F1’s new car will make its race debut at Sunday’s Australian Grand Prix, drawing even more attention than usual for the start itself and the crucial early stages of the 58-lap race, which starts at 4am.
The 2026 Challenger is built on a completely revised chassis and aerodynamic rules, and also features an improved hybrid engine that places different demands on drivers, including their approach to the start of a race.
Drivers now have to rev the engine higher and longer before accelerating during “lights out.” The new requirements, which Ferrari achieved noticeably in practice, were initiated during the Bahrain tests.
To accommodate the new high-revving requirements, the FIA has introduced a new five-second “pre-start” procedure at the end of the formation lap, before the usual five-red light start sequence begins.
Pre-season championship favorites Mercedes dominated qualifying, locking out the front row of the grid including George Russell and Kimi Antonelli, and are theoretically in a position to control Sunday’s race from the front.
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Australian GP qualifying highlights from Albert Park
But will Ferrari’s escape be an ace card for the Scuderia as they look to make up for a qualifying session in which Charles Leclerc qualified fourth and Lewis Hamilton seventh?
Leclerc downplayed the possibility of a repeat of the wild dispersion seen in the field at last month’s start in Bahrain, but admitted he and Hamilton (whose Ferrari has a smaller turbo than its rivals and takes less time to rev up) have an easier time getting into the “optimal starting slot” than others.
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McLaren’s Oscar Piastri became ‘stuck’ on track before Lewis Hamilton made his practice start again in a Ferrari.
“The start in Bahrain was a bit chaotic,” Leclerc, who shares second row with Red Bull’s Izak Hajar, told Sky Sports F1.
“I don’t think it will be like that (Sunday). When everyone is in the best position to start, the cars aren’t that wide apart.
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Charles Leclerc discusses whether Ferrari has an advantage over rivals at the start of the race before Jenson Button and Martin Brundle preview Sunday’s developments
“For us, it’s kind of easy to get to the best window to start.
“I think it’s harder for other people to get to that optimal timing. So it might be even harder for them. But if they do everything perfectly, I don’t think they’ll have a hard time at all.”
What can we expect from F1’s first start in 2026?
Jenson Button on Sky Sports F1:
“It’s going to be an exciting start, they could go into turn one with five abreast.
“If you look at the test,[Ferrari]had a big advantage off the line. But it wasn’t just at the start, it was also in the pit stops.
“Ferrari, I think Charles Leclerc will be first at the start of the race!”
‘The simplest things now become challenging’ – Russell sees ‘challenge’ for victory
Mercedes, who jumped into pole position by about eight-tenths of a second on Saturday, are clear favorites to turn their front-row lockout into their first race-opening victory since 2021.
However, pole-sitter Russell said he did not want to get ahead of himself given how the complexity of the new power unit could affect drivers’ racing, including pit stops.
Russell is aiming to win the Australian Grand Prix and lead the world championship for the first time. “Right now our goal is just to get to the finish line, because you honestly don’t know what’s going to happen.”
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George Russell and Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff were thrilled after securing a commanding pole position in the opening race.
“We’ve found that the simplest things that we’ve been working on over the last few years, like pit stops, are now much more difficult with all the steps, getting the engine in the right window, getting the turbo speed up enough, making sure the battery isn’t too low or too high and starting the race.
“So I think the goal for us was to have a clean weekend. Of course we want to win, we want to participate, we want to dominate the weekend, but the season is really long and we need to get through tomorrow and have a clean race. If we stumble at any time, it could be the end of our day.”
Sky Sports F1 Australian GP Schedule
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Grammy-nominated Tate McRae’s ‘Just Keep Watching’ will be the new title track of Sky Sports’ F1 coverage from this season onwards as F1 enters a new era
Saturday, March 7th
9:45pm: F3 Feature Race*
Sunday, March 8th
12:20am: F2 Feature Race*
2:30am: Preparation for Australian Grand Prix: Grand Prix Sunday*
4am: Australian Grand Prix*
6am: Australian Grand Prix reaction: Checkered flag*
7am: Ted’s Notes*
7.55am: Australian GP race replay*
10am: Australian GP Highlights (also on Sky One)*
*Also held at Sky Sports Main Event
Watch every race of the 2026 F1 season live on Sky Sports, starting with the Australian Grand Prix this Sunday. Stream Sky Sports now – cancel anytime with no contract
