Honda has warned that the banked La Monumental corner at the Madring circuit will prove “quite challenging” for the lubrication systems of the F1 2026 engines.
But Aston Martin has stopped short of agreeing with Williams boss James Vowles that the new Spanish Grand Prix venue is “a killer track.”
Honda: La Monumental ‘quite challenging’ for F1 2026 engines
The new Madring circuit, the first new track added to the calendar since Las Vegas in 2023, is preparing to host its first Spanish Grand Prix this weekend.
A recent F3 test at the street circuit saw 19 red flags, 11 of which were caused by barrier contact.
Turn 12, more commonly known as La Monumental, has been billed as the signature corner of the Madring.
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La Monumental is a banked 550-metre-long right-hander with a predicted entry speed of 300 kilometres per hour and a potential sustained 4G compression lasting two seconds in the middle of the corner.
Speaking to PlanetF1.com and other media outlets on Thursday in Madrid, Honda trackside general manager and chief engineer Shintaro Orihara predicted that La Monumental will force teams and manufacturers to closely monitor aerodynamic loads through the corner.
He said: “Yesterday I did a track run and I saw that banked corner. That is quite challenging and interesting.
“So for the power side, probably the main interesting point is the lubrication system. We have G [forces through that corner] for the lateral side and also vertical side, so it’s quite challenging for the lubrication system.
“So we may start with a conservative setting for lubrication and then we will see where we are. Then we will do [increase] this margin step by step for quali.”
Asked if he agrees with Vowles’ assessment that Madrid is a killer track for the F1 2026 cars, Aston Martin chief trackside engineer Mike Krack replied: “Let’s do some laps first and then we see how this track is.
“I think it is clear that there were a lot of incidents with Formula 3, but also things have been changed since.
“I think there was even some resurfacing done in the meantime. I think there was some tweaks done on the track, so I don’t think it’s so dramatic.”
Krack revealed that Aston Martin paid close attention to the F3 test in Madrid at the end of last month for some early clues to how the F1 race weekend might unfold.
He said: “I think we often look at F3 for the simple reason that often they are the first cars on track, so that’s nothing new or nothing unusual.
“Now it is unusual that they have a test here before anyone is running, so we look at it and we try to get as much information as possible from it.
“But that is nothing exceptional. Every Formula 1 team is trying to get as much info as they can because you start in a better place.
“And if you start in a better place, you go forward quicker, so I think that’s something that everybody has.”
Asked if the teams were supplied any additional data ahead of the inaugural race at the Madring, Krack added: “Nothing more than in other events.”
Additional reporting by Thomas Maher
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