Madring handed stark money warning after F1 slating

Karun Chandhok has warned that the Madring circuit will need significant further investment if organisers are serious about fixing the lack of overtaking that defined Formula 1's inaugural visit to the track.

The Madring hosted the Spanish Grand Prix for the first time last weekend, with Kimi Antonelli converting second on the grid into victory ahead of Max Verstappen and Lando Norris. But the race itself drew fierce criticism from the paddock over a lack of meaningful action through the field.

Norris was among the most vocal, taking aim at the combination of steering and braking required through Turns 18 and 19. The McLaren driver suggested scrapping the sequence entirely in favour of a longer straight into a wider hairpin.

Haas' Oliver Bearman pointed to the curved braking zones removing any chance of switching lines to dive down the inside, while Gabriel Bortoleto summed up his afternoon behind the wheel by admitting he almost fell asleep.

Verstappen also criticised the track design, saying braking zones that force drivers to steer and brake simultaneously make overtaking essentially impossible.

Chandhok drew a comparison with Monaco, a track that escapes criticism over its lack of passing largely because of its heritage, something Madring cannot claim after just one event.

"The Madring felt like an opportunity lost…. Monaco can get away with being a race with no overtaking because of the history. It looked almost as impossible to pass in Madrid, but just at higher speed," Chandhok wrote on X.

"It won't be easy to tweak an existing track, especially a street one but hope they make some changes for next year."

"The cost and effort in that big 'La Monumental' corner alone must have been huge but sadly they will need to invest more now to improve the 'raceability' around the rest of the track."

What Madring needs to become a driver favourite

Madring holds a 10-year contract so will be a regular feature on the F1 calendar, creating plenty of opportunity for change. 

Chandhok used Azerbaijan's Baku City Circuit as an example of a layout that improved once its passing zones were understood, despite a similarly underwhelming debut.

"Curved braking areas just don't work for overtaking," added Chandhok. "For example, the first race in Baku in 2016 was utterly dull but nearly every one since then has been good."

"But we knew even after 2016 that the potential was good as they have at least 2 good passing spots on the track, wide entries and straight line braking zone so you can go off line and still stop. That's all any track needs."