While some were worried about the time taken by the preparations for the construction of the Madrid Grand Prix, its organizers reassured this time having announced the signing this Tuesday of a construction agreement.
The firms Acciona (60%) and Eiffage Construction (40%) will form a Franco-Spanish joint venture and will be responsible for setting up the 5.47 km long circuit, located near the Madrid Barajas airport, around the IFEMA exhibition center.
last January, the mayor of the city, Jose Luis Martinez Almeida, announced that the work would begin in April. But delays in the market for market procedure – which according to Motorsport.comwas complex and involved five bidders – delayed the process, and the new Grand Prix found itself under pressure, since it must be finished for September 2026.
The last stay to start the construction was set at the beginning of May, and it is understood that the start of the work cannot be delayed much longer since the execution time is 14 months. According to information from Motorsport.combuilding permits should arrive next week and work should start shortly after.
“We will grant the permit and, in principle, we should be able to start in May for the F1 circuit in order to be able to welcome it for the 2026 season”said Jose Luis Martinez Almeida in Telemadrid. “Finally, after more than 40 years, Formula 1 will return to the streets of Madrid, because it will be a circuit in the streets, which corresponds to what F1 wants: urban circuits.”
“We offered them this possibility, they accepted it, and the Madrid will therefore be able to take advantage of Formula 1 in 2026. But the best proof that it will be done, I insist is that in May the work will start on the circuit.”
Madrid will now host Grand Prix of Spain, currently organized on the Barcelona-Catalunya circuit, which should accommodate its last race in 2026, unless the route manages to conclude a new contract.
While out of the 24 current races, the Grand Prix of the Netherlands will disappear after 2026 and that of Belgium opted for the work-study program once every two years, the Grand Prix of Émilie-Romagne is in turn practically assured of losing its place in the calendar of Formula 1.
