F1 sprint races 2026: Format, points & races this year

BBC Published Mar 11, 2026 Reviewed Jul 3, 2026 ✓ Reviewed by citations.press editors

The fourth of six sprint races in 2026 takes place at the British Grand Prix from 3-5 July.

6 · sprint races4 · sprint race number

The format eliminates six slowest cars instead of five from the first two qualifying sessions due to Cadillac's arrival.

6 · cars eliminated5 · cars previously eliminated2 · qualifying sessions

The sprint is 100km long and lasts about 30 minutes.

100 km · sprint distance30 minutes · sprint duration

The sprint at Silverstone is 17 laps long and starts at 12:00 BST.

17 laps · sprint laps

The grand prix starts at 15:00 on Sunday.

Sprint qualifying has three sessions, with six cars knocked out from the first two.

3 · qualifying sessions6 · cars eliminated2 · qualifying sessions

SQ1 lasts 12 minutes, SQ2 10 minutes, and SQ3 8 minutes.

12 minutes · SQ1 duration10 minutes · SQ2 duration8 minutes · SQ3 duration

Only the top eight finishers score points, with 8 points for first place down to 1 point for eighth.

8 finishers · top finishers8 points · first place points1 points · eighth place points

The British Grand Prix is returning to sprint format for the first time since 2021.

2021 year · first time since

The final two sprint events are at the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort and the Singapore Grand Prix at Marina Bay.

2 events · final sprint events

Mercedes team-mates Kimi Antonelli and George Russell battled for the lead during the third sprint event in Canada in May

The fourth of six sprint races in 2026 takes place at the British Grand Prix, from 3-5 July.

The format is largely the same as last year except now the six slowest cars instead of five will be eliminated from the first two qualifying sessions because of Cadillac's arrival on the grid.

Sprint qualifying takes place on Friday, after the only practice session of the weekend.

The 100km sprint, which lasts about 30 minutes, is the first track action on Saturday.

At Silverstone, the sprint is 17 laps long and starts at 12:00 BST.

Qualifying for the main race is in its usual spot as the second session on Saturday.

The grand prix then takes place as normal on Sunday and starts at 15:00.

Sprint qualifying has three sessions, where now the six slowest cars are knocked out from the first two - like normal qualifying.

These sessions, known as SQ1, SQ2 and SQ3, last 12, 10 and eight minutes respectively.

This will make up the grid for the sprint race.

Only the top eight finishers score points, with eight points awarded for first place down to one point for eighth, which will get added to the overall drivers' championship standings.

At the third sprint at the Canadian Grand Prix last month, polesitter George Russell beat world champion Lando Norris and Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli to victory in Montreal.

British rookie Arvid Lindblad picked up the final point in eighth for Racing Bulls.

The British Grand Prix is returning to the sprint format for the first time since holding the inaugural event in 2021.

Following Silverstone, the final two sprint events take place at the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort and the Singapore Grand Prix at Marina Bay.

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