New regulations promised a shake-up in 2026, and several races have fallen apart. Mercedes have dominated, and the Formula 1 odds reflect that, but plenty of Sundays have still gone off script. These five grands prix produced the most disorder of the season.

China: four cars out before the start
Only 18 of the 22 cars started the Chinese Grand Prix on 15 March. Both McLarens were withdrawn with power unit problems, while Gabriel Bortoleto's Audi and Alexander Albon's Williams suffered hydraulic failures. Max Verstappen then retired with a coolant leak after 45 laps.
Kimi Antonelli won from pole for his first Grand Prix victory, becoming the youngest polesitter in F1 history at 19. Lewis Hamilton finished third for his first Grand Prix podium with Ferrari.

Miami: Gasly upside down
The Miami Grand Prix on 3 May started three hours early to avoid thunderstorms. It stayed dry, but the chaos came anyway. Verstappen spun on the opening lap, then Isack Hadjar crashed his Red Bull at the Turn 14 chicane.
Seconds later, Liam Lawson locked up into the Turn 17 hairpin and clipped Pierre Gasly. The Alpine rolled over and came to rest against the barrier. Gasly walked away unhurt.
Antonelli beat Lando Norris by 3.264 seconds for his third straight win. Charles Leclerc spun on the final lap.

Monaco: red flag for a broken track
Verstappen's Monaco Grand Prix on 7 June lasted one lap before a power unit problem ended it. Norris lost battery power and retired after 43 laps.
Lance Stroll crashed at the final corner late on, bringing out the safety car. Shortly after the restart, Leclerc crashed at the same corner. The race was red-flagged so officials could inspect the track surface, which was breaking up.
George Russell was given a drive-through for not serving a pit-lane speeding penalty correctly and finished outside the points. Gasly crossed the line third, but two five-second penalties for speeding in the pit lane dropped him to seventh. That promoted Hadjar to the podium behind Antonelli and Hamilton. Antonelli became the youngest winner in Monaco.

Zandvoort: Verstappen's home crash
Heavy rain fell before the Dutch Grand Prix on 23 August, leaving the track damp in places. Verstappen lost the rear of his Red Bull on the opening lap and hit the wall hard, bringing out the red flag at his home race.
Antonelli passed polesitter Norris at the standing restart and led for much of the afternoon. Norris retook the lead in the final third. Two late virtual safety cars followed, and Mercedes swapped their drivers to put Antonelli ahead of Russell in second.
Norris won by 11.536 seconds for his second victory in a row. Six cars failed to finish.

Monza: from 19th to first
Antonelli started the Italian Grand Prix on 6 September in 19th after a 30-place grid penalty for exceeding his power unit allocation. He had climbed to 13th when Leclerc ran over a drainage grate at the Parabolica on the third lap and hit the barrier.
Barrier repairs stopped the race for about half an hour. Antonelli used the red flag to swap his hard tyres for mediums, and the stoppage brought the field back together.
He caught Russell in the closing stages and passed him on lap 50, winning by 3.857 seconds. Verstappen was third. Antonelli became the first Italian to win the Italian Grand Prix since Ludovico Scarfiotti in 1966.
Eight rounds remain, starting with the Bahrain Grand Prix at Sepang on 4 October.