Spain

Six Circuits, Two Titles, Endless Tapas

Spain has moved its Grand Prix from city parks to Barcelona and now Madrid, and its kitchens change just as much from one region to the next.

The Spanish Grand Prix has had more homes than most. It began on the Pedralbes street circuit in Barcelona in 1951 and 1954, then went to Jarama near Madrid and Montjuïc in Barcelona, moved to Jerez in the late 1980s, and settled at the Circuit de Barcelona Catalunya from 1991 to 2025. In 2026 it packed its bags again, for Madring in Madrid, while Barcelona kept a round of its own as the Barcelona Catalunya Grand Prix. Our records count 56 Spanish Grands Prix, and with seven European Grands Prix at Jerez and Valencia, Spain has hosted 64 championship rounds.

Fernando Alonso is the country's great champion, with titles in 2005 and 2006 and 32 wins in our records, and he was still racing in 2026, two decades after those titles. Carlos Sainz Jr. has added 4 wins, and HRT Formula One Team gave Spain an entry of its own on the grid.

Spanish food divides roughly between a Mediterranean style and an Atlantic one, and every region holds firmly to its own dishes. Olive oil underpins nearly everything, often as the base of a sofrito, with garlic, parsley, oregano, rosemary and thyme close behind. Rice and saffron arrived in the Moorish period, tomatoes and potatoes after the voyages to the Americas, and both changed the cooking for good. Andalusia is known for cold soups, Asturias for rich bean stews, and Valencia cooks its rice in wide, shallow pans.

The day has a rhythm all its own: churros with thick chocolate for breakfast, tapas and pinchos in bars, and a long lunch of several courses as the main meal. Plan a race weekend around that rhythm, ideally with lunch kept well clear of the start, and you will eat very well.

A taste of Spain

Circuits

Drivers

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