Madring debut: Russell and Antonelli lead Friday

George Russell led FP1 and Kimi Antonelli headed FP2 as Formula 1 sampled Madrid’s new Madring, where Arvid Lindblad crashed on Friday.

George Russell was fastest in the first official Formula 1 session at Madrid’s new Madring, as reported by Autosport, Motorsport.com and RaceFans. Formula1.com then reported that Kimi Antonelli led FP2 ahead of Charles Leclerc, with Autosport, Motorsport.com and RaceFans also placing the Mercedes driver at the top of the second session. Motorsport.com said the Spanish Grand Prix weekend marked Madrid’s first appearance on the F1 calendar since Jarama in 1981.

Arvid Lindblad crashed in FP2, with Formula1.com reporting that the RB F1 Team rookie still took positives from his Friday running. George Russell, a seven-time Grand Prix winner, arrived in Spain second in the 2026 drivers’ championship on 201 points, and Formula1.com said he described the circuit as a “big question mark”; BBC Sport separately reported that he called it “very high risk”. Formula1.com also reported Max Verstappen saying Red Bull were still getting up to speed.

Leclerc, who came into the weekend fifth in the standings on 155 points, said qualifying would be “an exciting one” after his first laps at the track, according to Formula1.com. Across Friday, Autosport and Motorsport.com reported that drivers viewed the 5.4km layout as demanding as teams built experience on Formula 1’s newest venue.