Jun.17 (GMM) Carlos Sainz admits he was surprised Formula 1 and the FIA approved Madrid’s spectacular new banked corner.
The Williams driver attended the official Madring inauguration event on Tuesday, where media were given one of the clearest looks yet at the circuit amid ongoing speculation about whether the venue will be ready in time for its Formula 1 debut.
While major construction work and the asphalt are complete, temporary grandstands for almost 100,000 spectators, hospitality facilities and much of the safety fencing are still to be installed.
Construction vehicles were still active around the site on Tuesday.
“We will be on schedule,” insisted Madring operations director Carlos Jimenez.
“The most difficult parts are over so I am not worried, although we must not let our guard down.”
The centrepiece of the project remains the so-called La Monumental corner, a 540-metre banked turn featuring a 24 percent gradient – the maximum permitted under FIA regulations.
“From the moment I saw the design, I was very surprised that F1 dared to include this corner on the calendar and that Pirelli gave it the green light,” Sainz said.
“It’s not an easy corner for F1 cars due to the stress the tires will endure. It’s almost a 180-degree turn with a brutal gradient. It’s going to be a headache for the teams and the engineers – we’ll see how they handle it.
“But it’s welcome, because it adds character and personality.”
The Spaniard expects the corner to be taken flat out.
“I’d need a simulator, but it looks impressive,” he said. “We’ll enter it at very high speed, close to 200kph, and I think it will be flat out the whole time.”
The Madrid native says the circuit’s biggest strength is its changing character.
“If I had to describe the circuit in a few words, the first sector is a street circuit with long straights, similar to Baku.
“But suddenly, after turns seven and eight, you change direction and it becomes a permanent circuit. The walls are further away, the corners are wider and higher-speed. In the third sector, you return to a street circuit.”
“It’s something no other circuit on the calendar has, and it gives it charisma and character.”
The Madridring will host its first Formula 1 race in mid September.
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