George Russell continued Mercedes’ perfect weekend in China, taking Sprint Pole with a 1m31.520s to lead a one-two for the Brackley-based team ahead of teammate Kimi Antonelli.
Lando Norris was third for McLaren, more than half a second behind Russell, with Oscar Piastri just behind in fifth after losing time in the final sector.
Lewis Hamilton finished fourth for Ferrari, splitting the pair from Maranello, while Pierre Gasly impressed in seventh ahead of Max Verstappen and teammate Isack Hadjar.
Oliver Bearman ended up ninth for Haas, rounding out the top 10. Nico Hulkenberg, Esteban Ocon, Liam Lawson, Gabriel Bortoleto, Arvid Lindblad, and Franco Colapinto were eliminated in SQ2, while the Williams pair of Carlos Sainz and Alexander Albon fell at the SQ1 stage.
The Sprint Race for the Chinese Grand Prix gets underway at 11am local time on Saturday (2pm AEDT).
Results: Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix, Sprint Qualifying
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Laps |
| 1 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1:33.030 | 1:32.241 | 1:31.520 | 13 |
| 2 | 12 | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | 1:33.455 | 1:32.291 | 1:31.809 | 13 |
| 3 | 1 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 1:33.783 | 1:33.086 | 1:32.141 | 13 |
| 4 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | 1:33.148 | 1:33.042 | 1:32.161 | 15 |
| 5 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 1:33.813 | 1:33.038 | 1:32.224 | 13 |
| 6 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:33.194 | 1:32.602 | 1:32.528 | 16 |
| 7 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 1:33.970 | 1:33.405 | 1:32.888 | 15 |
| 8 | 3 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Racing | 1:34.170 | 1:33.564 | 1:33.254 | 17 |
| 9 | 87 | Oliver Bearman | Haas F1 Team | 1:34.280 | 1:33.501 | 1:33.409 | 16 |
| 10 | 6 | Isack Hadjar | Red Bull Racing | 1:34.447 | 1:33.620 | 1:33.723 | 15 |
| 11 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Audi | 1:33.997 | 1:33.635 | 14 | |
| 12 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Haas F1 Team | 1:34.087 | 1:33.639 | 13 | |
| 13 | 30 | Liam Lawson | Racing Bulls | 1:34.110 | 1:33.714 | 13 | |
| 14 | 5 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Audi | 1:34.291 | 1:33.774 | 14 | |
| 15 | 41 | Arvid Lindblad | Racing Bulls | 1:34.495 | 1:34.048 | 13 | |
| 16 | 43 | Franco Colapinto | Alpine | 1:34.592 | 1:34.327 | 12 | |
| 17 | 55 | Carlos Sainz | Williams | 1:34.761 | 6 | ||
| 18 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Williams | 1:35.305 | 6 | ||
| 19 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 1:35.581 | 5 | ||
| 20 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 1:36.151 | 7 | ||
| 21 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Cadillac | 1:37.378 | 8 | ||
| 22 | 11 | Sergio Perez | Cadillac | No Time | 0 |
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