Sprint: Antonelli - Hamilton - Norris
Sunny. Dry. Air +23°C, track +39°C
In the 2026 season, the sprint race took place in Silverstone for only the second time. The first sprint – which was the very first in Formula 1 history – occurred in 2021. At that time, this format was criticized, but it gained acceptance, and the number of sprint events increased each year.
On Friday, Lewis Hamilton led – he topped the protocol of the only practice session and then convincingly won the sprint qualifying, setting the best time in all three sessions.
On the sprint starting grid, Hamilton and Antonelli shared the front row, Verstappen and Leclerc started from the second, and Russell and Norris from the third.
In working with Alex Albon's car at Williams, the conditions of the closed park were violated – and he started from the pit lane.
Pirelli brought the "medium" trio of compounds – C2, C3, and C4 as Hard, Medium, and Soft. Bottas, Alonso, and Stroll started on Soft, while the others were on Medium.
At the start, Hamilton maintained the lead. Norris and Gasly gained three positions, Verstappen lost three, and Hadjar lost four.
Verstappen and Leclerc passed Piastri, but Oscar overtook Charles, regaining his position.
The top ten on lap 3: Hamilton - Antonelli - Norris - Verstappen - Russell - Piastri - Leclerc - Gasly - Lawson - Lindblad.
On lap 3, Russell overtook Piastri, and on lap 4, Leclerc passed Oscar.
On lap 5, Lindblad overtook Gasly in the battle for 9th place.
On lap 7, Hülkenberg passed Bortoleto in the fight for 14th place.
Antonelli pressured Hamilton for a long time – they were driving at a high pace, pulling away from the other drivers. On lap 8, Kimi attacked, but Lewis maintained the lead.
On lap 9, Antonelli passed Hamilton, took the lead in the sprint, and immediately pulled away by a second – the speed advantage was significant.
Perez received a 10-second penalty for colliding with Alonso.
On lap 10, Russell overtook Verstappen, and on lap 11, he passed Leclerc, moving up to fourth place.
The top ten on lap 12: Antonelli - Hamilton - Norris - Russell - Leclerc - Verstappen - Piastri - Lawson - Hadjar - Lindblad.
In the final laps, Hamilton tried to close the gap, but Antonelli controlled and even increased his lead, leaving no chances.
Kimi Antonelli crossed the finish line first, winning the Saturday sprint for the first time in his career.
Lewis Hamilton finished second, and Lando Norris completed the sprint in third.
In a few hours, we will have qualifying for the main race of the weekend.
Sprint results
| Pilot | Team | Time | Speed | Pit |
|-------|------|------|-------|-----|
| 1. K. Antonelli | Mercedes | 26:12.129 | 229.018 | 0 |
| 2. L. Hamilton | Ferrari | +2.745 | 228.619 | 0 |
| 3. L. Norris | McLaren | +9.783 | 227.602 | 0 |
| 4. D. Russell | Mercedes | +10.639 | 227.479 | 0 |
| 5. S. Leclerc | Ferrari | +12.620 | 227.194 | 0 |
| 6. M. Verstappen | Red Bull | +16.550 | 226.632 | 0 |
| 7. O. Piastri | McLaren | +17.551 | 226.490 | 0 |
| 8. L. Lawson | Racing Bulls | +30.233 | 224.697 | 0 |
| 9. A. Hadjar | Red Bull | +30.953 | 224.596 | 0 |
| 10. A. Lindblad | Racing Bulls | +35.110 | 224.015 | 0 |
| 11. P. Gasly | Alpine | +40.273 | 223.298 | 0 |
| 12. F. Colapinto | Alpine | +41.026 | 223.194 | 0 |
| 13. G. Bortoleto | Audi | +42.499 | 222.990 | 0 |
| 14. O. Berman | Haas | +45.784 | 222.537 | 0 |
| 15. N. Hülkenberg* | Audi | +46.680 | 222.414 | 0 |
| 16. E. Ocon | Haas | +49.810 | 221.985 | 0 |
| 17. C. Sainz | Williams | +50.379 | 221.907 | 0 |
| 18. A. Albon | Williams | +50.757 | 221.855 | 0 |
| 19. V. Bottas | Cadillac | +75.117 | 218.575 | 0 |
| 20. F. Alonso | Aston Martin | +91.872 | 216.374 | 0 |
| 21. L. Stroll | Aston Martin | +1 lap | 212.517 | 1 |
| 22. S. Perez** | Cadillac | +1 lap | 211.023 | 1 |
* Nico Hülkenberg was penalized with an addition of 5 seconds for gaining an advantage by leaving the track limits.
** Sergio Perez was penalized with an addition of 10 seconds for an incident with Fernando Alonso.
Best lap: Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) – 1:31.607 (lap 17, 231.506 km/h)
Championship standings: Drivers' standings
| Pilot | Country | Team | Points |
|-------|---------|------|--------|
| = | 1. K. Antonelli | Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team | 179 |
| = | 2. D. Russell | Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team | 136 |
| = | 3. L. Hamilton | Scuderia Ferrari HP | 132 |
| 4. L. Norris | McLaren Mastercard F1 Team | 85 |
| 5. S. Leclerc | Scuderia Ferrari HP | 83 |
| 6. O. Piastri | McLaren Mastercard F1 Team | 82 |
| = | 7. M. Verstappen | Oracle Red Bull Racing | 76 |
| = | 8. A. Hadjar | Oracle Red Bull Racing | 42 |
| = | 9. P. Gasly | BWT Alpine F1 Team | 41 |
| = | 10. L. Lawson | Visa Cash App Racing Bulls F1 Team | 31 |
| = | 11. O. Berman | TGR Haas F1 Team | 18 |
| = | 12. F. Colapinto | BWT Alpine F1 Team | 16 |
| = | 13. A. Lindblad | Visa Cash App Racing Bulls F1 Team | 14 |
| = | 14. C. Sainz | Atlassian Williams Racing | 6 |
| = | 15. A. Albon | Atlassian Williams Racing | 5 |
| = | 16. E. Ocon | TGR Haas F1 Team | 3 |
| = | 17. G. Bortoleto | Audi Revolut F1 Team | 2 |
| = | 18. F. Alonso | Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team | 1 |
Championship standings: Constructors' Cup
| Team | Engine | Points |
|------|--------|--------|
| = | 1. Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team | Mercedes | 315 |
| = | 2. Scuderia Ferrari HP | Ferrari | 215 |
| = | 3. McLaren Mastercard F1 Team | Mercedes | 167 |
| = | 4. Oracle Red Bull Racing | Red Bull Ford | 118 |
| = | 5. BWT Alpine F1 Team | Mercedes | 57 |
| = | 6. Visa Cash App Racing Bulls F1 Team | Red Bull Ford | 45 |
| = | 7. TGR Haas F1 Team | Ferrari | 21 |
| = | 8. Atlassian Williams Racing | Mercedes | 11 |
| = | 9. Audi Revolut F1 Team | Audi | 2 |
| = | 10. Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team | Honda | 1 |
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