Sunday: Marussia and Bianchi finish ahead of the two Caterhams

Jules Bianchi (No. 17) – 17th

The Frenchman had a good race and spent the Grand Prix battling with Kamui Kobayashi, finishing ahead of him following the early appearance of the checkered flag. « I had a great fight with Kobayashi throughout the race, and I’m very happy to leave China having finished ahead of him. This was my first straightforward race of the season, and it’s a real relief, to be honest. The start was good, and I got ahead of Kamui off the line, but he quickly regained the position. I stayed with him until the second stint when Maldonado was between us, and I dropped back a little, but then I caught up with him again, and we had a great fight. When he stopped for a third time to switch to the softs, we saw the opportunity to manage my tires and stay ahead. With the fresh softs, he was catching up quickly, and I had to work hard not to lose my position. Unfortunately, he passed me two corners before the finish, but in the end, we kept the position, so I’m happy. »

Max Chilton (n°4) – 19th

The day before his 23rd birthday, the Briton achieved his 23rd consecutive finish in F1 in… 23 Grand Prix. The Marussia driver managed to get ahead of Marcus Ericsson’s Caterham to finish in 19th position: « It was a tough race, but I’m delighted to have passed Ericsson and kept him behind me and, of course, achieved my 23rd consecutive finish. The start went well – I passed several cars actually – and the car felt good in the first stint. On the mediums, I struggled a bit more with balance and we changed strategy, then changed again at the end when I pitted for the third time, to ensure we wouldn’t be vulnerable to a final attack from Ericsson who had fresher tires. »