Chinese 2026 GP sprint preview
Weekend schedule
All timezonesTimes shown in circuit-local time (GMT+8).
- FP1Fri11:30
- Sprint QualifyingFri15:30
- SprintSat11:00
- QualifyingSat15:00
- RaceSun14:00
A forecast appears here once the weekend is inside the forecast window.
The circuit
Full circuit guide →Shanghai International Circuit · 5.451 km · 16 corners · clockwise
1:32.238
Fastest race lap
Michael Schumacher, 2004
Recent form at this circuit
Last winners
- 2026Andrea Kimi Antonelli · Mercedes
- 2025Oscar Piastri · McLaren
- 2024Max Verstappen · Red Bull
Last pole times
- 2026Andrea Kimi Antonelli · Mercedes · 1:32.064
- 2025Oscar Piastri · McLaren · 1:30.641
- 2024Max Verstappen · Red Bull · 1:33.660
Historic moments
2025 · Three cars thrown out after the flag
Oscar Piastri led a McLaren one-two, and then scrutineering gutted the rest of the order: Charles Leclerc and Pierre Gasly were disqualified for cars a kilogram under the 800 kg minimum, and Lewis Hamilton for a skid block worn past the legal limit. It was the first time both Ferraris had been disqualified from the same Grand Prix.
2007 · Hamilton's title slips away in the gravel
Championship leader Lewis Hamilton, in his rookie season, slid off at the pit entry on a worn set of intermediate tyres and beached his McLaren in the gravel trap, retiring on the spot. Kimi Räikkönen won the race and closed to within seven points, a gap that decided the title in Ferrari's favour a week later.
What makes it different
- Turns 1–3 form a single 270-degree corner that tightens all the way through, so a car is turning for about nine seconds and the entry speed you pick is committed before you can see the exit.
- The back straight is close to 1.2 km - one of the longest full-throttle stretches in F1, which forces a wing level the twisty final sector does not want.
- The circuit was built on reclaimed rice-paddy marshland, which took roughly 40,000 concrete piles sunk into the ground to support the track ahead of its 2004 debut.
This grid’s history here
| Driver | Wins | Podiums | Poles |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lewis Hamilton | 6 wins · 2019, 2017, 2015, 2014, 2011, 2008 | 10 podiums · 2026, 2019, 2017, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2008 | 6 poles · 2017, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2008, 2007 |
| Fernando Alonso | 2 wins · 2013, 2005 | 5 podiums · 2014, 2013, 2007, 2006, 2005 | 2 poles · 2006, 2005 |
| Max Verstappen | 1 win · 2024 | 2 podiums · 2024, 2017 | 1 pole · 2024 |
| Andrea Kimi Antonelli | 1 win · 2026 | 1 podium · 2026 | 1 pole · 2026 |
| Oscar Piastri | 1 win · 2025 | 1 podium · 2025 | 1 pole · 2025 |
| Valtteri Bottas | — | 2 podiums · 2019, 2018 | 1 pole · 2019 |
| George Russell | — | 2 podiums · 2026, 2025 | — |
| Lando Norris | — | 2 podiums · 2025, 2024 | — |
| Sergio Pérez | — | 1 podium · 2024 | — |
Milestone watch
Lewis Hamilton has won here 6 times (2019, 2017, 2015, 2014).
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