Ricciardo reigns supreme in Shanghai

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Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo zoomed past his rivals and drove to the chequered flag first to script a stupendous victory in Sunday’s Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai.

Starting from the third row, the Australian exploited the advantage of the safety car coming out on the 31st lap to outsmart the other drivers as he got fresh, soft tires but his rivals had to deal with worn rubber and couldn't get in quickly to change in the 3rd race of the season.

Racing with all guns blazing, Ricciardo clinched the lead on the 45th lap as he overtook Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas, who eventually finished second in the 56-lap race. Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen came third.

"A lot of time you only get one chance, so I make the most of every opportunity," Ricciardo told the AP. "I don't seem to win boring races. They all are pretty fun, but that was unexpected."

Ricciardo of Australia driving the (3) Aston Martin Red Bull Racing RB14 TAG Heuer makes a pit stop for new tires during the Formula One Grand Prix of China at Shanghai International Circuit. /VCG Photo

Meanwhile, it remains to be a nightmarish start to the new season for defending champion Mercedes and their previous season’s driver’s championship winner Lewis Hamilton as neither of Hamilton nor his dominant team from the last few seasons could manage to win any of the races this season so far. The four-time world champion Brit finished fourth on Sunday and was never in the contention to win the race at all.

Shanghai also turned out to be a big surprise for another former world champion, Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel. He has won the ongoing season’s first two races in Australia and Bahrain respectively, but despite starting on the pole position, a collision with Red Bull's Max Verstappen on the 43rd lap left him languishing at eighth in the end.

Top three finishers: Daniel Ricciardo of Australia and Red Bull Racing, Valtteri Bottas of Finland and Mercedes GP and Kimi Raikkonen of Finland and Ferrari celebrate on the podium. /VCG Photo

The Ferrari driver, however, is still leading the three-race old championship with 54 points. Meanwhile, Hamilton improved his season points total to 45 while Bottas has 40 points in third place and Ricciardo is fourth with 37.

Nico Hulkenberg of Renault was sixth followed by Fernando Alonso of McLaren. Vettel, Carlos Sainz of Renault and Haas' Kevin Magnussen rounded out the top 10.

This was Ricciardo's sixth career win, and his first since a victory a year ago in Azerbaijan, the venue for the next race in two weeks.

(With inputs from agencies)