Chinese Grand Prix 2026

Round 2 of 22 · Shanghai International Circuit · March 13–15, 2026 · Sprint Weekend

Race Start

Sunday, March 15 at 3:00 AM EDT
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Session Times (US Time Zones)

Session Eastern Central Mountain Pacific
Practice 1 Thu, Mar 12, 11:30 PM EDT Thu, Mar 12, 10:30 PM CDT Thu, Mar 12, 9:30 PM MDT Thu, Mar 12, 8:30 PM PDT
Sprint Qualifying Fri, Mar 13, 3:30 AM EDT Fri, Mar 13, 2:30 AM CDT Fri, Mar 13, 1:30 AM MDT Fri, Mar 13, 12:30 AM PDT
Sprint Race Fri, Mar 13, 11:00 PM EDT Fri, Mar 13, 10:00 PM CDT Fri, Mar 13, 9:00 PM MDT Fri, Mar 13, 8:00 PM PDT
Qualifying Sat, Mar 14, 3:00 AM EDT Sat, Mar 14, 2:00 AM CDT Sat, Mar 14, 1:00 AM MDT Sat, Mar 14, 12:00 AM PDT
Race Sun, Mar 15, 3:00 AM EDT Sun, Mar 15, 2:00 AM CDT Sun, Mar 15, 1:00 AM MDT Sun, Mar 15, 12:00 AM PDT

Circuit Guide

Shanghai hosts the first sprint weekend of 2026, which means meaningful track action on all three days and double the points-paying sessions. The Shanghai International Circuit is defined by its snail-shell Turn 1-2-3 complex and a 1.2 km back straight that produces some of the best slipstream battles of the year. With the new 2026 cars still an unknown quantity, a sprint this early is a gift: twice the racing data, twice the chaos potential.

Circuit
Shanghai International Circuit
Length
5.451 km
Laps
56
Corners
16
First GP
2004
Local Start
3:00 PM (Shanghai)

Watching from the US

Like Melbourne, Shanghai runs overnight for US viewers — the Grand Prix starts Saturday evening to overnight depending on your time zone. The sprint race on Friday night US time is a lower-stakes way to stay up late. If you only catch one session live, make it qualifying: Shanghai's long back straight makes for dramatic final-sector swings.