Formula 1 launches its first three‑race swing of the year this weekend, beginning with the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku. Unlike the usual Sunday finish, the Baku race is scheduled for Saturday, turning what was supposed to be a solitary event into the opening leg of a back‑to‑back trio that also includes the Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang and the Singapore Grand Prix. The chain was created after the Bahrain round was shifted to Malaysia, compressing the calendar and delivering three consecutive race weekends. Two more triple‑headers are slated for the tail end of the 2026 season, meaning the sport will finish with an unprecedented burst of action.
What does this first Azerbaijan‑Malaysia‑Singapore stretch mean for the championship fight? At present Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli enjoys a dominant position, holding an 81‑point cushion over his nearest rival. Antonelli’s win in Madrid was partly a stroke of luck – the Virtual Safety Car intervened at just the right moment for him and at the wrong moment for McLaren’s Lando Norris, who had been leading.
Nonetheless, the Italian’s performance in the brand‑new Baku circuit showed he could turn good fortune into a solid result when the opportunity arose. The Madrid triumph was Antonelli’s eighth victory out of fourteen starts this season, and it has propelled him to the top of the Drivers’ Championship with a sizable margin.
After his lead over teammate George Russell narrowed to 25 points at the British Grand Prix in early July, Antonelli has widened the gap each weekend, reaching a season‑high advantage that now looks formidable. Russell remains the closest challenger, but after a fifth‑place finish in Madrid that left him more than three race‑wins behind Antonelli, his chances of overtaking the team‑mate have dwindled.
Lewis Hamilton of Ferrari effectively ended his title bid after a brake failure in Madrid resulted in his first retirement of the year. He now trails the leader by 101 points. Lando Norris, who has been the most consistent challenger alongside Antonelli, saw his deficit expand to 106 points after missing out on a third win in four races.
With the championship points table heavily stacked in Antonelli’s favour, the pressure is shifting to the other teams to close the gap before the season’s final sprint. Despite the numbers, the 20‑year‑old Italian appears unburdened by the status of favourite. He repeatedly tells the media that he is "not thinking about the championship," a mindset that team principal Toto Wolff praises as authentic and healthy for a young driver. Yet the clock is ticking for any rival hoping to mount a late‑season surge.
The upcoming triple‑header alone offers 83 points – 75 from the three Grand Prix victories and an additional eight from the Singapore Sprint – meaning Mercedes cannot afford complacency. If Antonelli can finish the Singapore weekend on 11 October with a lead equal to or greater than his current 81 points, his odds of becoming the sport’s youngest world champion will become overwhelming, even though a maximum of six races (150 points) remain. The first leg of this intense run is the Baku City Circuit, a high‑speed street layout that threads through Azerbaijan’s capital. The track is famed for its long straights, tight walls, and a mix of slow‑speed corners that demand a unique aerodynamic balance.
In its debut season, Baku quickly earned a reputation for producing dramatic races, and last year’s edition lived up to that reputation. The 2025 race featured a record six red‑flag interruptions in qualifying and a chaotic sprint in which Red Bull’s Max Verstappen claimed victory after title‑hope Oscar Piastri crashed out within the first six corners. McLaren’s driver also struck the barriers in qualifying. Antonelli, who debuted in Baku last season with a fourth‑place finish and earned an F2 podium the year before, will be keen to avoid the pitfalls that befell his rivals.
Mercedes, much like they were at Monza, are expected to excel on the long straights where raw engine power is paramount. Sky Sports F1 analyst Nico Rosberg highlighted the circuit’s distinct character, noting that Baku’s low‑downforce setup favours teams with strong power units – a clear advantage for Mercedes.
He added that while Verstappen showed speed in Monza, he could still surprise in Baku if his Red Bull car finds the right balance. The second race of the triple‑header returns to Malaysia’s Sepang International Circuit, a venue that was a fan favourite from 1999 to 2017 before disappearing from the calendar.
The track’s sweeping turns and hot, humid climate present a different set of challenges. Ten current drivers last raced at Sepang in 2017, with Charles Leclerc taking part in a practice session for Sauber. Since then, only a handful of drivers, such as Alex Albon and Liam Lawson, have experienced the circuit in junior categories. Antonelli, Russell and Norris have mainly learned Sepang through simulators, which, while sophisticated, cannot fully replicate the oppressive heat and humidity that define a Malaysian Grand Prix.
Drivers are accustomed to the tropical conditions, however, because the following weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix at Marina Bay is notorious for its physically demanding environment. This year’s Singapore event introduces a Sprint race for the first time in nine years, making it the sixth and final Sprint weekend of the season. Sprint weekends compress the schedule – a single practice session followed by qualifying and a short race – increasing the likelihood of surprises and punishing any early mistakes in car set‑up. The Marina Bay street circuit, surrounded by unforgiving concrete barriers, will amplify those risks.
Technical development will continue to shape the hierarchy throughout the triple‑header. McLaren plans to bring an upgraded MCL40 package to Baku after a disappointing performance last year. Mercedes, meanwhile, will debut a long‑awaited upgrade for the Malaysian round – the first substantial change to the W17 since the Canadian Grand Prix in May. Toto Wolff hinted that the upgrade could bring the team back level with rivals, but admitted that performance gains do not always translate directly from the wind‑tunnel to the track.
Mercedes also retains an ADUO power‑unit upgrade that could be deployed later in the season, potentially timed to coincide with any grid‑penalty situation for Russell. Ferrari and Red Bull are also expected to introduce new components across the three races, as they strive to close the gap to the Silver Arrows.
Ferrari, despite flashes of brilliance, have struggled with consistency, while Red Bull appears to be edging closer to their first win of the year with Verstappen. The central question remains: can any challenger keep Antonelli within realistic striking distance as the season draws to a close? With 83 points on offer in this opening triple‑header and only 150 points left in the calendar after October, the championship could be effectively decided before the final races if Antonelli maintains his momentum. Fans can watch the Saturday‑morning Baku race live on Sky Sports F1, with streaming available through NOW – no contract required and cancellable at any time.
The intensity of this three‑weekend sprint promises to shape the narrative of the 2026 title fight, and the outcomes in Azerbaijan, Malaysia and Singapore will likely set the tone for the championship’s final act.