m. | 4:45 a.m. |
| Qualifying | Saturday | 8 a.m. | 7 a.m. |
| Race | Sunday | 7 a.m. | 5:30 a.m. |
In the United States, live TV coverage of certain sessions is provided by NBCSN. Second practice is live at 2 a.m. on Friday, with live qualifying at 3 a.m. on Saturday. Sunday sees live race coverage starting at 1:30 a.m.
The network covers first practice and third practice live on streaming service NBC Sports Live Extra. All U.S. times are Eastern.
Enjoy the weekend!
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
