Formula 1 News: F1 could add second race in China

(GMM) Formula 1 could add a second grand prix in China, according to Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff.

It emerges that, after the opening Australia-Shanghai double header, Wolff has elected to sit out the forthcoming long haul to Japan – the first of a triple-header.

The Austrian has been sitting out the odd race in recent years amid the sport’s hectic calendar, which currently stands at a bustling 24 grands prix.

But Wolff thinks F1 could add a second China race.

“I was on the grid and I looked at the packed grandstands along the main straight and into the first corner,” he told journalists in Shanghai last Sunday.

“The knowledge they have here about Formula 1 is also impressive. I mean, could there be a second race? I think ‘why not?'” Wolff continued. “It is one of the biggest economies in the world.

“So, yes, if we can keep the enthusiasm high.”

Oscar Piastri of Australia driving the (81) McLaren MCL39 Mercedes on track during the F1 Grand Prix of China at Shanghai International Circuit on March 23, 2025 in Shanghai, China. (Photo by Simon Galloway/LAT Images)

F1’s sole Chinese driver Guanyu Zhou now serves as Ferrari reserve after losing his Sauber seat – but he is being strongly linked with Cadillac for 2026.

Helpfully, Cadillac F1 boss Graeme Lowdon is the 25-year-old’s manager.

“I will certainly wait for any opportunity,” Zhou said as he attended the Chinese GP at Shanghai, China. “And I am very happy, of course, that Graeme is the team principal of Cadillac, but that does not mean anything else.

“At the end of the day, the decision will be made by multiple people.”