Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya
Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya at a glance
- Location
- Montmeló, Catalonia
- Type
- road course
- Length
- 4.657 km (2.894 mi)
- Turns
- 14
- Direction
- clockwise
- Surface
- asphalt
- Opened
- 1991
- Owner
- Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya (Generalitat de Catalunya)
- Capacity
- 140,700
- Address
- Camino Mas Moreneta, s/n
- Phone
- +34 935 71 97 00
- Website
- circuitcat.com
Track map and layout
The Grand Prix layout runs clockwise over 4.657 km and 14 corners (16 with the optional Turn 10 chicane used for some domestic races). It is a classic driver's circuit that rewards a well-balanced car: a long pit straight leads into Turn 1, the main overtaking point, before a technical middle sector through Turns 2-9 that includes the fast, blind Campsa corner. The lap's second half sweeps through the fast La Caixa hairpin and a run of medium-speed corners back to the final chicane-free Turn 14-15-16 complex onto the pit straight. Prevailing crosswinds off the nearby hills make the circuit notoriously tricky to set a car up for, and its mix of long and short corners has made it one of F1's most used pre-season testing venues for decades.
Named corners and sections
- Turn 1 / Elf. The tight right-hander at the end of the pit straight and the circuit's main overtaking zone under braking.
- Campsa (Turn 9). A very fast, largely blind right-hander named after the old Campsa fuel-station sponsor sign; taken flat or near-flat by modern single-seaters.
- La Caixa (Turn 10). A slow, tightening downhill right-hander that is one of the circuit's few realistic braking and passing points; named after a former sponsor board.
- New Holland (Turns 14-15). The final sequence of medium-speed corners leading back onto the pit straight, reprofiled several times to improve overtaking.
Configurations
| Layout | Length | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| Grand Prix Circuit (no chicane) | 4.66 km | current F1, MotoGP and WEC configuration since 2021, using the full-speed final sector |
| Grand Prix Circuit (with Turn 10 chicane) | 4.65 km | used historically and for some domestic championships to slow the final sector |
| National Circuit | 3.78 km | shortened layout used for club racing and testing |
Events and race weekends
The circuit hosted the Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix every year from 1991 to 2025. From 2026 the Spanish Grand Prix name and sanctioning move to a new street circuit in Madrid, but Barcelona-Catalunya keeps an F1 date as the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix in 2026 and then on a biennial rotation with Spa-Francorchamps (2028, 2030, 2032). MotoGP's Gran Premi de Catalunya has run here every May since 1996. The circuit also holds major endurance racing, including the 24 Hours of Barcelona and a round of the FIA World Endurance Championship, plus GT World Challenge Europe and TCR Europe.
| Event | Series | When | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix | Formula 1 | June | held every year to 2025 as the Spanish GP; from 2026 renamed and run biennially alongside Spa |
| Gran Premi de Catalunya | MotoGP | May | run annually since 1996 |
| 24 Horas de Barcelona | Endurance racing | September | |
| 6 Hours of Barcelona | FIA World Endurance Championship | October | |
| Barcelona Speed Festival | GT World Challenge Europe | October |
Getting there and parking
The circuit sits in Montmeló, about 25 km northeast of central Barcelona and close to the AP-7 and C-17 motorways. Barcelona-El Prat Airport is the closest major hub, roughly 30-40 minutes by road depending on traffic. Rodalies (Barcelona commuter rail) trains on the R2 Nord line stop at Montmeló station, from which it is a walkable but uphill 25-30 minutes to the circuit gates, with shuttle buses laid on for Grand Prix weekends.
- Barcelona-El Prat Airport (BCN) · about 35 min drive
- Girona-Costa Brava Airport (GRO) · about 50 min drive
Parking
General parking fields around the circuit are included with most race-weekend tickets; arrive early on Grand Prix Sundays as approach roads from the AP-7 and C-17 back up badly.
Take a Rodalies R2 Nord train to Montmeló station and use the event shuttle buses rather than driving in for the Spanish/Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix weekend, when road traffic around Montmeló is heavily congested.
Hotels and camping near Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya
Most visitors base themselves in Barcelona itself, 25-40 minutes away by car or train, which offers by far the largest choice of hotels and Airbnbs; the trade-off is traffic on the way to and from the circuit on race day. Montmeló and nearby Granollers have a smaller number of hotels much closer to the gates. Grand Prix and MotoGP weekends sell out accommodation across the wider Barcelona area months in advance.
Where to look
Barcelona city offers the widest hotel choice; Montmeló, Granollers and Mollet del Vallès are closer to the circuit and useful for those who want to avoid Barcelona traffic on race day.
Camping
Official and third-party campsites operate around the circuit for the Grand Prix and MotoGP weekends, including the Can Guitet site on the circuit's southern edge (about a 10-minute walk to the gates) and Easy Camping nearby; further options such as Camping El Pasqualet sit about 15 km away.
RV
Caravan and motorhome pitches are available at the Can Guitet and similar trackside campsites for major event weekends, bookable through the official race-weekend ticketing sites.
Track days, driving experiences and lap records
The circuit runs its own track-day and driving-experience programme on the Grand Prix and National layouts, and hosts frequent third-party car and bike track days outside its race-weekend calendar. Options range from open-pitlane car days to guided high-performance driving courses; the full Grand Prix layout is generally available only when not booked for testing or racing.
Who runs days here
Lap records
| Category | Time | Driver | Car | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Formula 1 (race lap, no chicane) | 1:15.743 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren MCL39 | 2025 |
| MotoGP | 1:39.664 | Pedro Acosta | KTM RC16 | 2024 |
Spectator guide
Grandstands line the main straight, Turn 1 and the final sector, giving close views of starts, overtaking and braking; general admission hillside areas around the middle sector, including near Campsa and La Caixa, are popular budget spots with sweeping views of several corners. Big screens around the venue help fans on the general admission banking follow the wider race.
Seating
Numbered grandstands run along the main straight and around Turns 1, 4-5 and the final corners; general admission zones cover the hillsides overlooking the middle and final sectors.
Best places to watch
The general admission hill above Turns 7-9 gives a panoramic view of several corners for a fraction of grandstand prices; the main straight grandstands are best for starts and pit-stop action.
Weather
- May-June (MotoGP/F1): warm and mostly dry, highs around 22-26°C with occasional afternoon showers
History of Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya
Built for Barcelona's Olympic-era ambitions
The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya opened in September 1991 in Montmeló, just outside Barcelona, as Catalonia and Spain invested heavily in sporting infrastructure ahead of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. It replaced the ageing Jarama circuit near Madrid as Spain's Formula 1 venue and hosted the Spanish Grand Prix every year from 1991 to 2025, a 35-season run that made it one of the most consistent fixtures on the calendar. Nigel Mansell won the inaugural 1991 race after a famous wheel-to-wheel duel with Ayrton Senna down the pit straight, an image still used to promote the circuit today.
A home win and a testing hub
The circuit became closely associated with Spanish driver Fernando Alonso, who won his home Grand Prix here in 2006 and 2013 in front of enormous crowds. Its stable, representative mix of corner types also made it F1's default pre-season testing venue for much of the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s, giving fans and teams alike detailed, comparable data year after year. MotoGP's Catalan Grand Prix has run alongside the F1 race on the calendar since 1996, and the venue regularly hosts major GT and endurance racing, including the 24 Hours of Barcelona.
A new era alongside Madrid
Formula 1 announced in 2024 that a new street circuit in Madrid would take over the Spanish Grand Prix name and sanctioning from 2026, ending Barcelona-Catalunya's unbroken run as Spain's sole F1 venue. Rather than losing its date outright, the circuit secured a rebranded Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix in 2026 and a biennial slot from 2028 onward, rotating with Spa-Francorchamps' Belgian Grand Prix. Alongside its Formula 1 future, the circuit continues to anchor MotoGP's Catalan round and Barcelona's growing endurance and GT racing calendar.
Frequently asked questions
How long is the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya?+
The Grand Prix layout is 4.657 km (2.894 miles) with 14 corners in its current no-chicane configuration.
Is the Spanish Grand Prix still held at Barcelona-Catalunya?+
The Spanish Grand Prix name and F1 sanctioning move to a new circuit in Madrid from 2026. Barcelona-Catalunya keeps an F1 date, rebranded the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, in 2026 and then biennially from 2028, rotating with Spa-Francorchamps.
What is the F1 lap record at Barcelona-Catalunya?+
The race lap record on the current no-chicane layout is 1:15.743, set by Oscar Piastri in a McLaren MCL39 in 2025.
How do you get to the circuit by train?+
Rodalies commuter trains on the R2 Nord line stop at Montmeló station; from there it is roughly a 25-30 minute walk uphill to the gates, with shuttle buses running on Grand Prix and MotoGP weekends.
Can you camp near the circuit?+
Yes. Campsites including Can Guitet, about a 10-minute walk from the gates, and Easy Camping operate for major race weekends, and further options such as Camping El Pasqualet are a short drive away.
When is MotoGP's Catalan Grand Prix held?+
MotoGP's Gran Premi de Catalunya has run at the circuit every May since 1996.
Other tracks nearby
- Circuit de Montjuïc · 24 km · historic circuit (defunct)
- Parcmotor Castellolí · 48 km · road course
- Circuit de Calafat · 138 km · road course
- MotorLand Aragón · 213 km · road course
- Circuit d'Albi · 261 km · road course
- Circuit de Pau-Ville · 288 km · street circuit
Facts checked against 6 sources including the official circuit website. Last reviewed 2026-09-10.