Verstappen not impressed by Madring as Red Bull faces overtaking challenge
Formula 1’s first weekend at the circuit surrounding Madrid’s IFEMA complex has so far delivered a relatively controlled debut in the premier class. While Formula 3 and Formula 2 have endured several crashes, including a car fire, Arvid Lindblad’s incident in second practice remains the only F1 crash at the Spanish Grand Prix.
That early record means the Madring has not yet earned a reputation as a “car killer” in Formula 1. But the circuit has made a less favourable first impression on Max Verstappen, who remains firmly opposed to the street-circuit character of the venue.
Asked for his initial view of the track, the four-time world champion offered a brief response: “Yeah...” Pressed on whether that was all he had to say, Verstappen replied: “Yeah, I don't know. I'm not a fan of street circuits so that will never change. I will always prefer to drive on a track like Spa.”
He did acknowledge the work behind the event, adding: “I mean, what they have done here, like the way they have built everything up, I think they've done a really good job, but I'm not a fan of street circuits.”
A detailed report on Kimi Antonelli’s FP2-leading performance underlined the competitive picture at the front, with Verstappen finishing sixth, four tenths behind the Mercedes driver.
Red Bull faces a difficult engineering compromise
Red Bull technical director Pierre Wache sees the Madring as a demanding circuit from an engineering perspective because of its wide range of corner types. The challenge is compounded by the expected difficulty of overtaking.
“It has quite a lot of types of corners and that is interesting from an engineering point of view,” Wache said. “But apart from that, it will be very difficult to overtake, it looks like that.”
The key compromise involves ride height and stiffness. The car must be sufficiently stiff for the high-speed corners and banking, yet compliant enough for the kerbs. Teams must also manage deployment and tyre sliding through sections taken flat-out.
“Some corners are full throttle and put some sliding on the tyres, that's something we have to see. But yeah, it's challenging,” Wache added.
Verstappen targets balance ahead of the race
Verstappen does not expect the new venue to give Red Bull a major winning opportunity. After Friday practice, he said the team was broadly where it expected to be, but still needed to improve the car’s balance over a single lap and understand tyre performance over longer runs.
He also reported a power-steering issue in FP2. Verstappen said the car remained drivable, although it did not feel the same, and expected Red Bull to resolve the problem before the remainder of the weekend.
Simone Scanu
He’s a software engineer with a deep passion for Formula 1 and motorsport. He co-founded Formula Live Pulse to make live telemetry and race insights accessible, visual, and easy to follow.