'It started as a joke, a fantasy' - F1 heads to football-obsessed Madrid — SkimNews
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- Formula 1 is returning to Madrid for the first time since 1981, debuting a new 22-corner street circuit called Madring near the city airport under a 10-year contract organized by quasi-state owned Ifema.
- Luis Garcia Abad, former manager to Spain's last world champion Fernando Alonso, leads the Madring organization; the track cost 85 million euros with an additional 65 million euros invested in surrounding construction.
- Monumental, a 26-degree banked corner substantially longer than Zandvoort's, can hold more than 30,000 spectators and sits like 'a castle on top of the hill,' according to operations director Carlos Jimenez.
- Madring was built during the wettest winter in 20 years in Spain, requiring three layers of asphalt and clay stabilization; the venue runs partially on renewable energy and reuses existing buildings around the expo site.
- Local F3 driver Bruno del Pino compared the track to Jeddah 'but with more difficulty,' while Charles Leclerc called it 'amazing' and fellow F3 driver Freddie Slater called it 'one of the best tracks on calendar, if not the best.'
- Real Madrid's refurbished Bernabeu and the club's women's team stadium sit adjacent to the new track, with the men's national team described as 'World Cup winners' competing for attention against La Liga powerhouses Real Madrid and Atletico.
Why it matters: Madrid organizers invested 150 million euros total (85M for the track, 65M in surrounding construction) to launch the venue, betting that 'Monumental' - a 26-degree banked corner for 30,000 fans - gives F1 a permanent home in a city dominated by Real Madrid and Atletico. The 10-year contract signals F1 choosing to compete for attention in a saturated European market rather than expanding only into newer territories; this weekend's reception will test whether that bet pays off.
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