Formula 1 confirms Spain’s capital Madrid as the host for the Spanish GP from 2026

After tons of rumors being traded amongst the Formula 1 fans regarding the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, it has now been declared that the racetrack will not appear on the F1 calendar.

Formula 1 confirms Spain’s capital Madrid as the host for the Spanish GP from 2026

Formula 1 confirms Madrid to be the host for Spanish GP after 2026 (via @F1/Instagram).

The Spanish GP has been synonymous with the Barcelona circuit for a very long time. However, recently it was revealed that Madrid would partake in the bidding process for gaining the hosting rights to the Spanish GP. Hence, amidst this, Madrid successfully won the bid for hosting rights to host the racing weekend instead of Barcelona.

The track for the Madrid GP will have many exciting features for the drivers and fans to enjoy. Primarily, the circuit will be 5.47km [3.39 miles] around the capital city of Spain. Additionally, the circuit will feature 20 turns for the drivers to race around with an approximate lap time of 1 minute and 32 seconds.

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In addition to this, the track will feature a brand-new mix of street and circuit-style racing. This means that a brand new circuit around the IFEMA Exhibition Centre in Madrid will be the destination for the race. Formula 1 through Instagram confirmed that Madrid will be joining the calendar in 2026 and probably host the Spanish GP. However, with 2024’s calendar including 24 races, people are the grid are concerned with the excess amounts of races in a season.

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Spanish GP from 2026 will set to be the most accessible race in Formula 1

F1 has been actively dealing with the growing concern for environmental issues. This means that Madrid’s circuit for the Spanish GP will be based at a location that is very accessible to everyone visiting the race weekend. Reports indicate that Formula 1 expects around 90% of fans to travel to the circuit by public transport, making the Spanish GP one of the most accessible races.

Spanish GP at the Madrid's circuit.
Spanish GP at the Madrid’s circuit previously (via thodiamedia).

However, the entire community has faced a lot of backlash over the inclusion of 24 races in the 2024 season. Multiple drivers and team principals have put forth the risks and issues with overloading a season’s Formula 1 calendar. The 21-raced season of 2023 already had its own fair share of issues down the season and hence embarking on 24 races or more in a season could seriously harm the integrity of the sport.

As a result, Formula 1 has made multiple changes to the 2024 calendar. F1 and FIA are making changes such as moving the Japanese GP to an earlier time and adjusting the number of triple headers. Additionally, they are also making significant changes to the sprint format in response to the high amounts of backlash against the new Sprint racing format introduced in 2023.

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