Spanish GP: What to expect from new Madring track in Madrid with Carlos Sainz predicting safety cars and red flags

Formula 1 has a brand-new track to look forward to this weekend and the expectation is there will be carnage and the drivers will be seriously tested at the Madring.

The Spanish Grand Prix has moved from its traditional circuit in Barcelona to a high-speed street track in Madrid and has been described as "Jeddah on steroids" by Formula 3 drivers who tested there last month - the Jeddah track itself is one of the most challenging circuits in F1.

So why is the Madring so difficult and how will it impact the racing we see this weekend, live on Sky Sports F1?

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A lap around the Madring

There are 22 official corners on the 3.365-mile Madring circuit, although unusually the track layout has Turns 5A and 20A - so maybe there are 24.

Whatever the number, after the start/finish straight the driver will almost always be turning the steering wheel at some point as there are few straights.

The left-right chicane of Turns 1 and 2 is one of just a few overtaking spots thanks to its heavy braking zone before a long blast through Turns 3 and 4 towards arguably the most awkward chicane in F1 since the old 'Singapore Sling' chicane which was used at the Singapore Grand Prix between 2008 and 2012.

Just how much speed and how much kerb the drivers can use at Turn 5 will be a critical point of the circuit. If cars go side by side approaching Turn 5, hold your breath, because you cannot fit two cars through there alongside each other. However, the long flat-out zone before the chicane means drivers will be keen to make an overtake here...

After that, the track goes up and down into a really tricky uphill braking zone of Turn 7 where we may see drivers glancing the barriers on the outside.

The track then veers left, right and left, which may be flat out come qualifying when the track is clean after plenty of rubber has gone down from the practice sessions.

Then comes, what could become iconic, Turn 12, known as La Monumental. A huge banked corner that turns 180 degrees at 24 per cent gradient (13.5 degrees) where the drivers will try to stay hard on the throttle as much as possible while experiencing massive G-forces.

After a left-hand flick at Turn 13, the next few corners should be flat out until you arrive at a 90-degree right hander of Turn 17 before the drivers dance through Turns 18 and 19 at high speed, then hit the brakes into a sharp left hander at Turn 20.

The last corner of Turn 22 is a 90-degree right hander where the inside barriers jut out, so the drivers will need to be careful not to cut the apex too much as they arrive on the main straight to complete a rollercoaster lap which should be around 90 seconds in qualifying.

What have the drivers said?

Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, plus Williams' Carlos Sainz are the only drivers to have any experience of driving the circuit.

Sainz is a Madring ambassador and gave input on the Turn 12 La Monumental banking so track designers could ensure it is safe, while still being unique.

Leclerc said: "It's a very, very special corner. It's a corner where I feel in qualifying, we'll have to, I will say it in a polite way, but we'll have to be very brave because it's going to be on the limit.

"And so that's going to be really cool, I think. It's going to be a really cool corner. I do believe it can become one of the most iconic corners of the season, especially once the grandstand will be built. I think that will add also to the experience of that corner."

Leclerc and Hamilton conducted a filming day in July when the track had only just finished its completion, so it was extremely hot and dusty.

"As you would expect, there was no grip. So your tyres were basically just covered in dust, and that's the whole time," said Hamilton.

"It looks like it will be a qualifying lap sort of circuit, and there's not really any straights. So it looks like a difficult place to overtake."

For much of the track, if the drivers are slightly off the racing line by turning at the wrong time or carrying a little too much speed, they could easily find themselves in the barriers at high speed.

The risk-versus-reward stakes will be very high and the bravest drivers, who get it right, will come out on top.

"I think definitely with the way they've put the barriers and the design of the track it's going to be one of the biggest challenges in Formula 1 recently," said Sainz.

"The track reminds me a lot of Jeddah, it reminds me a lot of Baku, even reminds me a bit of Macau in some ways. So having that in an F1 [car] with 1,000 horsepower is going to be quite an interesting challenge, so let's see how it goes."

So we are going to get safety cars and red flags?

In short, almost certainly. Such is the difficulty of the track, it is a question of how many red flags will we see across practice, qualifying and the race. As we saw at the Italian Grand Prix, if any barriers need to be repaired for crashes, that will definitely require a red flag.

In the two-day F3 test, there were 19 red flags - albeit not all of them were for crashes.

"Looking at the track and hearing of what happened in the F3 test, I think we are all expecting safety cars, red flags and yellow flags in qualy and things like this," said Sainz.

"It has been a fashion or a tendency of Formula 1 to go to these kind of tracks like Jeddah, Baku recently that are closer to the city - and Miami - but they have more walls and we haven't had any issues with it. The races actually seem to be going quite well to every place we've gone, so it's that similar trend we're going towards."

Predicting the pecking order is anyone's guess but the track layout will suit cars that are strong in the corners - akin to what we saw at the Hungaroring and Zandvoort when McLaren's Lando Norris won.

McLaren and Ferrari will hope to wrestle some momentum back off Mercedes and Kimi Antonelli following the Italian's stunning victory at Monza.

Avoiding a qualifying or race-ending crash for the title contenders this weekend will be pivotal. But we all know F1 drivers will push the limits, but they must all be careful when attacking the new Madring because this track will bite you, and bite hard.

Sky Sports F1's Spanish GP live schedule

Thursday September 10
2pm: Drivers' Press Conference
5pm: Paddock Uncut

Friday September 11
8.50am: F3 Practice
10am: F2 Practice
12pm: Spanish Grand Prix Practice One (session starts at 11.30pm)
12.55pm: F2 Qualifying
2.40pm: Team Bosses' Press Conference
3.45pm: Spanish Grand Prix Practice Two (session starts at 3pm)
5.20pm: F3 Qualifying
6.20pm: The F1 Show

Saturday September 12
10am: F3 Sprint
11am: Spanish Grand Prix Practice Three (session starts at 11:30am)
1.10pm: F2 Sprint
2.15pm: Spanish Grand Prix Qualifying build-up
3pm: SPANISH GRAND PRIX QUALIFYING*
4.55pm: F3 Feature Race 1
6pm: Ted's Qualifying Notebook

Sunday September 13
8.40am: F3 Feature Race 2
10.20am: F2 Feature Race
12.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday: Spanish GP build-up
2pm: THE SPANISH GRAND PRIX
4pm: Chequered Flag: Spanish GP reaction
5pm: Ted's Notebook

*also on Sky Sports Main Event

Formula 1 heads to Madrid for the Spanish Grand Prix at the new Madring circuit, with every session live from this Friday on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW - no contract, cancel anytime

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