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Zheng Routs Paolini to Advance to Semifinals at WTA Finals in Saudi Arabia

Tennis - WTA Finals - King Saud University Indoor Arena, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - November 6, 2024 China's Qinwen Zheng celebrates after winning her women's singles group stage match against Italy's Jasmine Paolini REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed
Tennis - WTA Finals - King Saud University Indoor Arena, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - November 6, 2024 China's Qinwen Zheng celebrates after winning her women's singles group stage match against Italy's Jasmine Paolini REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed
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Zheng Routs Paolini to Advance to Semifinals at WTA Finals in Saudi Arabia

Tennis - WTA Finals - King Saud University Indoor Arena, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - November 6, 2024 China's Qinwen Zheng celebrates after winning her women's singles group stage match against Italy's Jasmine Paolini REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed
Tennis - WTA Finals - King Saud University Indoor Arena, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - November 6, 2024 China's Qinwen Zheng celebrates after winning her women's singles group stage match against Italy's Jasmine Paolini REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed

Zheng Qinwen cruised to a 6-1, 6-1 win over Jasmine Paolini to reach the semifinals of the WTA Finals on Wednesday.
Zheng needed just over an hour to defeat Paolini in the match that decided the final qualifier from the Purple Group at the season-ending tournament for the top eight women's players, The Associated Press reported.
Top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka, who had won her first two matches to clinch a semifinal spot, lost 6-4, 3-6, 6-1 to No. 5 Elena Rybakina. It was Rybakina's first win of the round-robin phase.
It was Zheng's fourth win in as many matches against Paolini. The 22-year-old Chinese player had 12 aces and broke the Italian's serve five times.
“It's one of the best performances I had during this year,” Zheng said. “I'm really proud. I played in a really difficult group.”
Zheng is the youngest player to reach the semifinals in her first appearance at the WTA Finals since Petra Kvitova in 2011. It’s her seventh semifinal of the year and the first time she has beaten two top-10 opponents in the same tournament. She defeated Elena Rybakina on Monday.
Zheng has won 30 matches since Wimbledon, clinching the Olympic gold medal in Paris and winning titles in Palermo and Tokyo.
She could become the second player to win the singles gold medal and reach the WTA Finals championship match in the same season since tennis returned to the Olympics in 1988, after Serena Williams in 2012.
Paolini finished the season 38-19, having made the finals of the French Open and Wimbledon.
Jessica Pegula withdrew from her last match at the tournament because of a left knee injury. The American, who lost her first two matches and was already eliminated from semifinal contention, will be replaced in the Orange Group by first alternate and ninth-ranked Daria Kasatkina.
Kasatkina will play second-ranked Iga Swiatek on Thursday.

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McLaren Launches Investigation After Norris and Piastri Unable to Start F1’s Chinese Grand Prix

Mechanics work on the car of McLaren's Australian driver Oscar Piastri during the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix at the Shanghai International Circuit in Shanghai on March 15, 2026. (AFP)
Mechanics work on the car of McLaren's Australian driver Oscar Piastri during the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix at the Shanghai International Circuit in Shanghai on March 15, 2026. (AFP)
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McLaren Launches Investigation After Norris and Piastri Unable to Start F1’s Chinese Grand Prix

Mechanics work on the car of McLaren's Australian driver Oscar Piastri during the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix at the Shanghai International Circuit in Shanghai on March 15, 2026. (AFP)
Mechanics work on the car of McLaren's Australian driver Oscar Piastri during the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix at the Shanghai International Circuit in Shanghai on March 15, 2026. (AFP)

McLaren has launched an investigation with engine supplier Mercedes to investigate why both of its cars suffered terminal electrical faults that ruled them out of the Chinese Grand Prix on Sunday, as Formula 1 champion Lando Norris said the team must rule out a repeat.

Norris was stuck waiting in his car in McLaren's garage before time ran out for him to join the grid, and teammate Oscar Piastri had to be withdrawn from the grid minutes before the start with what McLaren termed separate electrical problems with its Mercedes-supplied power unit.

It was the first time in Norris' eight-season F1 career that he has missed a race and Piastri's second missed race in a row after crashing on his way to the grid at his home race in Australia.

“We just have to take it on the chin, learn what the problem was, and make sure it never happens again,” Norris said. “Everyone in the team is frustrated, our engineers, mechanics and HPP (Mercedes High Performance Powertrains) teammates. All of us want to go racing and score points.”

McLaren said a “joint investigation” with Mercedes' HPP engine operation would be launched.

McLaren has so far failed to match the pace of the works Mercedes team, whose drivers have won both Grand Prix races and the sole sprint race under the new 2026 regulations, which put more emphasis on electrical power. McLaren has previously said it's concerned with what it considers a lack of information on how to get the best out of the Mercedes systems.

Four cars in total failed to start Sunday, including Gabriel Bortoleto's Audi and the Mercedes-powered Williams of Alex Albon, which had a hydraulic-system failure.

There are also concerns at Aston Martin after a double retirement for the reliability-plagued team. Lance Stroll's race ended early with a battery failure, a repeat issue with its Honda power unit. Aston Martin said “discomfort from vibrations” forced Fernando Alonso to stop.

Aston Martin team principal Adrian Newey this month said his car was shaking so much it risked “permanent nerve damage” in its drivers' hands without major improvements.

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Lewis Hamilton 'Incredibly Grateful' to Ferrari as Long Wait for F1 Podium Ends

Formula One F1 - Chinese Grand Prix - Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai, China - March 14, 2026 Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton after qualifying in third place REUTERS/Jakub Porzycki
Formula One F1 - Chinese Grand Prix - Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai, China - March 14, 2026 Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton after qualifying in third place REUTERS/Jakub Porzycki
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Lewis Hamilton 'Incredibly Grateful' to Ferrari as Long Wait for F1 Podium Ends

Formula One F1 - Chinese Grand Prix - Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai, China - March 14, 2026 Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton after qualifying in third place REUTERS/Jakub Porzycki
Formula One F1 - Chinese Grand Prix - Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai, China - March 14, 2026 Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton after qualifying in third place REUTERS/Jakub Porzycki

Lewis Hamilton says he is “incredibly grateful” to Ferrari for letting him guide the development of the car that put him back on a Grand Prix podium for the first time since 2024.

Hamilton's third-place finish at the Chinese Grand Prix followed a race-long battle with teammate Charles Leclerc and what Hamilton called “just a kiss” of contact between the pair.

It ended a long wait for a finish in the top three for Hamilton in a full Formula 1 race since his blockbuster move from Mercedes, which took the win Sunday with the driver who replaced him at the team, Kimi Antonelli.

“To see them listen and put some of those things that I’d asked for on the car I’m just incredibly grateful to them for listening on that side of things," Hamilton said.

"It just makes you feel more united with everyone because you’re moving in the same direction. I’m looking forward to getting back next week to (Ferrari HQ in) Maranello and seeing everybody. Big, big push.”

Hamilton’s first year with Ferrari was full of frustration as he and the team failed to get to grips with a car that was very sensitive to setup changes, except for a sprint race win in China a year ago. Ferrari failed to win a single Grand Prix all year.

At times, Hamilton blamed himself, even suggesting in August the team consider a driver change after he was far off Leclerc's qualifying pace. He's said a big part of preparing for 2026 was to come back with a fresh mindset.

Ferrari's fast-starting car helped Hamilton to charge past Antonelli into the lead at the start Sunday, but holding onto that place proved too difficult against a Mercedes pair with what's widely considered to be the best all-round car on the grid. Hamilton said Ferrari would double down on working to out-develop Mercedes for the rest of the year.

“It’s really special to see them back at the front, because this is a phenomenal team. And I know we’ve got our work cut out to beat them, because when they’re on form like this, it’s not easy to beat,” Hamilton said.

Hamilton was Russell's teammate and helped mentor Antonelli before his debut. Also on the podium as Mercedes representative was Hamilton's longtime race engineer Peter “Bono” Bonnington, who now works with Antonelli.

“It’s like sitting here with my whole family, so that’s great,” Hamilton said.

Sports

Antonelli Takes His First Win in China to Extend Mercedes’ Dominant Start to New F1 Era

First-placed Mercedes' Italian driver Kimi Antonelli (2L) celebrates winning alongside Mercedes' British driver George Russell (2R) and Ferrari's British driver Lewis Hamilton (R) after the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix at the Shanghai International Circuit in Shanghai on March 15, 2026. (AFP)
First-placed Mercedes' Italian driver Kimi Antonelli (2L) celebrates winning alongside Mercedes' British driver George Russell (2R) and Ferrari's British driver Lewis Hamilton (R) after the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix at the Shanghai International Circuit in Shanghai on March 15, 2026. (AFP)
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Antonelli Takes His First Win in China to Extend Mercedes’ Dominant Start to New F1 Era

First-placed Mercedes' Italian driver Kimi Antonelli (2L) celebrates winning alongside Mercedes' British driver George Russell (2R) and Ferrari's British driver Lewis Hamilton (R) after the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix at the Shanghai International Circuit in Shanghai on March 15, 2026. (AFP)
First-placed Mercedes' Italian driver Kimi Antonelli (2L) celebrates winning alongside Mercedes' British driver George Russell (2R) and Ferrari's British driver Lewis Hamilton (R) after the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix at the Shanghai International Circuit in Shanghai on March 15, 2026. (AFP)

Kimi Antonelli became Formula 1’s second-youngest race winner with a composed drive to victory for Mercedes in an eventful Chinese Grand Prix on Sunday.

The 19-year-old Italian was the youngest pole position starter and briefly lost the lead to Lewis Hamilton of Ferrari at the start but retook it soon after and was in control after that.

It was another 1-2 finish for Mercedes to start the season as Antonelli’s teammate George Russell came through a battle with both Ferraris to finish second. Lewis Hamilton was third for his long-awaited first Grand Prix podium finish for Ferrari.

The only driver younger than Antonelli to win a Grand Prix was Max Verstappen, who was 18 when he took his first victory in 2016.

Formula 1 champion Lando Norris and his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri were both unable to start the Chinese Grand Prix after hitting technical problems minutes before the race began.

Piastri was due to start fifth and Norris sixth for Sunday's race. Norris was in his car in the pits but didn't leave for the grid, before Piastri was then withdrawn from the grid following a radio message which indicated an electrical issue.

“Unfortunately, we identified separate issues on both cars which prevented them from starting the Chinese GP, with Oscar’s being removed from the grid shortly before the formation lap. We will now work to identify each issue,” the McLaren team said.

It's the second time Piastri has failed to start in 2026 after he crashed before the start of last week's race in Australia.