2026 F1 Chinese GP Sprint Results: George Russell Wins

Formula 1, Sportrik Media - George Russell continued his strong start to the 2026 Formula 1 season by winning the Sprint race at the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai. The Mercedes driver finished ahead of Charles Leclerc of Ferrari by just over six tenths of a second in the 19-lap race at the Shanghai International Circuit.

Russell had already shown strong pace earlier in the weekend by topping the only practice session and securing pole position for the Sprint. His early four-second lead was erased after a safety car was deployed following an incident involving Nico Hulkenberg, but a slow restart from Leclerc allowed Russell to rebuild his advantage and control the race to the finish.

Leclerc secured second place for Ferrari, while team-mate Lewis Hamilton completed the podium after struggling to match Leclerc’s race pace despite starting further up the grid.

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Meanwhile, Kimi Antonelli recovered well after receiving a 10-second penalty earlier in the race. The Mercedes driver served the penalty during the safety car pit stops and eventually finished fifth following a strong recovery drive.

Reigning world champion Max Verstappen endured a difficult sprint for Red Bull Racing. Starting from eighth, the Dutch driver dropped positions early in the race before recovering to ninth, just outside the sprint points positions.

Below are the full results from the 2026 Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix Sprint race:

Pos	Driver	Team	Time / Gap
1	George Russell	Mercedes	19 Laps
2	Charles Leclerc	Ferrari	+0.674
3	Lewis Hamilton	Ferrari	+2.554
4	Lando Norris	McLaren	+3.xxx
5	Kimi Antonelli	Mercedes	+4.xxx
6	Oscar Piastri	McLaren	+5.xxx
7	Sergio Perez	Red Bull Racing	+6.xxx
8	Fernando Alonso	Aston Martin	+7.xxx
9	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	+8.xxx
10	Pierre Gasly	Alpine	+9.xxx

The Sprint result strengthens George Russell’s position in the early championship standings. However, with 25 points still available for the winner of the full-length Chinese Grand Prix, the battle between Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren remains open heading into Sunday’s main race.