The 2026 Formula 1 season started at Melbourne Park with the Australian Grand Prix on the weekend of March 6-8.
Lando Norris became world champion for the first time in 2025 after finishing third at a dramatic concluding Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, edging out race winner Max Verstappen in the title battle by just two points. Oscar Piastri finished third.
It ended Verstappen's streak of four consecutive world titles and gave McLaren their first since Lewis Hamilton in 2008. McLaren also claimed the constructors' title after a largely dominant 2025, with Mercedes finishing a distant second.
The possibility of this being the start of a dominant period for McLaren — similar to those enjoyed by Red Bull and Mercedes in recent years — was complicated by a series of new regulations affecting engines, chassis, tyres, and fuel.
Kimi Antonelli made light of predictions that the opening weeks of the season would be wide open as he reeled off five consecutive wins, following Mercedes teammate George Russell's triumph in Australia.
Since then, Ferrari duo Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc have each stood on the top step of the podium. Antonelli increased his advantage at the top of the table with victory in the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa, before Norris belatedly claimed the first win of his title defence in Hungary and followed that with victory in the Netherlands.
Antonelli then produced arguably the drive of the year to win in Italy after beginning in 19th place on the grid. He followed this by winning the inaugural Madrid grand prix ahead of Verstappen, but teammate Russell took the win in Azerbaijan. Verstappen triumphed in Sepang to keep up his pursuit of at least a top-three finish in the standings.
Antonelli triumphed in the USA to now put himself within touching distance of becoming the world champion.
MORE: F1 standings 2025, explained: How Max Verstappen came so close to all-time upset
F1 Drivers' World Championship 2026 standings, points
Standings updated after the USA Grand Prix
| Position | Driver | Team | Points |
| 1. | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | 365 |
| 2. | George Russell | Mercedes | 242 |
| 3. | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | 241 |
| 4. | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 236 |
| 5. | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 233 |
| 6. | Lando Norris | McLaren | 211 |
| 7. | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 144 |
| 8. | Isack Hadjar | Red Bull | 105 |
| 9. | Liam Lawson | Red Bull | 77 |
| 10. | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 42 |
| 11. | Arvid Lindblad | Racing Bulls | 38 |
| 12. | Franco Colapinto | Alpine | 27 |
| 13. | Oliver Bearman | Haas | 23 |
| 14. | Nico Hulkenberg | Audi | 13 |
| 15. | Gabriel Bortoleto | Audi | 10 |
| 16. | Esteban Ocon | Haas | 7 |
| 17. | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 7 |
| 18. | Carlos Sainz Jr. | Williams | 7 |
| 19. | Alexander Albon | Williams | 5 |
| 20. | Yuki Tsunoda | Racing Bulls | 1 |
| 21. | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 0 |
| 22. | Valtteri Bottas | Cadillac | 0 |
| 23. | Sergio Perez | Cadillac | 0 |
F1 Constructors' Championship 2026 standings, points
| Position | Team | Points |
| 1. | Mercedes | 607 |
| 2. | Ferrari | 474 |
| 3. | Red Bull | 355 |
| 4. | McLaren | 355 |
| 5. | Racing Bulls | 102 |
| 6. | Alpine | 69 |
| 7. | Haas | 30 |
| 8. | Audi | 23 |
| 9. | Williams | 12 |
| 10. | Aston Martin | 7 |
| 11. | Cadillac | 0 |
F1 2026 schedule, calendar
| Date | Grand Prix | Track |
| Mar. 6-8 | Australia | Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit |
| Mar. 13-15 | China* | Shanghai International Circuit |
| Mar, 27-29 | Japan | Suzuka International Racing Course |
| Canceled | Bahrain | Bahrain International Circuit (Canceled due to Middle East conflict, moved to October in Sepang.) |
| Canceled | Saudi Arabia | Jeddah Corniche Circuit (Canceled due to Middle East conflict.) |
| May 1-3 | Miami* | Miami International Autodrome |
| May 22-24 | Canada* | Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve |
| Jun. 5-7 | Monaco | Circuit de Monaco |
| Jun. 12-14 | Barcelona-Catalunya | Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya |
| Jun. 26-28 | Austria | Red Bull Ring |
| Jul. 3-5 | Britain* | Silverstone Circuit |
| Jul. 17-19 | Belgium | Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps |
| Jul. 24-26 | Hungary | Hungaroring |
| Aug. 21-23 | Netherlands* | Circuit Zandvoort |
| Sep. 4-6 | Italy | Autodromo Nazionale Monza |
| Sep. 11-13 | Spain | Circuito de Madring |
| Sep. 24-26 | Azerbaijan | Baku City Circuit |
| Oct. 9-11 | Bahrain | Sepang Circuit |
| Oct. 23-25 | USA | Circuit of the Americas |
| Oct. 30 - Nov. 1 | Mexico | Autodromo Hermanos Rodríguez |
| Nov. 6-8 | Brazil | Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace |
| Nov. 19-21 | Las Vegas | Las Vegas Strip Circuit |
| Nov. 27-29 | Qatar | Lusail International Circuit |
| Dec. 4-6 | Abu Dhabi | Yas Marina Circuit |
*Sprint format
F1 2026 results, podiums
Australian Grand Prix
1. George Russell (25 points)
2. Kimi Antonelli (18 points)
3. Charles Leclerc (15 points)
Chinese Grand Prix
1. Kimi Antonelli (25 points)
2. George Russell (18 points)
3. Lewis Hamilton (15 points)
Japanese Grand Prix
1. Kimi Antonelli (25 points)
2. Oscar Piastri (18 points)
3. Charles Leclerc (15 points)
Miami Grand Prix
1. Kimi Antonelli (25 points)
2. Lando Norris (18 points)
3. Oscar Piastri (15 points)
Canadian Grand Prix
1. Kimi Antonelli (25 points)
2. Lewis Hamilton (18 points)
3. Max Verstappen (15 points)
Monaco Grand Prix
1. Kimi Antonelli (25 points)
2. Lewis Hamilton (18 points)
3. Isack Hadjar (15 points)
Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix
1. Lewis Hamilton (25 points)
2. George Russell (18 points)
3. Lando Norris (15 points)
Austrian Grand Prix
1. George Russell (25 points)
2. Max Verstappen (18 points)
3. Kimi Antonelli (15 points)
British Grand Prix
1. Charles Leclerc (25 points)
2. George Russell (18 points)
3. Lewis Hamilton (15 points)
Belgian Grand Prix
1. Kimi Antonelli (25 points)
2. Charles Leclerc (18 points)
3. Max Verstappen (15 points)
Hungarian Grand Prix
1. Lando Norris (25 points)
2. Max Verstappen (18 points)
3. Kimi Antonelli (15 points)
Dutch Grand Prix
1. Lando Norris (25 points)
2. Kimi Antonelli (18 points)
3. George Russell (15 points)
Italian Grand Prix
1. Kimi Antonelli (25 points)
2. George Russell (18 points)
3. Max Verstappen (15 points)
Spanish Grand Prix
1. Kimi Antonelli (25 points)
2. Max Verstappen (18 points)
3. Lando Norris (15 points)
Azerbaijan Grand Prix
1. George Russell (25 points)
2. Max Verstappen (18 points)
3. Isack Hadjar (15 points)
Bahrain Grand Prix
1. Max Verstappen (25 points)
2. Kimi Antonelli (18 points)
3. Lewis Hamilton (15 points)
USA Grand Prix
1. Kimi Antonelli (25 points)
2. Charles Leclerc (18 points)
3. Max Verstappen (15 points)
