Your guide to F1 Sprint in 2026

F1 Sprint is back for its sixth year in 2026, taking place at six race weekends on this season's calendar. Here's what to expect from the fast-paced format.

F1 Sprint was introduced in 2021 as a way to inject extra variety and excitement into the race weekend, providing more opportunities for wheel-to-wheel action and more sessions carrying competitive significance.

In 2026, Sprint returns, with three of the six selected venues hosting the format for the first time.

Here's everything you need to know about Sprint this year.

What's the structure of Sprint weekends in 2026?

Taking the same format as last year, the Sprint Shootout takes place following a sole Free Practice session on the first day of the race weekend and determines the grid for the Sprint.

Day two of the race weekend starts with the Sprint – a 100km race with no mandatory tyre changes and points awarded on a sliding scale down to eighth place. Qualifying for the Grand Prix follows the Sprint, with the Grand Prix taking place the next day.

Pos.

Points

1st

2nd

3rd

5th

4th

6th

7th

8th

Setup change

The structure of the weekend allows for flexibility in the setup of the car, with any data gathered during the Sprint able to be used to inform setup changes prior to Qualifying and the Grand Prix.

Cars are under parc fermé conditions from the start of the Sprint Shootout until the end of the Sprint, after which setup changes are permitted before Qualifying. Parc fermé conditions are then applied again for the rest of the weekend.

The Shootout

Unlike a standard Qualifying session, tyre compounds are mandated in the Sprint Shootout. The Medium tyre is mandated for SQ1 and SQ2, and only the Soft tyre is permitted in SQ3.

There are 12 minutes to set a time in SQ1, with the top 16 drivers advancing to a 10-minute SQ2. Only the top-10 fastest drivers go through to SQ3, a rapid eight-minute session that determines the top spots on the grid for the Sprint.

Where will the Sprints take place?

2026 features six F1 Sprint weekends, split evenly with two in Asia, two in North America, and two in Europe.

The first takes place in Shanghai, with the second in Miami. Both the Chinese and Miami Grands Prix are hosting Sprint for the third time.

The Canadian Grand Prix in the second half of May hosts the third Sprint of the year, and the first to take place at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, before Silverstone returns to the Sprint calendar for the first time since the format's inaugural event in 2021.

Straight after the summer break, the penultimate Sprint event of 2026 takes place at the Dutch Grand Prix and Zandvoort – another circuit hosting Sprint for the first time – while Singapore completes the hat-trick of Sprint debutants by hosting the final instalment of the season in October.