With an unexpected gap in the 2026 F1 season, it’s a good moment to reflect on the most impressive teams in the opening stages of the campaign. One is the team everyone is chasing, while the other two highlighted here are, somewhat surprisingly, the top of the midfield. Through three races they have taken big steps forward from 2025, and will be working to maintain their solid forms when racing resumes in three weeks.
Mercedes: back on top again
To say that a team that has won each of the first three Grands Prix, plus the lone sprint race, and locked out all three front rows, is impressive is a bit of a low-hanging fruit. Of course, this isn’t the first time that Mercedes has started off strong. Nor is it their most dominant form, and there have been moments of vulnerability in these opening rounds. Nevertheless, for the Silver Arrows and their supporters it is a refreshing return to winning form after their struggles in the ground effect era. Their closest rivals have been Ferrari, who have been able to hang with Mercedes up front for the first part of these first races. But in the longer run, they have had the consistent pace to take care of business.
The great surprise is two of their three wins going to Kimi Antonelli, who now leads the championship and is returning the expectations that saw him promoted to Mercedes straight from Formula 2 last season. George Russell’s misfortunes have been few and far between, and is really only as far behind in the championship as he is on account of a poorly-timed pit stop at Suzuka right before a safety car period, depriving him of at least a podium if not an outright win.
From the outside looking in, it is a waiting game to see if the rest of the teams on the grid–in particular Ferrari and McLaren–have anything up their sleeves when the series returns to action in Miami next month. Or, for that matter, will Mercedes have found another extra something to keep one step ahead of their followers?
Haas: the fruits of a culture change lead to impressive 2026 F1 campaign
The two biggest jumps of the season so far have been Haas and Alpine, who are fourth and fifth in the constructors’ race, respectively. Haas are off to their best team start since Romain Grosjean scored P6 and P5 in their very first races in 2016. As rough as the team has been over the last several years, it’s easy to forget that they finished as high as 5th in the constructors’ championship in 2018. Their recent form has been part of a larger vibe shift going back to Ayao Komatsu‘s arrival as team principal. Gone are the shady sponsors and hair-trigger temperaments. With support from Toyota, Haas have been blessed with a newfound stability and are making the most of it.
While they have not had the best luck in qualifying, only making it into Q3 twice in four sessions, their race pace has made up for any deficiencies. Like Alpine, the bulk of their points have gone to one driver–in this case Oliver Bearman, who was fifth in points until his frightening crash at Suzuka ended his two-race points streak. Esteban Ocon has not had the same fortune so far, with just one points finish, P10 at Suzuka, and one race derailed by contact with Colapinto in Shanghai. The break in action will be a good reset for a driver who is on a bit of a hot seat heading into 2026.
These are relatively small blemishes, though, on a season that has seen Haas become, for the first time in many seasons, a solid midfield contender.
Alpine’s leap forward, from backmarkers to solid midfield
Meanwhile, Alpine were not coming into the season with any particular fanfare or increased expectations beyond a likely improvement from switching from in-house Renault engines to Mercedes power. Having finished last in the constructors’ championship last season, and with one brand-new team on board for 2026, they would hope to at least be off the floor of the table. But they showed well in testing, and now that the racing has begun the improved pace has been joined by consistency. Alpine join Mercedes, Ferrari, and Racing Bulls among teams that have finished every race so far in 2026. With 16 points, Alpine is off to their best start since 2022.
Pierre Gasly joins the Mercedes and Ferrari drivers as the only competitors to score in every race, and at 15 points through three races is off to the best start in his Formula One career. While the results have not been as plentiful for teammate Franco Colapinto, his 10th place at Shanghai marked his first points since his impressive first races at Williams in 2024. Still, he, of all people, would know just how hot a seat can get after a string of bad results. Team boss Flavio Briatore has shown great patience with the young Argentinian, but for someone as ruthless as Briatore that patience most certainly has a limit.
With four weeks off, Colapinto, Gasly, and Alpine will have ample time to go over their improvements and work to try and take another step to solidify their place in the top half of the grid. Gasly thinks the car has impressed enough in 2026 to have F1 championship potential. No team has won a championship after finishing further back than 9th the season before, and time will tell if they can extract enough speed to make the difference.
