claimed pole position for the sprint race, fending off historic rival Max Verstappen and McLaren's . Lando Norris was only sixth fastest after backing off on his final run. Piastri laid down a marker early in SQ1, moving half a second clear of the rest of the field, and Fernando Alonso turned a wonderful lap to put his Aston Martin machine into P2.
However, at the end of the session it was Hamilton at the top of the timing screens. There was no joy for Liam Lawson, who struggled to manage tyre pressure and ran wide on his final lap. The New Zealander was eliminated in P20 after a disastrous debut in Melbourne last weekend.
McLaren restored their advantage in a scrappy SQ2 session with Norris and Piastri leading Hamilton in the top three. Mercedes' drivers struggled to extract performance from the W16, but both George Russell and Kimi Antonelli squeezed through on their final runs.
Isack Hadjar was unable to avenge his misery from a week ago as his Racing Bulls car lost the rear on the way around the winding Turn One. He was forced to abort his lap and was therefore eliminated in P15.
Piastri and Norris set the early pace in SQ1, but Hamilton stormed to the top of the timing screens with his final run. Verstappen put up a fight but finished a couple of hundredths behind the seven-time world champion. Norris' pole attempt was scuppered by a costly lock-up at Turn 14.
Chinese Grand Prix sprint qualifying results...1. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
3. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
5. George Russell (Mercedes)
6. Lando Norris (McLaren)
7. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
8. Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls)
9. Alex Albon (Williams)
10. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
11. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
12. Oliver Bearman (Haas)
13. Carlos Sainz (Williams)
14. Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber)
15. Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls)
16. Jack Doohan (Alpine)
17. Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
18. Esteban Ocon (Haas)
19. Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber)
20. Liam Lawson (Red Bull)
