Mercedes dominated the Sprint Qualifying at the Chinese Grand Prix, with George Russell taking pole position followed closely by teammate Kevin Antonelli. Lando Norris claimed third, while Ferrari continued to struggle and chase from a distance. Here’s the full summary and the official results from the session.
Mercedes continues to set the pace
Mercedes maintained their strong form in China, reaffirming their dominance in the first Sprint Qualifying of the 2026 season. With only a single free practice session available, teams had limited time to adapt to their new cars. Ferrari suffered the most, unable to complete sufficient on-track work, leaving them significantly behind the Mercedes duo.
During FP1, Ferrari also tested the new “Macarena” rear wing. However, limited running time prevented the team from performing proper comparative analysis against the previous specification. The new wing disrupted the SF-26’s balance, prompting Ferrari to postpone its official debut for the remainder of the weekend.
Sprint Qualifying summary: Q1
Green flag: all drivers took to the track on medium tyres for their first flying lap. Russell immediately set the pace, with Ferrari following in second and third positions, indicating good initial setup work. Red Bull struggled with car balance, while Aston Martin and Cadillac fell off the pace, exiting in Q1 alongside the two Williams cars, which are off to a disappointing start this season.
Q1 confirmed the competitive order already hinted at during free practice and the previous Grand Prix, with no major surprises.
Q2
Q2 began with drivers back on track on medium tyres. Ferrari made a noticeable step forward, significantly improving their Q1 time, yet the two Mercedes drivers still took the top two spots. While Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren appeared safe, Red Bull faced pressure: Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar narrowly advanced, qualifying ninth and tenth respectively. Exiting Q2 were the two Audi cars, the two VCARB entries, Esteban Ocon in the Haas, and Franco Colapinto in the Alpine. The battle for pole remained almost exclusively a Mercedes affair.
Q3
Q3 saw teams switch to the softest tyre compound. The first to set the pace were predictably the Mercedes drivers, with Russell once again edging out Antonelli. Lando Norris surprised by claiming third, followed by Lewis Hamilton, Oscar Piastri, and Charles Leclerc. Ferrari’s Leclerc could not set a competitive lap, while the two McLaren cars managed just a single attempt each. Red Bull remained off the pace, finishing eighth and tenth.
In the end, Mercedes lived up to expectations and remained untouchable in China. McLaren impressed by extracting a strong lap, while Ferrari’s struggles from the lone practice session were confirmed in the Sprint Qualifying.
The results of the first Sprint Qualifying in Shanghai underscore a clear developmental gap that the rest of the grid must close if they hope to challenge the Mercedes W17 in 2026. While the Silver Arrows appear to have perfected the balance between the internal combustion engine and the new electrical deployment maps, Ferrari and Red Bull are clearly still grappling with the trade-off between downforce and drag. Ferrari’s decision to shelve the “Macarena” wing may have been the safe choice for a Sprint weekend, but it has left them vulnerable to a resurgent McLaren. The Maranello team now looks ahead to the Sprint race tomorrow and the focus will be on whether the Ferrari SF-26 cars can use their reported chassis strength to manage tyre degradation better than the McLarens. For now, however, George Russell sits in the driver’s seat of the 2026 championship race.
Leave a Reply