Preview – Spanish Grand Prix

Round five of the season sees F1 head to Barcelona for the third time this year. This is one circuit that the drivers and teams know well from both past races because it has been where much of pre-season testing takes place.

The circuit became home of the race in 1991 and the following year held the 1992 Olympic road team time trial cycling event. The circuit has high speed corners and long straights which will once again play to the hands of Mercedes and they will be keen that Lewis Hamilton will be back at the top of his form and have a stable car.

The circuit is not the easiest to overtake but there are some good tricky and high speed corners. So like Monaco (the next race) you need to be near the front to be in chance of taking victories. Fernando Alonso will be wanting a good result in front of his home fans which may be a bit too difficult for him.

Facts and figures

Race	2016 Gran Premio de España Pirelli 2016 Gran Premi d’Espanya Pirelli
Venue	Circuit de Barcelona – Catalyuna, Montmeló, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
Circuit Length	4.655km (2.892 mi)
Laps	66
Race Distance	307.104 km (190.825 mi)
Lap Record	1:21.670 (Kimi Räikkönen, Ferrari, 2008)
Most wins drivers	Michael Schumacher (6)
Most wins manufacture	Ferrari (12)

Event timetable

What happened in 2015?

Nico Rosberg turned the tide against Lewis Hamilton’s role of two wins in a row to get his championship back on track. Hamilton also had to fight with Sebastian Vettel for victory who hoped there upgrades would close the gap but the silver arrows managed to stay ahead.

Fernando Alonso had hoped to get his first points of the season but was forced to retire after a brake problem that caused him to overshoot his pitstop as the jack mechanic leapt out of the way. The other Spaniard Carlos Sainz managed to score points after he finished in ninth place.

Full Race Report Full Result

2015 vs 2014 Race Data

Tyres