Mercedes dominates sprint qualifying in Shanghai

Mercedes has reinforced its dominance in Formula 1, securing the front row for the sprint race in China with Melbourne winner George Russell and Kimi Antonelli.

March 13, 2026

From: det

Russell secured his first sprint pole position in Friday's qualifying session for Saturday's short race (4:00 a.m. CET) with a lead of 0,289 seconds over Antonelli, followed by Lando Norris (+0,621) in the McLaren and Lewis Hamilton (+0,641) in the Ferrari in third and fourth place respectively.

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen finished no higher than eighth at the Shanghai International Circuit, 1,734 seconds off the pace. Ahead of the Dutchman were Oscar Piastri (+0,704) in the second McLaren, Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc (+1,008), and Pierre Gasly (+1,368) in the Alpine. Russell had also set the fastest time in the only practice session earlier. "The car felt fantastic," the 28-year-old said happily.

Russell dominated. © APA/afp / GREG BAKER

Russell had won the action-packed season opener in Australia ahead of Antonelli. Behind the Mercedes team, the competition is also lagging significantly behind in China. Defending champion Norris, however, could be satisfied with third place on the starting grid. Record world champion Hamilton, six-time GP winner in Shanghai and last year's 100km sprint champion who stood on the top step of the podium for the only time in 2025, showed once again that he feels at home in China.

Several teams experiencing technical problems

Ahead of Sunday's second Grand Prix of the season (8:00 AM CET), several teams again encountered problems with their new cars and were only able to complete parts of their planned program. Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad had to retire his car after just six laps in the morning's practice session due to a mechanical failure. Sergio Perez was unable to participate in the sprint qualifying session in his Cadillac.

Following a major rule overhaul, not only have the cars themselves changed significantly, but also their drive units. The new engines draw roughly 50 percent of their power from the combustion engine and almost 50 percent from the battery, which needs to be recharged.

Keywords Motorsport Formula 1