Formula 1 heads to Great Britain this weekend for round nine of the 2026 F1 season with five British drivers on the grid and all aiming to impress.George Russell leads the way following his victory in Austria but he still trails his Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli in the drivers’ standings. Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton, who has won a record nine times around Silverstone, provides perhaps the closest challenge to the two Mercedes cars while Max Verstappen proved that Red Bull cannot be discounted after a second-placed finish in Austria. McLaren’s Lando Norris, Haas’ Ollie Bearman and Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindblad complete the line-up of British drivers who will all be aiming to collect points across this sprint weekend. Today’s action sees the teams battle for pole position ahead of tomorrow’s sprint race.Follow the British Grand Prix with The Independent. How can I watch it online and on TV?The British Grand Prix will be broadcast live on Sky Sports in the United Kingdom. Sky’s coverage of Friday’s sprint qualifying race starting at 3:35 pm (BST). Sky Sports subscribers can watch all the action from Silverstone on the Sky Go app. If you’re not a Sky customer, you can grab a NOWTV Day Pass here to watch without a subscription.In the United States, every practice, qualifying and race session will be streamed on Apple TV this year. You can stream Apple TV for FREE, with Apple TV’s seven-day free trial.If you’re travelling abroad and want to watch, then you might need a VPN to unblock your streaming app. Our VPN roundup is here to help. Mike Jones3 July 2026 10:42When is the British Grand Prix? All times BSTFriday 3 JulyFree practice 1: 12.30pmSprint qualifying: 4.30pmSaturday 4 July Sprint race: 12pm Qualifying: 4pm Sunday 5 July Race: 3pmMike Jones3 July 2026 10:36British Grand PrixFormula 1 heads to Silverstone in Great Britain for round nine of the 2026 F1 season in a sprint weekend that could play a key role in the drivers’ championship title race. Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli still leads the way but since claiming a fifth consecutive victory with a victory in Monaco the impressive 19-year-old has seen his lead cut to 40 points.A DNF in Barcelona helped Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton close the gap, as the seven-time champion claimed a first grand prix win for the Italian team, before Antonelli’s Mercedes teammate George Russell earned victory at the Austrain Grand Prix last time out. Antonelli limited that damage with a place on the podium but it was the eye-raising performance of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who swept through to finish second, that makes the prospect of three teams competing at the top such an exciting one as F1 descends on Silverstone.Mike Jones3 July 2026 10:30Good morning!Welcome to The Independent’s coverage of this weekend’s Formula 1 action from Silverstone in Great Britain. It’s a sprint weekend so there’s no time to lose for drivers aiming to close the gap on championship leader Kimi Antonelli with an extra eight points available for the winner of Saturday’s sprint race. The main action, of course, comes on Sunday as George Russell will aim to back up his victory from Austria and continue to close the gap on his Mercedes teammate. But, what can Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton do to cause an upset? And are Red Bull back in contention following Max Verstappen’s second place finish in Austria? Let’s find out. Follow along for all the latest updates from the British GP this weekend. Mike Jones3 July 2026 10:16