The FIA has not yet received any information concerning Madrid and dismisses reports of a replacement for Barcelona
In recent days, rumours have been growing that the Spanish Grand Prix will be relocated from the Barcelona-Catalonia circuit to a new track in the capital, Madrid. The FIA has warned against any rumours that an agreement is close, after revealing that the project has still not passed the key stages.
Last week’s speculations suggested that a new race around the Spanish capital from 2026 had already been signed, according to El Mundo, and we reported the information with caution as nothing had been announced by the FIA. El Mundo claimed that discussions at an advanced stage with the commercial rights holder of F1 were underway.
According to El Mundo, it is planned that a race will take place around the IFEMA Conference Center, in the northeast of the city, near the Madrid-Barajas International Airport. The 5 km circuit would use the pavilion complex and the exhibition park of IFEMA, which is often used for exhibitions and conferences, as the starting and finishing straight line and as a complex for the paddocks.
But despite the leaked details about the race in the media, the FIA has decided to downplay any suggestion that things are about to be approved. This is especially true as the governing body has not yet been tasked with working on several key elements that need to be approved before a race project is sanctioned.
In a press conference, the President of the FIA Senate, Carmelo Sanz de Barros, who is also the president of the Spanish automobile federation, stated that he would like to see Formula 1 return to Madrid, but was clear that there were many things to resolve.
There is a clear process to organize a Grand Prix in a specific location, and I don’t think the process aligns with what may have been read. The Spanish Automobile Federation is the starting point of the process because whenever a new race wants to take place in a country, it has to address the federation first.
« So, did the Spanish Federation receive this project to be analyzed, studied, and deliberated on? No, they haven’t seen it. This particular step has not yet taken place ». Before adding, « So, if the Spanish Federation hasn’t received anything, then they haven’t sent anything to the FIA, so the FIA hasn’t received anything either. Therefore, nobody within the FIA has worked on this project that has made headlines in recent days ».
It is only once these procedures with the FIA and its national sporting authority are completed that the door can be opened for the introduction of this circuit to the F1 calendar. De Barros also worries about the fact that there are some political maneuvers behind the leaked information in the press.
« I have also read a lot about Madrid trying to steal Barcelona and trying to kill Montmelo or things like that. I think that the way it is written, it’s not correct. […] This has probably been influenced by the political situation we are in, between Madrid and Barcelona ».
« Furthermore, and I don’t know if this has been announced, but we had some experience in the past when we were trying to bring the Olympics to Madrid in 2030 and due to leaks and non-compliance with the processes, it did not happen ».
