Ferrari hunting the Mercedes
Not even time to file away the opening weekend in Australia and it’s already time to look ahead to the second weekend of the 2026 calendar, namely the Chinese Grand Prix, the first one scheduled with a weekend following the Sprint format.
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Mercedes made a strong statement in Australia by placing the W17s on the front row and then achieving a one-two finish in the race with George Russell ahead of Andrea Kimi Antonelli. The Ferraris were by far the second force on track and there is great curiosity to see the SF-26s in action on a track completely different from Albert Park.
The fact that the Shanghai circuit is different, however, also presents some concerns about the behavior of this generation of cars on the very long straight that characterizes the Chinese track, a point where the power units could suffer greatly in terms of electrical energy management.
The event will be broadcast live in full on Sky Sport F1, while on TV8 the Sprint Qualifying on Friday morning, the Sprint on Saturday at dawn, and the Qualifying will be aired live on free-to-air TV. On Saturday at 14:00, the replay of the Sprint will be broadcast, followed by the replay of the Qualifying at 15:30. The race will be broadcast delayed on Sunday at 14:00. On FormulaPassion.it you will find the live text coverage of all sessions. Below are the details of the programming, the circuit characteristics, and the roll of honor of the Chinese Grand Prix.
2026 Chinese GP: TV schedule and session times
Friday, March 13
04:30 Free Practice 1 (Sky Sport F1, live text on FormulaPassion.it)
08:30 Sprint Qualifying (Sky Sport F1 and TV8, live text on FormulaPassion.it)
Saturday, March 14
04:00 Sprint (Sky Sport F1 and TV8, live text on FormulaPassion.it, replay on TV8 at 14:00)
08:00 Qualifying (Sky Sport F1 and TV8, live text on FormulaPassion.it, replay on TV8 at 15:30)
Sunday, March 15
08:00 Race (Sky Sport F1, live text on FormulaPassion.it, delayed on TV8 at 14:00)
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Characteristics of the Shanghai circuit
Track: 5.451 km
Laps: 56 (19 scheduled for the Sprint)
Chinese Grand Prix Roll of Honor
