Barcelona“As long as we have it, no one else will.” This phrase was often repeated by ex-president Artur Mas in debates and meetings about the future of Formula 1 in Catalonia. Since in 1991 the Circuit de Montmeló – currently in Barcelona-Catalunya – hosted the test for the first time, the Generalitat considered it a priority to maintain the circ in Catalan lands even if the cost to be paid was high. But the various changes in government and the millionaire demands of F1 strained the situation and generated doubts among leaders who were not entirely clear if it was really worth betting on this competition, despite the fact that the economic return was also very high.
The reduction of the European tests and the entry on the stage of Madrid, which after many years of effort has made a place on the calendar, had left the Montmeló route against the ropes, which had signed the contract until this 2026 at a rate of around 28 million euros per year. From there, it was a matter of negotiating. The initial goal was to keep the test as it has been. But, as they recognize from the circuit, it was “very difficult to achieve” because F1 wants a maximum of eight tests on European territory and, with few exceptions, does not want two tests in the same state.
In the end, Catalonia will have to settle for hosting the test every two years, alternating with Belgium, as it was progressing The Vanguard. The agreement is complete and is only pending to be signed, which will be done in the coming weeks. “It’s not what we wanted from the start, but it’s better than nothing,” admit the consulted sources, linked to the circuit, where they assure that there was a “real risk” of being completely left out of the calendar.
The lack of consensus, key to understanding renewal with alternation
Once the agreement is announced, which will be for six years, until 2032, from the Government and from the circuit it will be sold as good news. But internally, in the Montmeló offices, they know that it is a step backwards, and that everything would be very different if the firm and determined commitment to the competition had been maintained in the last decade. And it is that, while Madrid made a common front to enter the calendar, it was difficult for the circuit to find consensus among all the actors involved. “It seems that they don’t want us there,” the leaders of Liberty Media, the American company that bought F1 in 2017, had mumbled. This opened the door to Madrid’s options, which up until then had been slim, especially considering that the last attempt to take F1 somewhere else in Spanish territory – in this case, the urban circuit of Valencia – had ended in great failure.
In the end, the investment made to improve the facilities and adapt the Catalan track in terms of safety, and thus meet the demands of F1, will have made half sense. Montmeló will host the 2028, 2030 and 2032 Grands Prix. Later, it is unknown to know. “The competition is fierce”, they admit from the circuit, and add that the future of Formula 1 in Catalonia will also depend on the success of the test that will be held in Madrid from 2026.
Another step back for the Catalan engine
That Formula 1 is contested every two years means a new disappointment for the Catalan engine. In 2023, the Catalunya – Costa Daurada Rally, a test organized by the RACC, fell from the calendar. After two years of absence, Spain recovered a scoring rally for the World Cup, but in the Canary Islands, which will maintain this status in 2026. Catalonia, which has to settle for a rally in the European calendar, aspires to regain the place in 2027, but for now there is no white smoke. On the other hand, for many months the MotoGP test in Montmeló was in serious jeopardy, although an agreement was finally reached so that the Grand Prix of Catalonia would continue in the premier category of motorcycling, at least until 2031.
