Australian Grand Prix 2026 – Live TV Coverage on Sky Sports F1, Highlights on Channel 4

The 2026 Formula One season gets underway this weekend with the opening round in Australia.

The race will be held on 8th March 2026 at the Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

The 2026 Season

The 2026 season features a major set of regulation changes with a revised power unit configuration and new active aerodynamics.

Audi, who acquired Sauber in 2024, enter as a works team with its own power unit, while Cadillac are making their debut in the championship using Ferrari power units, marking the first time an eleventh team has competed since 2016.

Honda, through its Honda Racing Corporation subsidiary, entered into an exclusive works team agreement with Aston Martin, and are supplying them with their own power unit after ending its current relationship with Red Bull Racing.

Ford returned to the sport for the first time since 2004, supporting Red Bull Powertrains in supplying power units to Red Bull Racing and Racing Bulls.

Renault is no longer an engine supplier as Alpine switched to Mercedes power units.

UK TV Coverage

TV Coverage in the UK remains the same with Sky Sports F1 showing every round live, while Channel 4 airs highlights of each qualifying session and Grand Prix. Channel 4 will also have live coverage of the British Grand Prix on 5th July 2026.

Martin Brundle, Jenson Button, Nico Rosberg, Jacques Villeneuve, Naomi Schiff, Bernie Collins, Karun Chandhok, Jamie Chadwick and Anthony Davidson will join Simon Lazenby, Natalie Pinkham, Ted Kravitz, Rachel Brookes and Craig Slater throughout the season while commentary duties will be shared by David Croft and Harry Benjamin.

Steve Jones and Lee McKenzie will front Channel 4’s highlights coverage once again. They will be joined throughout the season by David Coulthard, Mark Webber, Billy Monger and Alex Jacques.

U.S. TV Coverage

TV coverage in the United States will change for the 2026 season as Apple TV won the exclusive rights from ESPN.

Apple TV will deliver comprehensive coverage of Formula 1, with all practice, qualifying, Sprint sessions, and Grands Prix available to Apple TV subscribers. Select races and all practice sessions will also be available for free in the Apple TV app throughout the course of the season.

Australia Grand Prix 2026 – TV Schedule

All five sessions will air live on Sky Sports F1, while highlights of quali and the race will air on Channel 4.

Qualifying starts at 5am, while the race gets underway at 4am.

Friday 6th March 2026
Practice 1 – Live – Sky Sports F1 – 1.00am
Practice 2 – Live – Sky Sports F1 – 4.45am

Saturday 7th March 2026
Practice 3 – Live – Sky Sports F1 – 1.15am
Qualifying – Live – Sky Sports F1 – 4.00am
Qualifying – Highlights – Channel 4 – 1.00pm

Sunday 8th March 2026
The Race – Live – Sky Sports F1 – 2.30am
The Race – Highlights – Channel 4 – 1.00pm