Mercedes shows strength again in Shanghai, while Ferrari tests aerodynamic novelties and Bortoleto finishes the session in the midfield
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Formula 1 began this Friday the activities of the 2026 Chinese Grand Prix with the holding of the only free practice of the weekend in Shanghai. In a Sprint format, the session gains even more strategic importance, as drivers will have little time to understand the behavior of the cars before the definition of the Sprint race grid, scheduled for a few hours later.
At the end of the session, George Russell confirmed Mercedes’ good form and finished at the top of the timesheets. The Briton showed strong pace again after the victory in the season opener in Australia and set the fastest lap of the practice, beating his teammate Kimi Antonelli.
Antonelli threatened the lead at several moments but ended up closing the session in second position. In the final moments, Lando Norris managed to improve his lap on soft tires and moved up to third position, finishing about half a second behind Russell’s time.
Oscar Piastri also improved his mark at the end of the session but failed to advance in the standings and remained just behind in the front group. Charles Leclerc tried one last fast lap but went off at the last corner of the Shanghai circuit and ended up bringing dirt onto the track, compromising his final attempt.
The start of the practice had already been busy. Right in the first laps, Franco Colapinto had a spin on the track, while Lewis Hamilton also drew attention by spinning in an unusual way, apparently after a rear axle lock-up, a problem that some teams had already observed at the Australian GP.
Following the session, Hamilton and Norris touched at the start of a fast lap, which left debris scattered across the circuit and caused a momentary yellow flag.
Another moment of interruption occurred when Arvid Lindblad experienced mechanical problems and stopped on the track, causing a Virtual Safety Car period and compromising the track time of several drivers who were on a fast lap at that moment.
As the practice progressed, teams began to alternate between race simulations and fast laps. Ferrari drew attention by bringing several aerodynamic updates to Shanghai, including a new rear wing — internally nicknamed “Macarena” — designed to further reduce aerodynamic drag on the long straights of the Chinese circuit.
Additionally, small winglets positioned in front of the halo were also introduced by the Italian team, with the aim of improving airflow around the upper part of the car.
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Another technical theme discussed throughout the session was the behavior of the new hybrid power units. After criticism received in Australia, where several drivers had to reduce pace to recharge batteries on the straights, the expectation was to understand how the system would behave in Shanghai, a circuit with even longer straights.
For much of the practice, times remained stable while teams performed race simulations. The most intense movement happened in the final minutes, when most drivers returned to the track on soft tires to simulate qualifying laps.
Russell was one of the first leaders to use the soft compound and managed to further improve his own mark by recording the best sector times of the circuit. Antonelli also improved his time but finished just over a tenth behind his teammate.
Among the highlights of the midfield, Gabriel Bortoleto managed to improve in the final moments of the session and moved up to 12th position, beating Esteban Ocon and Isack Hadjar in the practice standings.
Audi used part of the session for aerodynamic evaluations, with the Brazilian running at various moments with flow-vis, paint used to study the airflow over the car, which naturally compromised performance on fast laps.
With the conclusion of the only free practice, teams now have little time to analyze the data before the next activity of the weekend. In a few hours, at 4:30 AM Brasília time, the drivers return to the track for the Sprint qualifying, which will define the starting grid for Saturday’s Sprint race at the Shanghai circuit.
Follow all the activities of the Chinese GP live and in real-time at F1Mania.net.
Check out the full result of the F1 Chinese GP:
1) George Russell (Mercedes) 1’32.741 – 28 laps
2) Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 1’32.861 – 29
3) Lando Norris (McLaren/Mercedes) 1’33.296 – 28
4) Oscar Piastri (McLaren/Mercedes) 1’33.472 – 27
5) Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 1’33.599 – 27
6) Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) 1’34.129 – 25
7) Oliver Bearman (Haas/Ferrari) 1’34.426 – 27
8) Max Verstappen (Red Bull/Red Bull Ford) 1’34.541 – 24
9) Nico Hülkenberg (Audi) 1’34.639 – 26
10) Pierre Gasly (Alpine/Mercedes) 1’34.676 – 27
11) Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls/Red Bull Ford) 1’34.773 – 28
12) Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) 1’34.828 – 25
13) Isack Hadjar (Red Bull/Red Bull Ford) 1’34.856 – 25
14) Esteban Ocon (Haas/Ferrari) 1’34.877 – 24
15) Franco Colapinto (Alpine/Mercedes) 1’34.947 – 25
16) Alexander Albon (Williams/Mercedes) 1’35.480 – 30
17) Carlos Sainz (Williams/Mercedes) 1’35.679 – 17
18) Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin/Honda) 1’35.856 – 18
19) Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac/Ferrari) 1’36.057 – 24
20) Lance Stroll (Aston Martin/Honda) 1’37.224 – 20
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