The last time F1 featured as many as 11 teams on the grid was back in 2016, when Manor Racing competed in what would prove to be its first and final full season in the championship, before a financial collapse at the end of the year prevented the team from returning the following season.

The qualifying format itself will remain unchanged, with Q1, Q2 and Q3 still running for 18, 15 and 12 minutes respectively.

What will change, however, is the number of drivers knocked out at each stage: with a larger grid, one additional driver will be eliminated in both Q1 and Q2, ultimately leaving 10 cars to fight it out in the final session that decides pole position.

The result is that six drivers will be eliminated in Q1 and another six in Q2, before the pole-sitter is decided in the final session as per the existing format.

The points system, however, will remain unchanged, with the two additional cars on the grid not translating into extra points for drivers outside the top ten.

As a result, the winner will continue to score 25 points, followed by the same scale down to the single point awarded for tenth place.

The 2026 F1 season will break cover earlier than usual, with the curtain-raiser brought forward by a week and Melbourne once again entrusted with hosting the opening round. At the other end of the calendar, Abu Dhabi will retain its now-familiar role as the championship decider, rounding off the year in December.

As in recent seasons, the schedule will comprise 24 races alongside six Sprint events, creating a relentless 30-race programme spread across nine months and underlining just how intense the modern F1 calendar has become.

Change, however, has not been limited to dates alone. The Italian GP roster has been trimmed back with the removal of Imola, leaving Italy with a single race, while Spain goes in the opposite direction. Madrid joins the calendar as a brand-new venue, complementing Barcelona and giving the country two races staged at different points of the season.