As Formula 1 gears up for the Spa Grand Prix, Ferrari has taken center stage not only by celebrating their first double podium since Lewis Hamilton joined the team but also by becoming the pioneering outfit to test the new Madring street circuit in Madrid. This fresh addition to the calendar, slated to host the Espagnol Grand Prix this septembre, offered valuable insights during last week’s filming day.
Fresh from Charles Leclerc‘s triumph at Silverstone, marking Ferrari’s 250th victory, the team wasted no time in exploring the challenges and thrills of Madring. While Leclerc and Hamilton both took to the circuit, their impressions of the new track diverged significantly, revealing contrasting experiences on the freshly laid asphalt.
Leclerc falls in love with Madring’s street-circuit chaos
A known enthusiast of street circuits, Leclerc expressed immediate enthusiasm for Madring. Despite the ongoing construction and the presence of dirt scattered across the track, he praised the circuit’s demanding nature. “You have to go flat-out, and that’s something I always enjoy on street tracks,” he said, emphasizing the adrenaline-pumping character that Madring promises.
Among the circuit’s features, a particular corner named La Monumental caught Leclerc’s eye. This dramatic, high-speed, banked turn is anticipated to become the defining element of the track. “It’s a very, very special corner. In qualifying, we’ll have to be extremely brave — it’ll be right on the limit,” Leclerc noted, predicting that once the grandstand is in place, La Monumental could rise to become one of the year’s most iconic corners.
When asked to compare the banking at Madring with that of Zandvoort, Leclerc’s comments underscored the unique challenge Madring presents, though the source text does not provide his full comparison.