A fascinating opening practice session at Formula 1’s Chinese Grand Prix has answered few questions going into the first sprint qualifying event of the season.

The new-for-2024 format means that Friday’s only 60-minute practice leads into qualifying for the sprint race rather than the grand prix itself.

But one constant at the Shanghai International Circuit was that - as is typically the case when FP1 kicks off a sprint weekend - strategies varied wildly as teams worked out how to best evaluate the track, the tyres and their cars before committing to a qualifying set-up.

That led to an unusual pecking order headed by Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll and McLaren driver Oscar Piastri respectively, although world champion Max Verstappen lurking in third-fastest hinted at a more familiar competitive scenario.

CHALLENGES ON CHINA RETURN

Unsurprisingly it took a while for drivers to get to grips with a Shanghai circuit that has been at least partly resurfaced since it was last used by F1 five years ago. But it did not look as problematic as some feared on Thursday.

Home hero Zhou Guanyu reported early on that track grip was not high but also not too bad and there was a notable absence of big moments, spins or shunts – the most obvious, and unusual, problem being a five-minute red flag because of a very small bizarre fire on a patch of grass on the inside of Turn 7.

The track itself was clearly still tricky though. Several drivers had small snaps under power, or ran deep into some of the track’s slower corners as they sussed out the limits.

There were also at least two pitlane-entry blips, one for Fernando Alonso and one for Piastri.

Both overshot on the approach as the entry tightens and goes left into the pitlane itself.