Carlos Sainz reveals unanimous 'shocked' response to F1's new Spanish home

Carlos Sainz has revealed that "everyone seemed quite shocked" by the Madring layout following its reveal, with it set to host the Spanish Grand Prix this weekend.

Formula 1 heads to the Spanish capital for the first time at a brand-new street circuit close to Madrid's airport, around the IFEMA exhibition centre.

It is expected to be a wild and chaotic event based on the variety of corner types, including a remarkable banked corner measuring 550m in length named La Monumental.

For Sainz, who was born in Madrid, it is a significant event that he has worked closely with, and he has praised the uniqueness of the layout, which gives it "character".

Next to no F1 running has taken place at the new circuit, the sole exception being a Ferrari filming day earlier this year.

There was, however, a full Formula 3 test at the venue recently, which saw several cars damaged. However, many praised it as an incredible layout.

Madrid is very much expected to be a weekend where the unexpected can happen, with the difficult circuit set to test the drivers, something Sainz is excited about.

Discussing Madrid being a big weekend, Sainz told select media, including RacingNews365: "Yeah, I think we can expect a pretty difficult track. 

"I think we've all done it in the DIL in the simulator, and we've seen the F3 test. And yeah, talking to the drivers at the parade, everyone seemed quite shocked by the track that Madrid has come up with, which, I think, in a good way, gives character and something to look forward to. 

"It's not a normal track, you know, that just gets added to a calendar; it's something a bit different, with a bit of character. 

"We will just need to see if it's a bit too much, or once we get some laps going and start giving some feedback to the FIA and the grand prix."