Chinese GP FP1: Mercedes lead the way, Ferrari & McLaren chase, Red Bull way off

Friday, 13 March 2026 at 05:31

Mercedes' strong form continued at the start of the 2026 Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix as George Russell topped the first and only practice session as Kimi Antonelli was second fastest.

George Russell ended the session fastest with a lap time of 1:32.741 which was 0.120s clear of teammate Kimi Antonelli who was second fastest.

But then, over half a second behind, came Lando Norris, the reigning F1 Champion third fastest in the McLaren with teammate Oscar Piastri behind him in fourth.

While Ferrari were Mercedes' closest competitors in Melbourne, they dropped behind McLaren as Charles Leclerc was fifth fastest, 0.858s off the pace with Lewis Hamilton over one second off the pace in the sister car in sixth.

Ferrari were running their trick rear wing in FP1 and we will see whether they use it in Sprint Qualifying later.

Ollie Bearman showed good pace and ended the session in seventh and ahead of four-time F1 Champion Max Verstappen who was down in eighth.

Nico Hulkenberg was ninth with Pierre Gasly tenth.

Buildup towards FP1

Just a week after the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, F1 is back racing in Shanghai this weekend for the Chinese Grand Prix which also happens to be the first Sprint weekend of the season.

Mercedes arrive as favorites following their dominant weekend in Melbourne which Ferrari remain their closet rivals as Red Bull and McLaren still have work to do.

Ferrari will be using their trick rotating rear wing this weekend, at least in practice.

The second race of the season comes amid criticism to the new formula and the artificial racing and overtaking it has created while the sport's management are still trying to spin it as a success.

Race starts will be something to continue to look at while we also need to see how many laps Aston Martin, with their Honda power unit, can manage.

Being a Sprint weekend, the teams and drivers have just one session to get their cars setup properly which will be a challenge this year in particular as the teams need to learn more about their new power units, their deployment as well the new narrower Pirelli tyres.

Speaking of tyres, Pirelli has brought the C2 (Hard), C3 (Medium), and C4 (Soft) compounds this weekend.

FP1 session highlights

The session started under clear dry conditions with low temperatures as the track registered only 16 degrees Celsius while the air temperature was 12.

The drivers did not waste any time and immediately lined up in the pitlane as the needed to make the most out of the only hour of practice they have this weekend.

Soon Franco Colapinto spun his Alpine going into Turn 9 as his rear axle locked up. He didn't hit anything and was soon back on his way.

Franco Colapinto goes for a spin at Turn 9! 😵‍💫#F1 #ChineseGP pic.twitter.com/t8Ih6Iln1F
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 13, 2026

Norris and Hamilton had a mini race and it appears there was contact between them. Replay also showed Hamilton suffer from a spin at Turn 6. He radioed: "Brakes locked up."

Well... this was a close moment between Lando and Lewis, and it's only the start of FP1! 😳#F1 #ChineseGP pic.twitter.com/Wuuo7BjFq8
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 13, 2026

With ten minutes gone, the Virtual Safety Car (VSC) was out to clear debris from the middle of the track, probably from Hamilton's Ferrari. That was sorted out fairly quickly.

There were was another lockup at Turn 6 for Gabriel Bortoleto who ended up in the run-off area.

The the Yellow Flag came out as Arvid Lindblad parked his VCARB on the side of the track at Turn 14. He was soon out of the car. Session over for the rookie.

🟡 VSC DEPLOYED 🟡

Arvid Lindblad pulls off to the side of the track at Turn 14! 😢#F1 #ChineseGP pic.twitter.com/Sff3h9iHlM
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 13, 2026

Replay showed smoke in the cockpit of the car. And the Yellow Flag soon became a VSC.

Norris then became another driver to suffer from a snap, went into full opposite lock and managed to keep it on track. That was at Turn 1.

35 minutes into the session, and Carlos Sainz in the Williams did not even venture out on track. The Spaniard made his way out on track with almost 20 minutes remaining.

Piastri also had a snap in Turn 1, and his engineer told him that the other McLaren has been suffering from the same issue "regularly". Bortoleto soon suffered a similar snap at the same place.

Notably, Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll were taking part in the session in the troublesome Aston Martins.

Colapinto soon stopped in the pitlane and his Alpine mechanics scramble to retrieve the car. However, the Argentine manages to get his car going again.

Oh no! Franco Colapinto stops in the pit lane 🤚

But he gets the car going, and his Alpine mechanics turn back around! 🥲#F1 #ChineseGP pic.twitter.com/evF0qDhb91
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 13, 2026

Towards the final ten minutes of the session, the drivers started sampling the Soft tyres with an eye on Sprint qualifying later.

Leclerc had a moment in the final corner as his SF-26 snapped and he ended up brushing the gravel.

A snap of oversteer for Charles Leclerc 👉💨

The Ferrari driver kicks up the gravel at the final corner!#F1 #ChineseGP pic.twitter.com/kS7c7Rd1dO
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 13, 2026

Bearman then suffered from a spin with Stroll behind him in that corner. The Haas ended up facing the wrong direction while the Aston managed to avoid contact.

The session was concluded with practice starts.