The 2014 Chinese Grand Prix was dominated by Mercedes, with Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg registering the Brackley-based outfit's third consecutive 1-2 finish.
The Shanghai International Circuit always produces some beautiful and unique photographs. Here is the race in pictures:
Friday
Fernando Alonso started the weekend off on the right foot by topping first practice, but it was a rather unrepresentative session.
Pastor Maldonado had a terrible Friday, spinning in first practice and crashing at the pit entry in the second session.
Second practice was topped by Lewis Hamilton, but the Brit wasn't happy with the set-up of his car.
Felipe Nasr was one of two reserve drivers, alongside Giedo van der Garde, to run in first practice, as the GP2 driver gained more experience at the wheel of F1 machinery.
Saturday
Daniel Ricciardo set the fastest time in the wet third practice session, but there was very limited running.
Kimi Raikkonen struggled throughout the weekend and was knocked out of qualifying in the second session.
Hamilton stormed to pole position for the Chinese Grand Prix by six tenths of a second from Ricciardo.
The Williams drivers did better than expected in wet weather conditions, thanks to a number of new updates for the FW36. Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas were sixth and seventh fastest in Q3 respectively.
McLaren were left disappointed after Jenson Button and Kevin Magnussen were both eliminated in Q2. They started the race from 12th and 15th on the grid.
Romain Grosjean gave Lotus its first top 10 grid position after easily making it through to Q3. In contrast, Maldonado failed to set a time after a power-unit problem.
Sunday
The start of the race saw Hamilton retain the lead and Vettel move up to second. Alonso and Massa made contact, while Rosberg collided with Bottas.
The Red Bull drivers briefly battled before Vettel was told to let Ricciardo through - he didn't follow the instruction at first (saying "tough luck") before being told his team-mate was on a different strategy.
Felipe Massa had a disastrous race. After the earlier contact, he suffered a 78 second first pit stop that dropped him to last place. He eventually finished in 16th.
Nico Hulkenberg came under pressure from Bottas in the closing stages but eventually crossed the line 0.5 seconds clear in sixth place.
Maldonado finished the race in 14th place but his team-mate registered a DNF after a gearbox problem.
McLaren's terrible weekend continued on Sunday with Button and Magnussen finishing in 11th and 13th after struggling for grip.
Lewis Hamilton was actually shown the chequered flag twice during the Chinese Grand Prix. An error by a race official meant it was waved one lap early, causing the official results to be called on lap 54 rather than lap 56.
Fernando Alonso gave Ferrari its first podium of the 2014 season, but he still finished 25 seconds behind Hamilton.
The Mercedes team celebrated their 1-2 finish after the Chinese Grand Prix.
Catch up on the on-track action with my Chinese Grand Prix weekend report. For driver reaction, go here.
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| © Ferrari |
Friday
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| © Ferrari |
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| © Lotus F1 Team |
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| © Mercedes AMG Petronas |
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| © Williams Martini Racing |
Felipe Nasr was one of two reserve drivers, alongside Giedo van der Garde, to run in first practice, as the GP2 driver gained more experience at the wheel of F1 machinery.
Saturday
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| © Red Bull/Getty Images |
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| © Ferrari |
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| © Mercedes AMG Petronas |
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| © Williams Martini Racing |
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| © McLaren Mercedes |
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| © Lotus F1 Team |
Sunday
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| © Mercedes AMG Petronas |
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| © Red Bull/Getty Images |
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| © Williams Martini Racing |
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| © Sahara Force India F1 Team |
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| © Lotus F1 Team |
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| © McLaren Mercedes |
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| © Mercedes AMG Petronas |
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| © Ferrari |
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| © Mercedes AMG Petronas |
Catch up on the on-track action with my Chinese Grand Prix weekend report. For driver reaction, go here.
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