Formula 1, Sportrik Media - George Russell will start the Sprint race at the 2026 Chinese Grand Prix from pole position for Mercedes after setting the fastest lap in Sprint Qualifying at the Shanghai International Circuit.
The British driver finished nearly three tenths of a second ahead of team-mate Kimi Antonelli, who secured second place but remains under investigation after allegedly impeding McLaren driver Lando Norris during the SQ2 session. Behind them, the Ferrari pair of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc will start the sprint from fourth and sixth respectively.
Despite securing pole for the short race, Russell acknowledged Ferrari could pose a significant threat at the start. During the season-opening Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park, Leclerc surged from fourth on the grid to overtake Russell, Antonelli and Red Bull Racing driver Isack Hadjar to lead into the first corner.
That move sparked an intense early-race duel between Russell and Leclerc in Melbourne, with the lead changing hands multiple times during the opening ten laps. Mercedes has since focused on improving its launch performance in order to prevent a repeat scenario in Shanghai.
“Since Melbourne, everything we've been working on has been about trying to get off the line better and seeing what we can do. I think we've found some improvements,” Russell said.
“Melbourne was obviously slightly dicey on the opening laps than we would have liked, but I guess we will find out in the morning.”
Russell also praised the performance of the Mercedes package during Sprint Qualifying, suggesting the car behaved strongly on the very different layout of the Shanghai circuit compared with Melbourne’s Albert Park.
“The car’s been feeling amazing. We knew after Melbourne we had a really good car, the engine’s performing really well, and today was a real joy to drive.”
“I’m intrigued to know what the lap times are compared to last year because it felt really quick. Very different to Melbourne.”
However, Russell’s pole-winning lap was still around four tenths slower than his own Sprint Qualifying lap at Shanghai last season, and roughly seven tenths slower than Hamilton’s pole time from the previous event. The Sprint race in Shanghai is therefore expected to provide a clearer picture of whether Mercedes can maintain its early-season pace advantage or face renewed pressure from Ferrari heading into the main Grand Prix.
Galeri Foto
Baca Juga
Kimi Antonelli lolos dari sanksi steward setelah insiden dengan Lando Norris pada Sprint Qualifying GP China 2026 di Shanghai.
Lewis Hamilton mempertanyakan keputusan Ferrari melepas sayap belakang “Macarena” sebelum Sprint Qualifying GP China 2026 di Shanghai.
Max Verstappen menyebut sesi Sprint Qualifying GP China 2026 sebagai bencana setelah Red Bull kesulitan grip dan hanya start P8 di Shanghai.
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