A New Grid, A New Order: Mercedes Dominates and Verstappen Fails to Escape Q1 in 2026 Opener

This weekend brings the start of the 2026 Formula 1 season. After a shakedown in Barcelona and testing in Bahrain, we have finally arrived at the opening weekend. With it being the Year of the Horse, will it be a promising year for Ferrari, or will McLaren win the Constructors' Championship for a third consecutive year? Time will tell.

Q1 looked a little different with 22 cars on track instead of the usual 20, thanks to Cadillac joining the grid this season. Format changes for this year mean six cars are eliminated by the end of the 18-minute period. As expected, following a lengthy list of setup issues at Aston Martin, Lance Stroll was unable to take part in qualifying and will start P22 in tomorrow's race.  

As qualifying continued, the top four teams looked strong—except for Max Verstappen. Red Bull chose to send him out late in the session; on his first flying lap, Verstappen locked his rear tires and spun out, triggering a red flag. This came as a massive shock, given his high-level consistency over the years. Between electrical gremlins at Williams and a new setup for Cadillac, the six drivers out in Q1 were Alonso, Perez, Bottas, Verstappen, Sainz, and Stroll.

As the track sped up, the competitive hierarchy began to emerge. Hamilton showed strength in Q2, while Leclerc could only reach P7. Mercedes began to show their true pace, moving into Q3 with P1 and P3 under their belt. Is this a sign for the race tomorrow, or can anyone stop them? It was also refreshing to see both VCARB drivers and Hadjar make it into the final round. The next six drivers unable to progress were Colapinto, Albon, Gasly, Ocon, Bearman, and Hulkenberg.

Heading into Q3, the pressure was on Hadjar to perform, while both Mercedes drivers had to prove their car is the one to watch this season. As the session progressed, the Ferrari drivers showed signs of struggle; Hamilton dealt with battery deployment issues, and Leclerc couldn't improve on his Q2 performance. Right at the start of the session, Gabriel Bortoleto suffered a technical issue, unfortunately resigning him to a P10 start.

Midway through, Mercedes sent Antonelli out with fan coolants still attached to his car. These fell off during his warm-up lap, causing a red flag. Lando Norris drove over one of the fans, but luckily his McLaren escaped without damage. Once the session resumed, things heated up. While Mercedes and the remaining Red Bull driver secured positive results, McLaren had a disappointing showing in P5 and P6. Will we see a Mercedes 1-2, or perhaps Hadjar's second-ever podium? Or will McLaren and Ferrari have something to say about it?

The full qualifying results are:

P1 Russell, P2 Antonelli, P3 Hadjar, P4 Leclerc, P5 Piastri, P6 Norris, P7 Hamilton, P8 Lawson, P9 Lindblad, P10 Bortoleto, P11 Hulkenberg, P12 Bearman, P13 Ocon, P14 Gasly, P15 Albon, P16 Colapinto, P17 Alonso, P18 Perez, P19 Bottas, P20 Verstappen, P21 Sainz, P22 Stroll.