The F1 Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai brought plenty of ups and downs across the grid, with records and streaks broken left and right.

While some drivers had the race of their careers, others found themselves floundering in the backfield or not even making it onto the track in what may be one of the most chaotic races of the season. The 2026 regulations have truly been changing the game much more than many people may have expected.

A Podium for the History Books

The biggest story of the weekend has to be for the young Kimi Antonelli. At just 19 years old, Kimi became the second-youngest driver in Formula 1 history to rise to the top step of the podium, only behind Max Verstappen.

Even though the Italian driver began the race on pole position, the race certainly looked to be in the hands of his teammate, George Russell, for much of the time. However, a poor safety-car restart for George cleared the way for Kimi to take home his first win in the pinnacle of motorsport.

With Mercedes showing their dominance over the first weekend of the season, it was to be expected that Kimi would get his first Formula 1 win at some point this season.

However, George Russell has had pace in the car that’s been making it tough for Kimi to get the upper hand. However, even with the expected one-two finish for the Silver Arrows, it was the third step on the podium that had many of the spectators cheering at the end.

Lewis Hamilton finally managed to break his streak of not making it onto a Formula 1 podium at 19 races (outside of the Sprint format). After an electric battle with his teammate, Charles Leclerc, Lewis was able to seal the deal towards the end of the race and paved his way back to the top of the grid.

After last season’s disappointing stats, getting to stand on any step of the podium wearing Ferrari red clearly felt exceptional for the seven-time world champion.

A Shakeup in the Midfield

While the front of the pack has been dominated by Mercedes and Ferrari so far this season, the McLaren drivers have been slowly working their way closer to the pace. Unfortunately for them, both drivers were unable to start the race because of two separate electrical issues with the MCL 40, keeping them from even reaching the starting grid.

The Papaya drivers weren’t the only ones unable to start the race; Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto also had a technical issue that kept him from making it out of the garage.

Similarly, the Williams of Alex Albon was also unable to make it to the start of the race, although his teammate, Carlos Sainz, was able to fight from 17th to 9th, scoring Williams’ first points of what’s looking to be a very challenging season.

Continuing the trend of uncharacteristic disappointments, four-time world champion Max Verstappen has been having a rough go of it this season, a pattern that carried over to the Shanghai International Circuit. Due to a drastic lack of power at the start of the race, he quickly dropped from eighth to 13th and, even after fighting to recover, had to retire the RB22 due to “an ERS cooling issue.”

Looking Forward to the Rest of the Season

While the season looks bright for Mercedes, news prior to the race certainly put a damper on the excitement. The Chinese Grand Prix came shortly after the announcement that the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix will not be held in April during the 2026 season due to ongoing fighting in the Middle East.

The decision was made in the interest of keeping drivers, staffers and spectators safe, but unfortunately will trim the length of the season to 22 races. While there were rumors of replacing these races with ones in other locations, there will not be enough time to set up the tracks and infrastructure before their scheduled times.

On track, however, the picture is beginning to look clearer as to where teams will wind up in the championship. Mercedes and Ferrari appear to be the teams to beat, with McLaren not terribly far behind.

Aston Martin has still not made much headway with the AMR26, dealing with major vibrations that are making the car essentially undrivable over a full race distance. Williams has also been struggling to reduce the car’s weight, although Carlos Sainz’s ability to score points in Shanghai could be an indicator of progress to be made throughout the season.

Red Bull looks to have decent pace when the car is in good working condition, but the race starts have been causing severe issues for Max Verstappen. Isack Hadjar has been making a solid showing in his first races as a Red Bull driver, though minor mistakes have at times left him struggling to maintain his position.

Cadillac’s first season in Formula 1 has been lacking a significant showing, but for a team so new to the grid, they’ve been doing well to maintain pace with some of the teams in the backfield.

Valtteri Bottas even finished ahead of Haas’ Esteban Ocon, showing that the car is capable of competing. The midfield looks to be an interesting fight this season, with Haas, Alpine, VCARB and Audi trading places and making everyone work for even a couple of points.

2026 Chinese Grand Prix Results

The Chinese Grand Prix made for an exciting watch, with fans looking forward to the Japanese Grand Prix on March 26-28. Here are the final results of the 2026 Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai.