The Spanish Grand Prix 2026 finally lands in its true home this year. Round 16 runs at the brand new MADRING circuit in Madrid from 11 to 13 September, marking Formula 1’s return to the city after more than four decades away. This guide covers the full weekend, start times, and where to watch.
This is a different race from the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix held back in June. Spain gets two Formula 1 rounds in 2026 for the first time ever. Barcelona ran first in June under its own name, and Madrid now carries the official Spanish Grand Prix title as round 16.
WHEN IS THE SPANISH GRAND PRIX 2026
The Spanish Grand Prix 2026 runs from Friday 11 September to Sunday 13 September at the new MADRING circuit. The race itself falls on Sunday 13 September. It is the 16th round of the season, and it opens the first post-summer triple-header, sitting right after Zandvoort and just before Monza.
WHAT IS THE SPANISH GRAND PRIX 2026 FULL SCHEDULE
Madrid runs the standard three-day format for its debut, with no sprint race involved. There are three practice sessions, qualifying on Saturday, then the race on Sunday. All times below are local Madrid time, CEST, UTC+2.
This is MADRING’s first ever Grand Prix weekend, because of that, every session across the weekend carries a bit more weight than usual, especially the Friday practice runs.
For the full 2026 season calendar including every remaining race date, our 2026 F1 race calendar has everything in one place.
WHAT TIME DOES THE SPANISH GRAND PRIX START
The Spanish Grand Prix starts at 3:00 PM local time on Sunday 13 September. That’s 2:00 PM in the UK and 6:30 PM in India.
The race runs 56 laps of the 5.474 km circuit, covering around 306.5 km total. MADRING’s lap is shorter than Barcelona’s old layout, but the overall race distance ends up almost identical.
WHERE IS THE SPANISH GRAND PRIX HELD
The race takes place at MADRING, a brand new circuit built around Madrid’s IFEMA exhibition centre in the northeast of the city. The layout blends a permanent section with stretches that run through public roads nearby, so it plays partly like a street circuit and partly like a traditional track.
The circuit stretches 5.4 km and features 22 turns, including La Monumental, a heavily banked corner billed as the longest banked turn in the world. Top speeds on the long Ribera del Sena straight are expected to top 340 km/h.
Formula 1 has never raced in Madrid before, so this weekend is a genuine debut on the calendar. It’s also the first new circuit to join the championship since Las Vegas arrived back in 2023.
WHERE TO WATCH THE SPANISH GRAND PRIX 2026
US Viewers
Every session is live on Apple TV through the dedicated F1 channel.
UK Viewers
Sky Sports F1 carries every session live. Non-subscribers get free race highlights on Channel 4.
Canada
TSN broadcasts in English, RDS in French. TSN Plus streams online at around CA$8 per month.
Australia
Fox Sports via Foxtel covers every session live. Kayo Sports streams from AU$25 per month.
Netherlands and Germany
Viaplay carries the full weekend live in the Netherlands. Sky Germany broadcasts every session in Germany.
WHAT TO EXPECT AT THE 2026 SPANISH GRAND PRIX
Kimi Antonelli arrives in Madrid with a commanding lead in the championship after Zandvoort. He sits on 242 points heading into round 16, well clear of a tight fight for second between Mercedes team mate George Russell and Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton, level on 183 points apiece. Lando Norris sits fourth on 159 after a strong run through the summer.
Because MADRING has never hosted a Grand Prix before, nobody arrives with useful setup data. Every team is working off simulation numbers alone, so Friday practice matters more here than at a track everyone already understands well. A green surface also means grip levels will keep shifting across the weekend, and that usually produces a few surprises in qualifying.
On top of that, a layout with tight and technical sections often brings safety car periods and messy strategy calls. A well-timed undercut on a green track like this could matter even more than usual. Anyone expecting a repeat of Barcelona’s clean-air procession should probably prepare for something less predictable instead.
FAQ
The Spanish Grand Prix 2026 at MADRING runs 56 laps. The total race distance is around 306.5 km.
The Spanish Grand Prix 2026 at MADRING in Madrid runs from Friday 11 September to Sunday 13 September. The race is at 3:00 PM local time on Sunday, 2:00 PM BST in the UK and 6:00 PM PKT in Pakistan.
The September race is at the new MADRING circuit near Madrid’s IFEMA exhibition centre. A separate event, the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, took place at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya back in June as round 7 of the season.
Oscar Piastri won the 2025 Spanish Grand Prix at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, leading a McLaren 1-2 ahead of Lando Norris. That race still carried the Spanish Grand Prix name under the old Barcelona setup, before this year’s move to Madrid.
