Report: First laps at Madring complete
Plenty of learnings from our first day at the new home of the Spanish Grand Prix
Published
11 SEP 2026
Est. reading time
2 min
A brand-new venue meant one thing above all else on Friday: mileage. Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon put in a combined 102 laps across two sessions as the team began learning the Madring for the first time.
Both cars headed out together on mediums for the opening laps of the weekend, and times tumbled steadily as the pair found their feet and the track evolved.
Carlos continued to find time through to the chequered flag, ending on a best of 1:36.870, good for P17. Alex had a similarly productive hour, closing out on a 1:37.591 for P20, having lost time late on to traffic whilst three-tenths up on a quali run.
By the end of FP1, Carlos had completed 30 laps and Alex 25 – valuable early mileage around a track nobody in the field had raced before.
The second session picked up where the first left off, both cars continuing to build their picture of the new circuit. The hour was interrupted partway through by a red flag after Arvid Lindblad hit the wall at Turn 13, though he confirmed over the radio he was okay.
Once running resumed, both drivers pushed on, with Alex reporting some inconsistency through the middle sector of the lap.
Carlos continued to find time throughout the session, dropping to a best of 1:36.291 to end FP2 in P16, while Alex rounded out his day with a 1:36.936 for P18. Both drivers closed out the hour with race-simulation running on the medium tyre, gathering data ahead of Sunday.
With 25 laps for Carlos and 22 for Alex in FP2, the day's total mileage – 102 laps between the pair – represents a solid first step in learning a circuit that will keep evolving fast as the weekend goes on.
Full reaction to follow.
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