Formula 1 heads to Suzuka this weekend for round three of the 2026 season, the Japanese Grand Prix, from March 27 to 29.
Mercedes kicked off their 2026 campaign in a dominant fashion, having secured one-two finishes in both of the opening rounds.
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George Russell took the win in the season opener in Melbourne, while 19-year-old Kimi Antonelli celebrated his maiden victory in China, becoming the second youngest F1 race winner in history just behind Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
So far Ferrari has been the only team to come close to challenging the Silver Arrows, with Charles Leclerc taking third in the opener while Lewis Hamilton finally scored his first podium finish for the Scuderia in Shanghai – and his first overall since his second-place finish for Mercedes back in 2024 in Las Vegas.
Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team drivers #12 Andrea Kimi Antonelli (Italy) and #63 George Russell (United Kingdom), Scuderia Ferrari HP driver #44 Lewis Hamilton (United Kingdom), and Mercedes Race Engineer Peter Bonnington (United Kingdom) stand together on the top step of the podium following the race at the 2026 Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix, round 2 of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship, at Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai, China, on March 15, 2026. (Photo by Wan Mikhail Roslan/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
NurPhoto via Getty Images
As for reigning champion McLaren, it was not quite the start to the season they were hoping for.
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Though defending champion Lando Norris managed a fifth-place finish in Melbourne, he couldn’t make the start the following round in Shanghai due to technical problems with his MCL40 car.
Oscar Piastri’s campaign has gotten off to an even more nightmarish start, having been forced to watch both races from the sidelines after crashing on his out lap to the grid in his home grand prix and failing to start the next due to similar issues to his teammate’s.
Red Bull is also having its own struggles under the new era of regulations, with their star driver Verstappen enduring the worst start to a season since 2018, scoring only eight points in the two opening rounds.
In Melbourne he managed to climb from 20th all the way up to sixth place before retiring the following race in Shanghai with a car issue only 10 laps away from the checkered flag.
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Verstappen has not been shy in voicing his displeasure with the new regulations, calling the new way of racing “a joke.”
“It’s still terrible,” Verstappen said after China. “I don’t know, if someone likes this, then you really don’t know what racing is about.
“It’s not fun at all. It’s playing Mario Kart. This is not racing. Look at the racing. You are boosting past, then you run out of battery the next straight. They boost past you again. For me, it’s just a joke.”
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Heading to Suzuka this weekend, teams have one more chance to turn things around before the F1 circus takes a five-week break, resuming with the Miami Grand Prix in May.
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This comes after the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian races due to the ongoing war in the Middle East, leaving the month of April without a grand prix.
Suzuka Circuit Stats
Circuit Length: 5.807km (3.608 miles)
Race Distance: 307.471km (191.054 miles)
Fastest Lap Time: 1:30.965 (Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes, 2025)
Most Wins (Driver): Michael Schumacher (6)
Most Wins (Constructor): Red Bull (8)
Most Pole Positions (Driver): Michael Schumacher (8)
Most Pole Positions (Constructor): Ferrari (10)
Previous Winner: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
F1 Japanese Grand Prix 2026 Schedule
The third round of the season in Suzuka kicks off with Free Practice 1 (FP1) on Friday, March 27, at 11:30 a.m. local time (JST), followed by Free Practice 2 (FP2) later in the day at 3 p.m.
On Saturday, Mar. 28, drivers will climb into their cars for the final practice run (FP3) at 11:30 a.m. before they fight for grid positions in qualifying at 3 p.m.
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The 53-lap race will get underway at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Mar. 29.
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Japanese Grand Prix 2026: Free Practice 1 Start Times
All below start times are on Friday unless stated otherwise.
United States and Canada (EDT): 10:30 p.m. on Thursday
United States and Canada (CDT): 9:30 p.m. on Thursday
United States and Canada (PDT): 7:30 p.m. on Thursday
United States and Canada (MDT): 8:30 p.m. on Thursday
United Kingdom (GMT): 2:30 a.m.
Central European Time (CET): 3:30 a.m.
Australia (AEDT): 1:30 p.m.
Australia (AWST): 10:30 a.m.
Brasília, Brazil: 11:30 p.m. on Thursday
Mexico City, Mexico: 8:30 p.m. on Thursday
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: 5:30 a.m.
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates: 6:30 a.m.
China Standard Time (CST): 10:30 a.m.
Indian Standard Time (IST): 8 a.m.
Japanese Grand Prix 2026: Free Practice 2 Start Times
All below start times are on Friday unless stated otherwise.
United States and Canada (EDT): 2 a.m.
United States and Canada (CDT): 1 a.m.
United States and Canada (PDT): 11 p.m. on Thursday
United States and Canada (MDT): 12 a.m.
United Kingdom (GMT): 6 a.m.
Central European Time (CET): 7 a.m.
Australia (ACDT): 4:30 p.m.
Brasília, Brazil: 3 a.m.
Mexico City, Mexico: 12 a.m.
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: 9 a.m.
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates: 10 a.m.
China Standard Time (CST): 2 p.m.
Indian Standard Time (IST): 11:30 a.m.
Japanese Grand Prix 2026: Free Practice 3 Start Times
All below start times are on Saturday unless stated otherwise.
United States and Canada (EDT): 10:30 p.m. on Friday
United States and Canada (CDT): 9:30 p.m. on Friday
United States and Canada (PDT): 7:30 p.m. on Friday
United States and Canada (MDT): 8:30 p.m. on Friday
United Kingdom (GMT): 2:30 a.m.
Central European Time (CET): 3:30 a.m.
Australia (AEDT): 1:30 p.m.
Australia (AWST): 10:30 a.m.
Brasília, Brazil: 11:30 p.m. on Friday
Mexico City, Mexico: 8:30 p.m. on Friday
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: 5:30 a.m.
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates: 6:30 a.m.
China Standard Time (CST): 10:30 a.m.
Indian Standard Time (IST): 8 a.m.
Japanese Grand Prix 2026: Qualifying Start Times
All below start times are on Saturday unless stated otherwise.
United States and Canada (EDT): 2 a.m.
United States and Canada (CDT): 1 a.m.
United States and Canada (PDT): 11 p.m. on Friday
United States and Canada (MDT): 12 a.m.
United Kingdom (GMT): 6 a.m.
Central European Time (CET): 7 a.m.
Australia (ACDT): 4:30 p.m.
Brasília, Brazil: 3 a.m.
Mexico City, Mexico: 12 a.m.
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: 9 a.m.
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates: 10 a.m.
China Standard Time (CST): 2 p.m.
Indian Standard Time (IST): 11:30 a.m.
Japanese Grand Prix 2026: Race Start Times
All below start times are on Sunday unless stated otherwise.
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United States and Canada (EDT): 1 a.m.
United States and Canada (CDT): 12 a.m.
United States and Canada (PDT): 10 p.m. on Saturday
United States and Canada (MDT): 11 p.m. on Saturday
United Kingdom (BST): 6 a.m.
Central European Time (CET): 7 a.m.
Australia (ACDT): 3:30 p.m.
Brasília, Brazil: 2 a.m.
Mexico City, Mexico: 11 p.m. on Saturday
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: 8 a.m.
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates: 9 a.m.
China Standard Time (CST): 1 p.m.
Indian Standard Time (IST): 10:30 a.m.
How To Watch 2026 F1 Japanese Grand Prix
Fans in the United States can catch the live action of the grand prix on Apple TV, while viewers in the United Kingdom can tune in to Sky Sports for extensive coverage of the weekend, with highlights available for free on Channel 4.
In select regions, F1 TV Pro subscribers can tune in for live coverage on any device, along with the opportunity to catch up on full session replays and highlights afterwards.
Below is the broadcast information for some key territories:
United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland: Sky Sports
Belgium: RTBF, Play Sports
Australia: Fox Sports, Foxtel, Kayo
Canada: RDS, RDS 2, TSN, Noovo
China: Shanghai TV, Guangdong Television Channel, Tencent
Germany: Sky Deutschland, RTL
Mexico: TUDN, Sky Sports, Izzi
Middle East and Turkey: beIN SPORTS
Highlights from each day of the 2026 Japanese Grand Prix weekend will be available on F1’s YouTube channel.