The new season of F1 has introduced several changes, and sprint races will once again play an important role in the 2026 calendar. The first sprint event of the season takes place at the Chinese Grand Prix, marking the start of six sprint weekends planned for the year.
Sprint races were introduced to add more competitive action during a race weekend. They create additional excitement for fans and offer drivers another opportunity to earn valuable championship points.
What has changed in the 2026 sprint format?
The overall structure of sprint race weekends remains similar to previous seasons, but there is one notable change for 2026. Because of the arrival of the Cadillac F1 Team on the grid, the number of cars in the championship has increased.
As a result, the number of cars eliminated in the first two sessions of sprint qualifying has increased. Now, the six slowest cars will be knocked out in both the first and second qualifying sessions, instead of five as in earlier seasons.
How does the sprint weekend work?
A sprint race weekend follows a bit of a different schedule compared to a regular race weekend.
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On Friday, teams take part in a single one-hour practice session. This is the only practice opportunity drivers have to prepare their cars for the entire weekend.
After practice, sprint qualifying takes place later on Friday. This session determines the starting grid for the sprint race.
Sprint qualifying is divided into three short sessions, SQ1, SQ2 and SQ3, where each lasts 12, 10 and 8 minutes, respectively.
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At the end of SQ1 and SQ2, the six slowest cars are eliminated. The remaining drivers compete in SQ3 to decide the final starting positions for the sprint race.
The sprint race then takes place on Saturday and covers a distance of about 100 kilometres. It typically lasts around 30 minutes, making it much shorter than the main race.
For the sprint event at the Shanghai International Circuit, the race distance is set at 19 laps.
Drivers compete for championship points during the sprint race.
The top eight finishers receive points in an 8-1 format, which are added to the overall drivers’ championship standings.
Qualification & Main Sprint Race Schedule
After the sprint race concludes on Saturday, the weekend returns to the traditional F1 schedule.
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Qualifying for the main race takes place later on Saturday and determines the starting grid for Sunday’s grand prix. The main race then follows on Sunday as usual.
Full Schedule of F1 Sprint Races in 2026
There will be six sprint races over the weekend during the 2026 season. Some events return from previous years, while others have been added to the sprint calendar for the first time.
The sprint races dates are:
| Grand Prix | Date |
| Chinese Grand Prix | March 14 |
| Miami Grand Prix | May 2 |
| Canadian Grand Prix | May 23 |
| British Grand Prix | July 4 |
| Dutch Grand Prix | August 22 |
| Singapore Grand Prix | October 10 |
China and Miami will host sprint races for the third consecutive year, while Canada, the Netherlands and Singapore join the sprint calendar for the first time.
The British Grand Prix at Silverstone Circuit also returns to the sprint format after previously hosting one in 2021.
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