The second race in Formula One’s season-opening double-header once again provided wheel-to-wheel racing throughout the field, but who came out on top?

A young Italian seized victory, a world champion returned to the podium for the first time in red and all three 2025 title contenders failed to find the chequered flag. Here are DIVEBOMB’s five takeaways from the Chinese Grand Prix. 

Kimi Antonelli’s 2026 Chinese Grand Prix win reshaped F1 history, joining Max Verstappen, Sebastian Vettel, Charles Leclerc and Fernando Alonso among the sport’s five youngest race winners.

Oliver Bearman avoids a Lap 1 crash with Isack Hadjar, recovers from the chaos, and storms through the field to finish fifth at the Chinese Grand Prix.

Kimi Antonelli secures his first F1 victory at the Chinese Grand Prix, ending Italy’s 20-year wait for a win and delivering a breakthrough moment for Mercedes.

The MCL38s remained silent in Shanghai as Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri faced pre-race mechanical failures, ending their F1 weekend before it began.

Kimi Antonelli became the second youngest F1 Grand Prix winner, converting a historic pole to his maiden win from George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, the seven-time world champion securing a long-awaited first podium with Ferrari in China.

The new era of the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia (PCCA) kicked off this weekend, supporting Formula One's Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai, with dramatic conclusions to both rounds.

Written by Teagan Strachan Credit: F1 Academy Sunday morning marked the beginning of the final F1 Academy race of Round 1 in Shanghai with the grid reverted back to qualifying positions for Race 2. The front row will be occupied by Red Bull Racing backed driver Alisha Palmowski and Scuderia Ferrari Driver Academy’s Alba Larsen as the pilots compete across 13 intense laps and fight for a spot on the podium. How it happened As the lights went out, Palmowski had an unfavourable

After an exciting sprint and historic qualifying session, the stage is now set for the main event. From Kimi Antonelli chasing a maiden F1 victory up against George Russell, to the Ferrari pair ready to bring more thrills on track, here are five things to look out for at the 2026 Chinese Grand Prix.

Kimi Antonelli became F1’s youngest polesitter in China, shattering records and surpassing the likes of Sebastian Vettel, Charles Leclerc, Fernando Alonso and Max Verstappen in the sport’s history book.

Bortoleto’s "good lap" ended in a P16 grid slot after a final corner snap, while teammate Hülkenberg secured P11 for Audi’s Shanghai Grand Prix charge.

Nina Gademan charged to victory from reverse-grid pole as Natalia Granada crossed the line in second on her F1 Academy debut, while Emma Felbermayr bagged third place after an intense race-long battle for the final podium spot.

In the first sprint race of 2026, Russell raced to victory ahead of the Ferrari pair of Leclerc and Hamilton in action packed 19 laps.

George Russell took a dominant sprint pole for the season's first sprint round in China, followed by teammate Kimi Antonelli on the front row and Lando Norris to complete the top three.

Alisha Palmowski set the tone in the opening qualifying of the 2026 F1 Academy season in Shanghai, bagging pole position and two championship points to begin her campaign. The Red Bull-backed Briton would start from pole for the Sunday race, ahead of Ferrari-backed Alba Larsen and Audi-backed Emma Felbermayr.

It’s the first sprint weekend of 2026, which means there was just one singular practice session for the drivers to get to grips with the Shanghai International Circuit. 

Everything you need to know ahead of F1 Academy’s 2026 season opener in Shanghai — championship favourites, top stories, timings and more.

The second stop on F1’s 2026 world tour is the Shanghai International Circuit, which also hosts the first sprint race of the season.

Who came out on top at the second Grand Prix weekend of the season - and who didn't?