Rain emerged at the end of the SQ2 session and continued to pepper the Shanghai circuit during the intermission, necessitating the use of intermediate tyres for the final stage of qualifying to decide pole.
Track conditions were evidently very slippery, as a number of drivers over-extended beyond the circuit's environs and had to recover from the run-off; Charles Leclerc hit the wall after spinning on the exit of Turn 8, but was able to gather up his Ferrari and stopped for a new front wing and warmer, fresher intermediates.
