A humorous but telling moment saw Alpine mechanics sprinting after Franco Colapinto's stricken car during Chinese GP practice, highlighting the team's persistent reliability troubles in a difficult 2024 season.
Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli is wearing a precautionary brace on his left hand in Shanghai, a result of his high-G crash in Melbourne. The young driver, who still managed a P2 finish in Australia, faces the immediate challenge of the physically demanding Chinese GP as he recovers both physically and mentally from the heavy impact.
Mercedes is campaigning for changes to F1's start rules after dangerous, uneven launches in Melbourne, blamed on cars starting with empty batteries. Ferrari strongly opposes any tweak, creating a political stalemate that pits safety concerns against competitive advantages. The FIA needs a supermajority to change the rules, which it currently cannot achieve.
George Russell led a Mercedes 1-2 in the only practice session for the Chinese GP, beating teammate Kimi Antonelli. The chaotic session featured spins and a stoppage, offering limited setup time ahead of the season's first Sprint Qualifying.
Williams driver Alex Albon is under investigation by FIA stewards for reportedly performing a practice start on the grid while another car was stopped, a potential breach of sporting regulations. The incident adds to Williams's early-season struggles with an overweight car and a performance gap to Mercedes.
Mercedes topped the timesheets in a chilly and eventful first practice for the Chinese GP, with George Russell leading a 1-2 over teammate Kimi Antonelli. McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri followed in a close battle for third, while cold conditions caused several spins and disruptions throughout the session.
George Russell led a Mercedes 1-2 in Chinese GP practice, establishing a dominant seven-tenth advantage over McLaren. In a worrying sign for the champions, Red Bull's Max Verstappen finished a distant eighth, over 1.8 seconds off the pace. The session sets the stage for the season's first Sprint Qualifying later today.
George Russell topped the timesheets for Mercedes in Shanghai's only practice session, leading a team 1-2 over Kimi Antonelli. The session was marred by a collision between Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris, with Hamilton noted by the stewards, while Mercedes showed a formidable pace advantage over the rest of the field.
George Russell topped the timesheets for Mercedes in the only practice session for the 2026 Chinese GP, leading a one-two with teammate Kimi Antonelli. The Silver Arrows finished over half a second clear of Lando Norris's McLaren, while Max Verstappen and Red Bull struggled down in eighth, setting up an intriguing qualifying battle.
Alex Albon received a driving reprimand from the FIA for an unsafe practice start procedure in China. The stewards found he breached the rules by starting while another car was stationary but considered the unprecedented complexity of the new 2026 car start sequences in their decision.
Six F1 teams, including Red Bull and Mercedes, were found to have broken the pre-event curfew in Shanghai but faced no penalty as it was within their allotted seasonal exceptions. The breach is tied to persistent freight delays that have marred the start of the 2026 season.
F1 teams navigated a hectic and crucial lone practice session at the Chinese Grand Prix, the first Sprint weekend of 2024. With only one hour to learn the Shanghai circuit after a five-year absence and prepare for Sprint Qualifying, every lap of data was vital for car setup and tire strategy under the new format's intense time constraints.
