F1H2O Shanghai: Torrente 4 points clear of Arand before GP

The UIM F1H2O World Championship reaches its penultimate round: the Grand Prix of Shanghai on 4-5 October 2026 in the city's Baoshan district. Shaun Torrente arrives as leader, 4 points clear of Stefan Arand, with only two rounds of the season left.

A calendar cut to four rounds

Seven rounds were announced in April. On 27 September F1H2O confirmed that the Jeddah Grand Prix would not take place, citing the force majeure situation affecting the Saudi city. A second Chinese round and a Grand Prix of the Middle East have also disappeared from the calendar. That leaves four rounds: Cagliari and Issyk-Kul, already raced, then Shanghai and the Sharjah finale on 18-20 December.

The standings before Shanghai

• Shaun Torrente (Victory Team): 40 points
• Stefan Arand (Sharjah Team): 36 points
• Jonas Andersson (Team Abu Dhabi): 31 points
• Erik Stark (Team Abu Dhabi) and Grant Trask (Sharjah Team): 30 points each

Arand won the opener in Cagliari and led by nine points, but retired in Kyrgyzstan with a mechanical problem. Torrente, who was left scoreless in Cagliari after a barrel roll, won in Kyrgyzstan and took the lead. He has confirmed that 2026 will be his final season before retirement. Team Abu Dhabi's Andersson took pole at Issyk-Kul and has already won in Shanghai, in 2025.

How many points are on offer?

Each driver races one of the two sprints, worth 10 points for a win, plus the Grand Prix, worth 20. A driver can therefore score up to 30 points per round, 60 across the last two.

The schedule in Shanghai

Local time (UTC+8):

• Sunday 4 October: qualifying at 12:15, Sprint 1 at 15:35, Sprint 2 at 16:20.
• Monday 5 October: Grand Prix of Shanghai at 15:05.

China has hosted the championship for more than three decades. The teams arrived in Shanghai during Golden Week, the national holiday.