The operators of the Circuit de Catalunya have revealed the title their Formula 1 race will use next year after losing the Spanish Grand Prix to a new venue in Madrid.
Spain’s second Formula 1 race next year will be called the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, reflecting the official name of the circuit.
The Spanish Grand Prix will move to a new part-street circuit from next year. The promoters of the event at the new Madring track have signed a 10-year deal with Formula One Management.
The Circuit de Catalunya has one year left on its current deal. It will hold the ninth round on the 2026 F1 calendar in mid-June.
It will be the eighth time Spain has held two rounds of the world championship in a single season. While the Circuit de Catalunya has held the Spanish Grand Prix every time since it joined the calendar in 1991, two other venues have held the European Grand Prix on other occasions. Jerez hosted the race in 1994 and 1997, while a street circuit in Valencia did the same between 2008 and 2012.
Fernando Alonso, who became an ambassador for the Circuit de Catalunya this year, is hopeful F1 will continue to visit the track after its current grand prix deal expires next year. The circuit has been a popular venue for testing.
“I don’t think that we will lose Barcelona,” he said. “That’s my opinion and my wish as well.
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“It’s good to have new venues, it’s good to have new countries as well that Formula 1 has moved to in the last decade. But at the same time, we need to keep some traditional circuits where the history of Formula 1 has been written and made, and I think Formula 1 and Barcelona are very linked.
“We’ve been testing here for decades. I think all the teams choose Barcelona when they have to choose one test track. We come back next year here in winter because we have new regulations, new cars, and again, once again, the teams chose Barcelona because it’s the Formula 1 track in a way.
“The circuit has made some changes to make it up to Formula 1 standards. In the last two or three years, all the paddock facilities, the grandstands, everything has taken a new level. Barcelona has been here for the last two or three decades, and Barcelona will be here for the next 10, 20, 30, 40 years. Some of the venues will be just momentarily on the calendar and then probably they will disappear again. So, we cannot lose Barcelona.”
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