F1 reveals six sprint race venues for 2026 season

Silverstone and Zandvoort are among the new sprint weekends for the 2026 season as Formula 1 has revealed the six venues hosting a Saturday race.

The British Grand Prix hosted the first-ever sprint race when the original format was introduced in 2021, with the shorter Saturday race returning to Silverstone in 2026 alongside three fellow newcomers.

The Dutch Grand Prix will also play host to a sprint race on its F1 swansong, with the Zandvoort race disappearing after 2026 as organisers decided against renewing their expiring contract.

Montreal’s Canadian Grand Prix is also a new addition to the sprint schedule next year as it moves to a new end-of-May date, while the Singapore Grand Prix will also host its first sprint.

The four venues will be taking over slots held this year by Belgium, Austin’s US GP, Brazil and Qatar, while China and Miami retain their slots.

F1 pointed out that the 2024 sprint weekends saw an average TV viewership increase of 10% compared to non-sprint weekends, prompting talks to further increase their number in future seasons.

As previously reported by Motorsport.com, discussions are ongoing to raise the number to around 10 sprints from 2027 onwards. Talks between commercial rightsholder FOM, governing body the FIA and the 11 teams will also include ideas to further refine the format, with F1 CEO and president Stefano Domenicali floating the idea of at least considering reverse grids.

Start action

Photo by: Erik Junius

“The F1 Sprint has continued to grow in positive impact and popularity since it was introduced in 2021,” said Domenicali. “With four competitive sessions rather than two during a conventional Grand Prix weekend, F1 Sprint events offer more action each day for our fans, broadcast partners, and for the promoters – driving increased attendance and viewership.

“We’re also proud to have welcomed Gatorade as an Official Partner of F1 Sprint, demonstrating the huge interest in the event from an iconic global brand. The 2026 season will usher in a new era of regulations, so having three new Sprint venues will only add to the drama on track.”

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem added: “The Sprint format has become an increasingly exciting part of the FIA Formula One World Championship, delivering high-intensity racing and added entertainment for fans around the world. As we look ahead to a landmark 2026 season featuring a new generation of cars and regulations, I’m pleased to see the Sprint evolving alongside our broader ambitions for the sport.

“The inclusion of new venues alongside returning favourites reflects the continued enthusiasm from promoters, teams and fans alike. We will continue to work closely with FOM, the teams, our officials, and the drivers to ensure the Sprint format enhances the championship.”

The 100km sprint race is the first on-track action on the Saturday of a grand prix weekend, paying points from first to eighth place. Its grid is determined by a separate qualifying session run to a knock-out format that is similar to grand prix qualifying.

In the 2025 season, five of the six sprint venues also hosted sprint weekends in 2024: Miami, Austin, Sao Paulo and Losail. Spa-Francorchamps, which hosted a sprint in 2023, replaced Austria.

The sprint format was introduced in 2021 as a means of shaking up the grid and encouraging the sale of tickets for earlier in the weekend. Under this system, a qualifying session on Friday set the grid for Saturday’s sprint, the result of which determined the grid for Sunday’s grand prix.

Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari

Photo by: Bryn Lennon – Formula 1

In practice, though, the sprint essentially rearranged the field in pace order, arguably detracting from rather than improving the spectacle on Sunday; and the points on offer, awarded to just the top-three finishers, were considered an insufficient incentive.

As such, the format was rejigged for 2023 to become a standalone event in which both qualifying and the race happened on the Saturday. In tandem with this, the number of sprint weekends was doubled to six while points were now on offer to the top-eight finishers.

But this too was deemed unsatisfactory: aside from the Qatar race, where extreme heat and three Safety Car deployments added an element of unpredictability, the sprints were dull and processional.

Another issue with that format was that it placed cars in parc ferme conditions between the sprint and the race, preventing teams from making set-up changes without incurring penalties as grand prix qualifying happened on the Friday.

While the idea had been to introduce jeopardy – putting the impetus on teams to get their set-ups right in the sole practice session on the Friday – instead it led to outcomes such as Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton being disqualified from the United States Grand Prix for excessive plank wear.

After another ground-up rethink in which reversed grids or a reversion to the original format were also on the table, the present format was introduced last season: practice and sprint qualifying on Friday, then the sprint race on Saturday morning followed by a separate qualifying session for the grand prix on Saturday afternoon.

Max Verstappen is the most successful driver of the sprint era, having won 12 of the 20 sprints held to date.

F1 2026 sprint calendar