China - Sprint Qualifying
Last week, Mercedes opened the 2026 season with an impressive 1-2. This put them on top of both the Drivers' and the Constructors' standings. If they want to keep the positions going into each week, they need to show that China suits them just as well as Australia did. This time, everything starts with the sprint qualifying The first qualifying session, only 12 minutes long, began with Isack Hadjar setting the benchmark time. His effort was quickly beaten by those of other drivers. Ferraris temporarily secured the first two positions, but the fight shifted once Mercedes entered the playing field. On the other side of the standings, many drivers were desperately fighting for times that would be good enough to let them make it into SQ1. As is often the case in China, the last corner caused trouble for a few of them, with both Gabriel Bortoleto and Oliver Bearman losing their laps right before crossing the finish line. Still, neither of them ended up in the elimination zone. It w...