I watched Lewis Hamilton’s onboard footage from Madring test and it’s worse than fans may think

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The Madrid Grand Prix has been universally loathed since Formula 1 revealed their intentions for the street circuit. Ferrari have now driven on it, and concerns should be heightened even more.

Dubbed the Madring, F1’s latest street circuit will take over the Spanish Grand Prix title from the Circuit de Catalunya in 2026 on a nine-year deal. Immediately, this received huge criticism, as Barcelona is a historic and respected track, and Madrid, to put it kindly, will not be.

There were growing fears that the race would not go ahead at all, as the track was literally still being dug up mere months ago, even if the authorities claimed the Madring was ahead of schedule. Now the tarmac has been laid, Ferrari have given multiple reasons for everyone to be worried.

Lewis Hamilton’s onboard footage shows Madring is impossible for overtaking and incredibly dangerous

Ferrari conducted a filming day at the Madring on Thursday, with Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc racking up 200km of mileage on the new circuit. This is not prohibited under the regulations, as long as it is capped at 200km and they do not use the 2026 Pirelli tyres.

Ferrari have shared footage across social media of the test, giving fans and experts their first chance to see the Madring in the flesh. As one can probably expect, not many people are excited about it.

Simulations showed that the track was high-speed, but was also incredibly tight, making overtaking opportunities difficult. Having watched Hamilton and Leclerc’s onboards from the test, one can conclude that it is not actually bad – it’s worse.

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Granted, the Ferrari duo were not going at full speed, but it is made glaringly obvious that the Madring will be nothing more than a qualifying circuit – great over one lap, but terrible, or terrifying, for racing.

The track is ridiculously claustrophobic, making any overtaking opportunities almost impossible. The narrow layout makes it a recipe for disaster if two cars go side by side during the Grand Prix.

Hamilton has already complained about the Madring after his filming day, due to the compressions caused by the track’s layout. Drivers could sustain four Gs at the La Monumental corner, which is considered high for F1.

Some fans on X (formerly Twitter) also rightly pointed out the design flaws of the Madring. The inside wall at turn one makes contact highly likely if a driver has even the slightest ounce of understeer.

Lewis Hamilton is now only missing a Grand Prix pole position for Ferrari 🏆 Predict when it will come?

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This would prove fans were right about a potential ‘pile-up’ during the race. The compact layout makes it almost a guarantee for multiple safety cars, stop-start racing, and even a plethora of red flags.

No one will know for sure what the Madring will be like for a race until F1 actually gets there in September. But if one is drawing any conclusions from Ferrari’s test, everyone’s concerns about it are there for all to see.

The danger of crashing and multiple stoppages will be incredibly high, and when one adds the fact that ‘nobody likes’ the Madring, it looks set to be a soulless race with little to no action and nothing more than another qualifying street circuit.