Spanish GP: George Russell reveals fears over tyre wear at new Madring track in Madrid for Sunday's race
George Russell says there are concerns over tyres due to the high-speed nature of the Madring and the lack of straights; watch Spanish GP Qualifying from the all-new Madring circuit live on Sky Sports F1 at 3pm on Saturday
Friday 11 September 2026 18:52, UK
George Russell has revealed fears over tyre wear for Sunday's Spanish Grand Prix after the first day's running at the new Madring.
The high-speed corners at the new track in Madrid are putting a lot of energy into the tyres, particularly the banked 'La Monumental' Turn 12 where the drivers carry huge speed on a 13.5-degree baking.
Russell topped first practice and his Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli was fastest in second practice with Saturday's qualifying at 3pm, live on Sky Sports F1, set to be crucial given the expected difficulty of overtaking in the race.
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"There's a big question mark over the tyre degradation. In FP1 with the tyre degradation we all had, we thought a six-stop race would be the fastest way!" half-joked Russell.
"I'm sure tyre degradation will be better on Sunday but with the big long La Monumental, it really hurts the tyres and that will be a challenge for everyone."
Mercedes deputy team principal Bradley Lord confirmed the tyre temperatures on the hot Madrid circuit and the lack of straights could create problems for the teams in the race.
"You could see some unusual tyre effects because they are running so hot and you have a lot of cornering sequences without a real chance for the tyres to have a breather," he said.
"It's corner after corner after corner. How the tyres cope with that will be decisive. Even though it's a smooth surface and tyre wear may not be as high as we expect, we may see some other thermal effects that the computers beforehand might expect you to make."
Ferrari to 'shift focus' after practice learnings
Ferrari were Mercedes' closest challengers on Friday as Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton were both within two tenths of pace-setter Antonelli in second practice.
Leclerc, who is yet to claim a pole position this year, says he's "looking forward to try and do something good in qualifying".
"It's been a very interesting day. A completely new track for everyone and it's very challenging. I think Qualifying will be an exciting one," he said.
"Lots of work ahead of us to try to improve the car for tomorrow but the day went well. We went through our programme and maximised the amount of laps we could do, which was one of the main targets."
Both Ferrari drivers struggled into the downhill braking zone of Turn 17, locking up several times, which team principal Frederic Vasseur suggested was down to the ever-changing conditions.
He also hinted Ferrari focused too much on long run pace and need to find time over one lap as track position will be crucial in the race.
"The long stint was as expected. It's mega difficult to overtake. It means that the positions on track at the start will be crucial," said Vasseur.
"It means also that we have to change a little bit the focus. For sure, it's better to have good pace for the race, but the position in qualifying will be it. Overall it was a decent Friday."
Sky Sports F1's Spanish GP live schedule
Saturday September 12
10am: F3 Sprint
11am: Spanish Grand Prix Practice Three (session starts at 11.30am)
1.10pm: F2 Sprint
2.15pm: Spanish Grand Prix Qualifying build-up
3pm: SPANISH GRAND PRIX QUALIFYING*
4.55pm: F3 Feature Race 1
6pm: Ted's Qualifying Notebook
Sunday September 13
8.40am: F3 Feature Race 2
10.20am: F2 Feature Race
12.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday: Spanish GP build-up
2pm: THE SPANISH GRAND PRIX
4pm: Chequered Flag: Spanish GP reaction
5pm: Ted's Notebook
*also on Sky Sports Main Event
Formula 1 is in Madrid for the Spanish Grand Prix at the new Madring circuit with Sunday's race at 2pm (build-up from 12.30pm), live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW - no contract, cancel anytime
