F1 Sprint Qualifying Today: Canadian Grand Prix 2026 start times, schedule, TV channel and FREE live stream

The third sprint qualifying session of the F1® 2026 championship gets underway today (Friday, May 22) in Montreal at the classic Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, on the first day of the Canadian Grand Prix weekend.

The F1 2026 campaign resumed in Miami last time out following a five-week enforced break, and drivers and teams will once again be preparing for a busy sprint weekend with back-to-back 100km events this month.

Want to know more about the sprint race weekend format for 2026? See our full explainer here.

Four-time F1 champion Max Verstappen still holds the record for the most F1 sprint race poles, having picked up 10 since the format was first introduced in 2021.

But it was reigning champion Lando Norris who took pole position for the Miami GP sprint a few weeks ago, beating championship leader Kimi Antonelli into second place.

Norris' McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri then lined up on the second row alongside Charles Leclerc in Miami, but the Ferraris, McLarens and Verstappen will all be hungry to qualify on the front row once again and prove they can take the fight to Mercedes in Montreal.

Will Norris manage to knock the Mercedes drivers off the top spot once again? Tune in to the Canadian GP sprint qualifying session to find out!

Stream your favourite content with ExpressVPN and enjoy smooth, uninterrupted viewing of the Canadian GP. Click here to sign up to a secure network now. READ MORE: Ricciardo offered Mercedes F1 contract to drive alongside Lewis Hamilton

F1 Sprint Qualifying Times - 2026 Canadian Grand Prix

Sprint Qualifying for the F1 2026 Canadian GP takes place today (Friday, May 22) at 16:30 local time (ET), which is 21:30 BST.

Find the sprint qualifying start time converted to your local time zone below:

Canadian Grand Prix 2026 Session Times

Sprint Qualifying - Friday, May 22, 2026

How to watch the 2026 Canadian Grand Prix sprint qualifying live on TV today

Broadcast details vary depending on your location. Check below to see how to tune in for some major countries:

Where to watch: F1 2026 broadcasters by region

* - A free seven-day trial of Apple TV is available for fans in the US, allowing them to watch F1 for free this weekend.

F1TV Pro also carries coverage of the sport, depending on which territory you are in.

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Kerry Violet - F1 News Editor

Having graduated from the University of Sheffield with a 2:1 in Journalism in 2022, Kerry continued her pursuit of finding a full-time position in motorsport through work with the F1 Arcade in London, where she got to meet true fans of the sport and make a live grand prix watch party memorable for them. It was here that she confirmed her dream of combining her background in journalism and love of motorsport, going on to volunteer with the female-led platform Empoword Journalism. Having completed stints as a screen editor and sports editor, Kerry landed her first F1-specific editorial role with GPFans and has thoroughly enjoyed continuing to work closely with the sport ever since. The access GPFans offers Kerry has allowed her to interview big names such as Naomi Schiff and David Coulthard and given her experiences she could only have dreamt of as a young F1 fan.

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