The first Sprint Qualifying of 2026 is in the books at the F1 Chinese GP as the grid has been set for the shorter race on Saturday morning, view the full results here.
Heading into the weekend, George Russell and Mercedes were clear favourites. After locking out the front row in Melbourne, they converted it into a dominant 1–2 finish at the Australian GP last Sunday. That form continued in Friday’s Sprint Qualifying session, with Russell taking pole position ahead of teammate Kimi Antonelli in P2.
SQ1 and SQ2 had everyone on mediums, with softs coming for SQ3. Russell set the fastest time in SQ1, SQ2 and SQ3, showcasing Mercedes’ dominant pace over the rest of the field.
Both drivers from Aston Martin, Cadillac and Williams were eliminated in SQ1 after struggling for pace compared to the rest of the grid. Sergio Pérez did not take part in Sprint Qualifying due to a fuel system issue that could not be resolved in time for the session.
Mercedes and Ferrari appeared to have the strongest pace during Sprint Qualifying. Meanwhile, Antonelli was investigated after the race for allegedly impeding Lando Norris during SQ2 at Turn 1. It was found that Norris was not on a push lap so there was no further action taken. Pierre Gasly is also being investigated for allegedly impeding Max Verstappen in coming out of the Turn 14 hairpin.
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar were off the pace of Mercedes and Ferrari, with the two drivers finishing up in P8 and P10 respectively in Sprint Qualifying.
SQ1
- Russell – 1:33.030
- Hamilton – 1:33.148
- Leclerc – 1:33.194
- Antonelli – 1:33.455
- Norris – 1:33.783
- Piastri – 1:33.813
- Gasly – 1:33.970
- Hülkenberg – 1:33.997
- Ocon – 1:34.087
- Lawson – 1:34.110
- Verstappen – 1:34.170
- Bearman – 1:34.280
- Bortoleto – 1:34.291
- Hadjar – 1:34.447
- Lindblad – 1:34.495
- Colapinto – 1:34.592
- Sainz – 1:34.761
- Albon – 1:35.305
- Alonso – 1:35.581
- Stroll – 1:36.151
- Bottas – 1:37.378
- Perez – No time
SQ2
- Russell – 1:32.241
- Antonelli – 1:32.291
- Leclerc – 1:32.602
- Piastri – 1:33.038
- Hamilton – 1:33.042
- Norris – 1:33.086
- Gasly – 1:33.405
- Bearman – 1:33.501
- Verstappen – 1:33.564
- Hadjar – 1:33.620
- Hülkenberg – 1:33.635
- Ocon – 1:33.639
- Lawson – 1:33.714
- Bortoleto – 1:33.774
- Lindblad – 1:34.048
- Colapinto – 1:34.327
2026 Chinese GP | Sprint Qualifying 3 results
- Russell – 1:31.520
- Antonelli – 1:31.809
- Norris – 1:32.141
- Hamilton – 1:32.161
- Piastri – 1:32.224
- Leclerc – 1:32.528
- Gasly – 1:32.888
- Verstappen – 1:33.254
- Bearman – 1:33.409
- Hadjar – 1:33.409
