Formula 1: Spanish GP – where to watch, schedules and the debut of Madring

Formula 1 returns to Madrid this weekend, 45 years after the last race held in the Spanish capital, on a new track practically unknown to the drivers. The Spanish Grand Prix marks the debut of the Madring, a semi-permanent circuit built around the city’s exhibition center.

The race takes place on Sunday (13), at 10 am Brasília, and track activities begin this Friday (11), with the first two free practices. The weekend follows the conventional format, with three free practices, qualifying on Saturday and a 57-lap race on Sunday. The difference is in what the teams don’t have: data.

As there has never been a race on the track, there is no lap record, no hit history or rubber deposited on the asphalt, which tends to change the grip a lot between FP1 and qualifying. Drivers and engineers arrive with only what they produced in the simulator.

In the fight for the title, Kimi Antonelli arrives in Madrid buoyed by the victory at the Italian GP in Monza, achieved after starting in 19th. The Italian from Mercedes leads the championship with 267 points, 66 ahead of teammate George Russell, second with 201. Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris are next, 76 and 96 points behind the leader, respectively. The round ends the European season of the year.

The race still has reinforced local appeal: Carlos Sainz, born in Madrid and ambassador of the circuit, is the only driver on the grid who has already ridden at Madring, and Fernando Alonso completes the pair of Spaniards at home.

The organizers report that tickets are sold out, with an expectation of around 130 thousand people per day. Brazilian Gabriel Bortoleto competes in the round for Audi, which debuted this year as a factory team in place of Sauber.

2026 Spanish GP schedule

Where to watch F1

Globo has held the rights to broadcast Formula 1 in Brazil since 2026, in a contract valid until 2028, and takes 15 races of the season to open TV – the Spanish GP is one of them. Free practice and qualifying, however, are restricted to pay TV and streaming.

Madring: the circuit sheet that debuts in F1

Madrid and Formula 1: 45 years of waiting

Madrid had hosted nine editions of the Spanish Grand Prix, all at the Jarama racetrack, on the outskirts of the capital. The last of them was in 1981, won by Gilles Villeneuve in one of the most celebrated races of the Canadian’s career. Madring’s contract with Formula 1 runs until 2035, and this is the second race held on Spanish soil in 2026, after the Barcelona round in June.