The second race of Components 1’s 2026 period in Shanghai provided extra clues, extra leisure and extra heartbreak, that includes a first-time winner and a black eye for the reigning world champions.
1. Toto Wolff’s Antonelli wager pays off massive – Filip Cleeren
Toto Wolff has not wasted a chance to hit again at early critics of his assured transfer to advertise 18-year-old Kimi Antonelli to a race seat final season, one yr forward of schedule. And the Austrian has been completely vindicated. The younger Italian realized lots of classes the arduous approach in 2025, however did so whereas Mercedes wasn’t preventing for championships and is cashing in that data and expertise when it’s.
Issues may have been totally different with out Russell’s Q3 downside, however Antonelli did not put a wheel unsuitable to seize pole, reclaim the lead from the fast-starting Ferraris after which break clear into clear air when he may. A lock-up within the hairpin within the closing levels apart, one of the mature teenage drives we’ve got seen since Max Verstappen’s early years has been rewarded with a maiden grand prix win.
Kimi Antonelli turned F1’s youngest-ever polesitter on his approach to a maiden grand prix win.
Photograph by: James Sutton / Components 1 / Components Motorsport Ltd by way of Getty Photos
2. Disastrous Sunday for McLaren – Oleg Karpov
Enjoyable truth: Oscar Piastri has accomplished zero racing laps within the two grands prix of the season to date. He did handle to efficiently navigate his approach to the grid this time, however then the workforce rolled his automotive again from it to the storage simply minutes earlier than the formation lap was on account of begin. His team-mate, Lando Norris, had already been caught there for roughly an hour, after McLaren recognized {an electrical} downside along with his automotive.
Neither problem was resolved in time for the race begin, so Norris and Piastri needed to turn into their workforce jackets and go communicate to the media. “It has been a very long time since I watched two frands prix aces in a row on TV,” stated the Australian.
It appears that evidently not solely does McLaren not but absolutely perceive tips on how to exploit the Mercedes engine, however maybe there’s something else happening too. In any case, after two weekends of the season, it is already trying like it may be troublesome for the Woking squad to defend their titles.
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3. Alpine’s 2025 ache was value it – Federico Faturos
Talking of cashing in bets, Alpine started the season with appreciable expectations after successfully devoting all of 2025 to its bid to capitalise on the most important regulation modifications. And after an off-the-pace begin in Australia, this weekend confirmed that the workforce is transferring in the best route.
Pierre Gasly was on the tempo from the outset and certified seventh in each qualifying periods in China. He was unable to carry onto a factors place in Saturday’s race, however on Sunday he delivered a tidy drive to complete sixth and safe Alpine’s second factors end within the opening two grands prix of the season.
Franco Colapinto endured a troublesome begin to the weekend in Shanghai, however bounced again on Saturday with a stable qualifying efficiency that left him simply 5 thousandths in need of Q3, earlier than rising as one of many standout performers in Sunday’s race.
A combative Colapinto maintained a aggressive tempo regardless of operating on older tyres than his direct rivals and held onto a spot inside the highest 5 for a number of laps, surviving a lunge from Esteban Ocon to lastly seize his first level for Alpine, and his first factors end since Austin 2024.
Max Verstappen, Pink Bull Racing
Photograph by: Lintao Zhang / LAT Photos by way of Getty Photos
4. Pink Bull hasn’t mounted it begins, however has even greater points
Max Verstappen’s worst fears got here true when Pink Bull wasn’t in a position to repair its begin points that dropped him like a brick within the dash race. Sunday’s grand prix begin was a carbon copy. As placing as that problem is, the larger downside is Pink Bull’s automotive is proving very arduous to set-up accurately and subsequently additionally powerful to drive, with Verstappen lamenting a horrible automotive stability all weekend. Isack Hadjar’s weird spin within the race was additionally revealing.
McLaren’s disastrous double DNS papered over the truth that Pink Bull was emphatically F1’s fourth-fastest workforce in Shanghai and it’s dealing with a steep growth curve on all fronts to get on par with its front-running friends. China definitely will not have helped Verstappen take pleasure in these F1 2026 rules any extra.
5. ‘No’ progress, ‘no’ tempo – no hope for Aston Martin? – Oleg Karpov
Lance Stroll’s post-qualifying interview was fairly telling — although he did not say a lot, the brevity of his responses to questions on Aston Martin’s progress since Melbourne’s opening spherical stated greater than a thousand phrases. The Canadian met three questions in a row with “no” and a sarcastic smile. One week isn’t sufficient time to resolve all the problems that his father’s workforce is dealing with this yr, and it is unclear whether or not a few months can be both. It is in all probability greatest to not ask Lance once more…
On a optimistic be aware, the workforce managed to finish the entire dash race distance with each vehicles, however that is about the one factor they’ll brag about. Honda’s energy unit remains to be not ok and, till the Japanese engineers repair it, we can’t understand how good Adrian Newey’s chassis is. It has been a tricky begin for Aston in 2026, and it isn’t going to get any simpler any time quickly.
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