Shanghai

The Shanghai International Circuit is in the Jiading district in the north west of Shanghai. The track is run clockwise, is 5.451 kilometres long and has 16 corners. It was built on swampland that had previously been used as rice paddies, so extensive groundworks were needed. For around 18 months, some 3,000 workers were on site every day. Hermann Tilke designed both the track and its buildings. The layout is inspired by the Chinese character shang (上), the first character in the name of the city.

The circuit was the first in China to be purpose-built for Formula One. The main grandstand alone holds 30,000 spectators, and the total capacity is 200,000. In the paddock, each team was given its own building. The buildings are arranged like pavilions in a lake, in a design that recalls the ancient Yu Garden in Shanghai.

The lap starts with turns 1 to 4, which form the first of two snail-shaped sequences, the second being turns 11 to 13. The chicane of turns 7 and 8 is taken at high speed under a constant load of 3 g. Between turns 13 and 14 lies a straight of 1.17 kilometres, one of the longest on the calendar. It ends at the tight hairpin of turn 14, an overtaking spot where drivers often make their move under heavy braking.

The Chinese Grand Prix was held in Shanghai from 2004 to 2019. Rubens Barrichello won the first world championship race there for Ferrari. After a break, the Grand Prix returned in 2024. The track was resurfaced ahead of the 2025 race. The Chinese Grand Prix was also held there in 2026.