Spanish Grand Prix Preview

This weekend’s Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix at the 4.657-kilometre Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya kicks off the first European triple header.

Max Verstappen’s brilliant victory at the Canadian GP last time out came against the run of play as many expected the Red Bull to struggle on the kerns in Montreal. Despite McLaren and Mercedes seemingly in contention for the race win a fortnight ago, it was the triple world champion that stretched his lead in the drivers’ championship.

Red Bull head to Barcelona in a more confident mood as they’ve felt the RB20 is more suited to traditional tracks with fewer kerbs and a mix of slow, medium, and fast corners.

The Track

There aren’t many surprises for the drivers as this circuit was used for winter testing before Bahrain wielded its financial muscle. It has also been a fixture on the calendar for over 30 years but could be on its way out with a street race in the capital, Madrid, confirmed.

The circuit has 14 turns and a long straight where cars reach north of 320km/h. This is where most of the overtaking will occur as it’s where the second DRS zone is.

Last year, the track had its final chicane removed, but it retains the essence of an old-school rapid circuit with a mix of slow, medium, and high-speed corners.

Competition As Close As Ever

It was not an easy win for Verstappen, as he had to work hard to win in Canada. Mercedes looked strong with George Russell bagging pole position, but we feel they’ll fall behind Ferrari in Barcelona. 

The Italian team was devastated to suffer a double DNF last time out. They need to score points this weekend and get over the blip from Montreal. We expect Charles Leclerc and Spanish driver Carlos Sainz to be competitive but face strong opposition from Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

Both McLaren and Ferrari have progressed extensively to close the gap to Red Bull, but Verstappen’s superior skill gives Red Bull an edge that he showed in Imola and Montreal.

Moving onto the rest of the field, we’re likely to see a raft of upgrades introduced this weekend. Barcelona is closer to many of the teams’ factories, and it was previously used for testing, so the engineers know what works well here.

Keep a lookout for Sergio Perez, who has not finished the last two races. The Mexican recently re-signed with Red Bull but has been below-par in recent weeks. Perez lies fifth in the championship and will want to assist Verstappen as much as he can to tighten their grip on the constructors’ championship.

Predictions

Winner: Max Verstappen
Podium: Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Carlos Sainz
Top 4 and 5: Oscar Piastri and Lewis Hamilton
Winning Margin: Over 5 seconds
Fastest lap: George Russell
Pole position: Max Verstappen
First to retire: Logan Sargeant
First car to retire: Williams
Most Team Points: McLaren
Both Cars Qualify for Q3 Shootout: Alpine
Practice 1/2/3 Winning Car: Norris/ McLaren
Safety Car: No
Top 6: Alonso, Gasly, Russell
Top 10: Tsunoda, Ocon, Albon
Fastest pit stop: Red Bull