What Is the Weather Forecast for the 2026 Chinese GP?

The Shanghai International circuit has featured at either end of the F1 calendar since first joining the grid in 2004, and the weather two has been anything but to the extreme in that time.

With an average historical air temperature of 23.5C and an average track temperature of 35.7C, Shanghai sits firmly in the middle of the climate continuum for the venues on the 2026 rota.

Indeed, just one of the past 15 sessions at the race weekend has been affected by rain.

That came in Sprint Qualifying on Friday of the 2024 event, when treacherous conditions saw drivers lapping some 23 seconds off the pace.

Mathematicians among you may be interested to know there is an 7% chance of rain based on previous data.

Here’s what we can all expect this time around:

Friday:

The sun is expected to shine for the first day of the weekend – which also includes the first Sprint Qualifying session of 2026 – meaning we are unlikely to see a repeat of the 2024 chaos.

Temperatures will a cool 15C in the air, slightly cooler than in Australia, but not as low as what the teams would have experienced during the Barcelona shakedown at the end of January in Europe.

Saturday:

Sprint Saturday and Grand Prix qualifying should see conditions similar to the day before, albeit a little warmer with 18C expected through the day.

Probability for precipitation is once again low, and fans can expect another day of sunshine in Shanghai.

Sunday:

Race day in China will be cooler again, largely thanks to the presence of more cloud in the Jiading District.

Chances of rain are up slightly at 25%, but the likelihood of anything affecting the race is low at this point.