After the 19-lap sprint race on Saturday, the drivers were back in action on Sunday afternoon in Shanghai for the FORMULA 1 HEINEKEN CHINESE GRAND PRIX 2026. A lot of action happened on the track during the race, but there was also a lot of action in the pit lane before the race.
Only 18 cars lined up on the grid after the formation lap. Neither McLaren was present on the grid, leaving an empty third row on the grid. Lando Norris had been in the garage with an electronics issue. Oscar Piastri had performed a reconnaissance lap to the grid, but was wheeled back to the garage before the start with a different issue. Gabriel Bortoleto was also stuck in the Audi garage with a suspected hydraulic issue, and Alex Albon was also trapped in the garage, with the team having replaced the car’s suspension earlier in the day. None of the four cars started the race.
Kimi Antonelli lined up in the first grid slot, being the youngest driver in Formula One to do so. He had a solid start, which was surely a welcome change over the season’s previous two races. He immediately moved to the inside to cover his teammate George Russell. But neither Mercedes was a match for the Ferraris, which had a spectacular start from the second row.
Both Ferrari drivers, led by Lewis Hamilton, got around the Mercedes cars. Antonelli fought back against Charles Leclerc as the corner tightened into turn two, managing to take back P2. Both Mercedes drivers managed to take back the position in the opening laps, returning to a Mercedes 1-2 by lap four.
There was some drama in the opening lap, as Sergio Perez spun in turn three after colliding with his Cadillac teammate. Both Red Bull cars had issues, having started the race with the aggressive soft tyres. Isack Hadjar was battling with Oliver Bearman, but had a high-speed spin in turn 12, nearly collecting the Haas. He had to pit to replace his flat-spotted tyres. Max Verstappen struggled to get his car started again from the grid, having failed to get a clean start yet this season, and dropped down the order. He struggled to make up any ground in the opening laps.
The race was neutralized on lap ten, as Lance Stroll stopped his Aston Martin on the outside of the first corner with some kind of mechanical issue. The safety car triggered pit stops for the drivers who started the race on the medium tyres, while many of the hard tyre starters stayed out. Antonelli maintained his race lead, but Franco Colapinto and Esteban Ocon separated him from Russell, while Arvid Lindblad split the two Ferraris.
The race restarted on lap 15. While Antonelli was able to build a decent gap in the lead, Russell was immediately under pressure from Hamilton behind, seemingly struggling for grip on the new hard tyres. Russell went deep into turn six, allowing Hamilton to claim P4 on the track, which was effectively P2. It became a legitimate P2 as he overtook Ocon and Colapinto in the lap that followed, while Leclerc overtook Russell in the first corner.
As Colapinto and Ocon dropped down to P5, they created a five-car battle for the position with Oliver Bearman, Pierre Gasly, and Max Verstappen, who had lost out slightly by pitting for tyres slightly before the safety car was deployed. Bearman managed to win out to claim P5 in the multi-lap battle while Verstappen climbed up to P6, although the Dutchman would retire on lap 46 with a mechanical issue. Ocon and Colapinto’s battle would come to a head on lap 33 as they collided at the first corner. Colapinto had just rejoined after pitting and ran wide in the first corner on the cold tyres. Ocon attempted to capitalize with a cutback on the inside of turn two, but there was no space, and the duo spun. Ocon took responsibility for the collision and was handed a ten-second penalty by the stewards.
As the laps ticked down, Leclerc appeared to be faster than his teammate in the other Ferrari. Leclerc overtook Hamilton in the hairpin at the end of lap 24. Hamilton tried to fight back around the outside of the first corner, but Leclerc refused to give him any space as the two went wheel to wheel. Russell attempted to overtake Hamilton on the straight that followed, but couldn’t make a move.
Hamilton overtook Leclerc on the inside of the turn 14 hairpin the following lap, but Leclerc managed to retake the position on the outside of the first corner. Hamilton tried to hang on into the third corner but couldn’t. A second overtaking attempt by the Brit in turn seven was unsuccessful, but he got by in turn nine only to be overtaken again by Leclerc in the following corner. Russell broke up the battle by getting by Hamilton down the back straight, and he overtook Leclerc a couple of laps later in the hairpin. But while the two Ferraris had been battling, Antonelli had built a comfortable eight-second lead out front.
The battle between the two Ferrari teammates picked up again on lap 35 as Leclerc suffered a huge unprompted lockup in the turn 14 hairpin, allowing Hamilton to sneak by. Leclerc tried to fight back on the outside of the first corner, but couldn’t retake the position. He would briefly return to P3 with an overtake at turn 14, a few laps later, but Hamilton overtook again on the inside of the first corner. He would maintain this position until the end, earning his first grand prix podium in Ferrari red.
Antonelli had a brief scare in the closing laps of the race, suffering a lockup in the turn 14 hairpin and running wide off the circuit. But he had built up such a gap to his teammate that he was never really under pressure. He took the chequered flag at the end of 56 laps, becoming the second youngest Formula One grand prix winner. Russell finished in P2, giving Mercedes their third consecutive 1-2 finish this season.
Everyone will have a much-needed break after this action-packed start to the 2026 season. Next on the calendar is the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka, scheduled for the weekend of March 29. As it turns out, that will be the final race until May, as April’s races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are cancelled due to conflict in the Middle East.
| Pos. | Driver | Laps | Time | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 56 | 1:33:15.607 | 25 |  | |
| 2 | 56 | +5.515 | 18 | ||
| 3 | 56 | +25.267 | 15 | ||
| 4 | 56 | +28.894 | 12 | ||
| 5 | 56 | +57.268 | 10 | ||
| 6 | 56 | +59.647 | 8 | ||
| 7 | 56 | +80.588 | 6 | ||
| 8 | 56 | +87.247 | 4 | ||
| 9 | 55 | +1 Lap | 2 | ||
| 10 | 55 | +1 Lap | 1 | ||
| 11 | 55 | +1 Lap | |||
| 12 | 55 | +1 Lap | |||
| 13 | 55 | +1 Lap | |||
| 14 | 55 | +1 Lap | |||
| 15 | 55 | +1 Lap | |||
| DNF | 45 | ||||
| DNF | 32 | ||||
| DNF | 9 |
| 1 | G. Russell | 51 |  | |
| 2 | K. Antonelli | 47 | -4 | |
| 3 | C. Leclerc | 34 | -17 | |
| 4 | L. Hamilton | 33 | -18 | |
| 5 | O. Bearman | 17 | -34 |  |
| 1 | Mercedes | 98 | | |
| 2 | Ferrari | 67 | -31 | |
| 3 | McLaren | 18 | -80 | |
| 4 | Haas | 17 | -81 | |
| 5 | Red Bull | 12 | -86 |  |
