Spanish Grand Prix: Race Preview

Spain has been a firm fixture of Formula 1’s calendar, with five different venues having so far hosted a Spanish Grand Prix. From Pedralbes, to Montjuic Park, via Jarama and Jerez, since 1991 the country’s national round has been held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. While the well-known Catalan venue hosted the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix earlier in June, this year the Spanish Grand Prix has been relocated to the new Madring, constructed on the outskirts of capital city Madrid. It will be the first occasion since 2012 that Spain has held two grands prix in a single year, when the Valencia Street Circuit hosted the European Grand Prix for the final time.

Madring is the first new venue in Formula 1 since the Las Vegas Strip Circuit in 2023. It takes in a combination of private and public roads around the IFEMA exhibition hall and through the Valdebebas suburb in the north-eastern district of Madrid, bisected by a highway. The 3.3-mile circuit features 22 turns, providing teams and drivers with a variety of challenges. The Madring’s showpiece is expected to be turn 12, called La Monumental, a high-speed right-hander that features 24-degree banking and lasts for a third of a mile. The proximity of the walls means there’s little room for error, with practice time crucial to build up knowledge and know-how at a circuit that is fresh territory for all.

Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal:

“Madrid is an exciting new challenge for everyone in Formula 1, and we’re looking forward to arriving back in Spain – our third visit this season. The Madring layout looks like it’ll combine very different demands, with tight street-style sections around IFEMA, faster purpose-built corners and the banked La Monumental likely to be a talking point. For us, the priority will be learning quickly from Friday’s practice sessions, understanding tire behavior and giving our drivers a car they can trust in corners. It’ll provide us with another opportunity to further learn more about the upgrades we brought in Italy last weekend on a totally different style of circuit. In Monza, we got the most out of the new package in qualifying, but we struggled with tire degradation in the race. This is something we will be focused on improving in Madrid. A new venue always creates opportunity, and we’ll be looking to execute cleanly and be ready to take advantage.”

Ollie Bearman:

“I’m excited for this weekend, where a new track really is anyone’s to master. Although race pace hindered us on Sunday, we’re all very happy to see that the update we brought to Monza was working, so I’m going into this weekend with optimism. I love the liveliness of Spain, the fans take Formula 1 nearly as seriously as football, so I’m looking forward to feeling that energy. There are lots of interesting parts of the Madring, but for me, ‘La Monumental’ is the one turn I can’t wait to experience in real life – that’s a first for Formula 1.”

Esteban Ocon:

“It's good to be back on track in Madrid straight after our weekend in Monza. The new circuit looks challenging and fun, combining a street circuit and a permanent set-up, similar to Miami, with a long banked turn to contend with. It’s going to be important to get up to speed as quickly as possible with this new layout, but I’ve been in the sim, and we’ve done our homework, so it’s a great opportunity to put our stamp on the Madring. We're looking to close out the European season on a high.”