Spain: the TV program

The Barcelona-Catalunya circuit is somewhat of a second “home sweet home” for Formula 1 today. Having hosted Grand Prix events since 1991, the Spanish circuit now regularly stages pre-season private testing. With long curves, fast corners, and slow bends, the track offers a complete range of driving conditions for teams to validate or reject the single-seaters developed each winter (and during the previous season).

True arbiter, the Montmeló track is the reference used by engineers to design a complete car. Composed of 16 turns (9 right, 7 left), the circuit can be broken down into four parts. First, from turns 1 to 4 with a first big braking on an open chicane leading to a very long first right-hander at full throttle, then a second slower right-hander, a section that wears down the front left tire but is also the main action spot in recent editions.

Then turns 5 to 8 with the first real left at very low speed in a camber, which conditions the “straight” section (turn 6) leading to the fourth left (turn 7) in compression this time but just as tricky as turn 5.

The sequence T7-T8 opens the third part with turn 9 first, a fast right-hand corner that is taken almost flat out and leads to the back straight. Turn 10 is the slowest on the circuit, a very tight left-hander that leads to a second left that quickly fades into the long right-hand turn 12. In the final part, there is a right-hand kink (turn 13) that leads to the second chicane (turns 14-15) which needs to be carefully negotiated before the final right-hand turn before the pit straight.

To find out everything about this Spanish Grand Prix, Motors Inside offers you a brief reminder of the important data and details the schedule of the different sessions.

Track length: 4.655 km

**Number of laps in the race:** 66

Track record: 1:14.648 (Fernando Alonso, 2006)

Record holder for victories: Michael Schumacher (6), Ferrari (12)

Record holder of pole positions: Michael Schumacher (7)

The TV program: