La Monumental corner with 24% banking22 cornersTwin tunnels10-metre elevation change340km/h top speed4 overtaking zones
About the circuit
View of Madrid’s Madring circuit, venue of the 2026 F1 Spanish Grand Prix. Image: F1.com
Circuit history
Previous F1 world championship rounds in the Madrid region took place at Jarama, most recently the 1981 Spanish Grand Prix. The Spanish Grand Prix was not held continuously in Barcelona thereafter: Jerez hosted five editions from 1986 to 1990, and Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya took over in 1991. Madring is a new venue built around the IFEMA exhibition centre, not a renamed or rebuilt Jarama.
On 2024-1-23, F1 announced an agreement with IFEMA MADRID to hold the Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid from 2026 to 2035. The project combines public roads with purpose-built track sections. The preliminary design announced with the agreement still required final design work and FIA homologation; its planned dimensions must not be treated directly as final race parameters.
In 2025, the organisers announced the MADRING name, combining Madrid with the “ring” familiar in motorsport. A groundbreaking ceremony took place on 4-25, and Madrid-born Carlos Sainz became the circuit’s official ambassador. The 2026 calendar lists both the Barcelona-Catalunya round and the Spanish round in Madrid, held on different circuits.
Circuit characteristics
Layout map of Madrid’s Madring circuit showing 22 corners and three sectors. Image: F1.com
2026 F1 Spanish Grand Prix · Data review
2026-9-13, the F1 Spanish Grand Prix took place at Madrid Circuit (Madring). Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli used the pit-stop window created by the lap 13 virtual safety car to take the net lead, ultimately recording a time of 1h 34m 23.754s over 57 laps, beating Max Verstappen by 4.351 s to win. Polesitter Lando Norris missed the virtual-safety-car pit window and suffered a slow 7-second stop, finishing third. This was Antonelli’s eighth victory of the 2026 season, and he became Madring’s first F1 race winner.
Race results · Top ten
The race started at 21:00 Beijing time on 9-13. Below are the top ten results confirmed by the FIA.
Position
Driver
Team
Time / gap
Stops
1
Kimi Antonelli
Mercedes
1:34:23.754
1
2
Max Verstappen
Red Bull
+4.351 s
1
3
Lando Norris
McLaren
+5.089 s
1
4
Charles Leclerc
Ferrari
+29.116 s
1
5
George Russell
Mercedes
+29.829 s
2
6
Liam Lawson
Red Bull
+1m 26.746s
1
7
Franco Colapinto
Alpine
+1m 34.281s
1
8
Oscar Piastri
McLaren
+1m 35.839s
1
9
Arvid Lindblad
Racing Bulls
+1 lap
1
10
Nico Hülkenberg
Audi
+1 lap
1
Qualifying results · Top ten
Grid position
Driver
Team
Q3 time
Gap
1
Lando Norris
McLaren
1:31.824
—
2
Kimi Antonelli
Mercedes
1:31.835
+0.011s
3
Max Verstappen
Red Bull
1:31.964
+0.140s
4
Lewis Hamilton
Ferrari
1:32.013
+0.189s
5
Charles Leclerc
Ferrari
1:32.019
+0.195s
6
George Russell
Mercedes
1:32.149
+0.325s
7
Oscar Piastri
McLaren
1:32.294
+0.470s
8
Liam Lawson
Red Bull
1:32.316
+0.492s
9
Franco Colapinto
Alpine
1:32.903
+1.079s
10
Arvid Lindblad
Racing Bulls
1:33.041
+1.217s
Retirements / special circumstances: Haas driver Bearman missed qualifying after a crash in third practice; Aston Martin’s Stroll set no lap time because of a car problem. The two Spanish drivers, Sainz (17th) and Alonso (18th), were both eliminated in Q1.
Tyre strategy analysis
Driver
Strategy
Stint 1
Stint 2
Stint 3
Kimi Antonelli
One stop
Medium
Lap 14: Hard
—
Max Verstappen
One stop
Soft
Lap 14: Hard
—
Lando Norris
One stop
Medium
Lap 15: Hard
—
Charles Leclerc
One stop
Hard
Lap 48: Soft
—
George Russell
Two stops
Hard
Lap 14: Medium
Lap 28: Hard
Pirelli supplied C2/C3/C4 as the three compounds for this round. Most drivers made one stop, and the hard tyre became decisive. Antonelli and Norris went from mediums to hards, while Verstappen switched from softs to hards; all three podium finishers stopped once. Leclerc led for a long stint on hards before switching to softs on lap 48. Russell used a two-stop hard–medium–hard strategy and finished fifth.
Key race moments
Laps
Event
Start
Norris retained the lead; Antonelli returned behind him after cutting corners twice, while Verstappen briefly moved into second.
Lap 4
Verstappen returned positions on team instructions, with Antonelli and Hamilton passing in succession.
Laps 6–7
Hamilton suffered brake failure and retired.
Lap 13
Stroll stopped at Turn 20, prompting a virtual safety car.
Laps 14–15
Antonelli, Verstappen and Russell pitted immediately; Norris missed the window and suffered a slow 7-second stop, dropping from the lead to fifth.
Lap 28
Russell made his second stop and switched back to hards.
Lap 35
Russell passed Lawson for fifth.
Lap 48
Long-time leader Leclerc pitted for softs, handing the lead to Antonelli.
Lap 49
Russell set the fastest lap of the race at 1m 35.587s.
Finish
Antonelli won by 4.351 seconds over Verstappen; Norris finished third, 5.089 seconds behind the winner.
Race data overview
Item
Data
Race date
2026-9-13
Circuit length
5.414 km
Race laps
57 laps
Total race distance
308.399 km
Winning time
1:34:23.754
Average speed
196.024 km/h
Pole time
1:31.824 (Lando Norris, McLaren)
Fastest lap
1:35.587 (George Russell, Mercedes, lap 49)
Track surface temperature
Race peak 52°C (qualifying peak 53°C)
Safety car
1 virtual safety car; 0 physical safety cars
Total pit stops
28 stops
Tyre compounds
C2 Hard / C3 Medium / C4 Soft
Weather
Sunny, dry; maximum air temperature 32°C
Post-race championship standings
Drivers’ standings: top five
Position
Driver
Points
Gap to leader
1
Kimi Antonelli
292
—
2
George Russell
211
-81
3
Lewis Hamilton
191
-101
4
Lando Norris
186
-106
5
Charles Leclerc
167
-125
Constructors’ standings: top three
Position
Team
Points
Gap to leader
1
Mercedes
503
—
2
Ferrari
358
-145
3
McLaren
306
-197
After Madrid, Antonelli continued to lead the drivers’ standings with 292 points, extending his advantage over teammate Russell to 81. Mercedes led the constructors’ standings with 503 points, ahead of Ferrari by 145 and McLaren by 197. Madrid Circuit has a ten-year F1 contract running from 2026 to 2035; Russell holds the inaugural event’s race lap record of 1m 35.587s.
