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The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya () is a
motorsport Motorsport or motor sport are sporting events, competitions and related activities that primarily involve the use of Car, automobiles, motorcycles, motorboats and Aircraft, powered aircraft. For each of these vehicle types, the more specific term ...
race track A race track (racetrack, racing track or racing circuit) is a facility built for racing of vehicles, athletes, or animals (e.g. horse racing or greyhound racing). A race track also may feature grandstands or concourses. Race tracks are also us ...
in
Montmeló Montmeló () is a municipality in the Comarques of Catalonia, comarca of Vallès Oriental, within the Barcelona metropolitan area, in Catalonia, Spain. It contains the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, which is the home of the Formula One Spanish Gr ...
,
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
,
Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...
,
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
. With long straights and a variety of corners, the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is seen as an all-rounder circuit. The track has stands with a capacity of 140,700. The circuit has FIA Grade 1 license. Until 2013 the track was known only as the Circuit de Catalunya, before a sponsorship deal with Barcelona City Council added
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
to the track's title.


History

The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya was built in 1991 and began hosting the Spanish Grand Prix that same year. Construction also coincided with the
Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...
scheduled to take place in Barcelona the next year, where the circuit acted as the start and finish line for the road team time trial cycling event. The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya should not be confused with the
Montjuïc circuit The Montjuïc circuit was a street circuit located on the Montjuïc mountain in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. The circuit was also the venue for the Spanish motorcycle Grand Prix from 1950 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season, 1950 to 1968 Grand Pr ...
, which hosted the Spanish Grand Prix four times between 1969 and 1975 and, unlike the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, is actually located within the city of
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
. Because so much testing is done at this circuit, Formula One drivers and mechanics are extremely familiar with it. This has led to criticism that drivers and mechanics are too familiar with Catalunya, reducing the amount of on-track action. When first used, overtaking was frequent as cars could follow closely through the last two corners and slipstream down the long straight. As aerodynamic balance became more critical, this overtaking method drastically decreased as the cars were unable to follow each other through the fast final corner due to
turbulence In fluid dynamics, turbulence or turbulent flow is fluid motion characterized by chaotic changes in pressure and flow velocity. It is in contrast to laminar flow, which occurs when a fluid flows in parallel layers with no disruption between ...
created by the leading car. The 2007 season saw the first of the two final sweepers replaced with a slow chicane to reduce speeds through the final corner, where serious accidents could occur, and in an effort to improve overtaking. However, it has been criticised for failing to achieve the latter aim and for causing congestion during qualifying sessions. The 2022 race was, until now, the last Formula One race to use the chicane, with the original configuration restored ahead of the 2023 race. The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya has hosted a motorcycle Grand Prix since 1992, originally the European motorcycle Grand Prix from 1992 and later the
Catalan motorcycle Grand Prix The Catalan motorcycle Grand Prix is a motorcycling event held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, as part of the FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. The event is due to take place at the Circuit de Barcelo ...
since 1996, and hosted two rounds in 2024, with the season-ending one-off Barcelona motorcycle Grand Prix replacing Valencia because of flooding in the Valencia area. There are at least five points on the track (turns 1–2, 4, 5, 10, 14) where riders are known to overtake. As in Formula 1, Turn 1 is arguably the most popular place for overtaking. The circuit is not known to produce copious amounts of overtaking, despite the long straights. Originally, the Formula 1 circuit changes were not instituted for MotoGP; however, after a fatal crash in the 2016 MotoGP round involving a Moto2 rider, Luis Salom, the Formula 1 layout was implemented to slow down riders for safety purposes. The FIM made a further change to the chicane for 2017 by moving up the chicane to prevent riders from cutting the pit lane entrance, but that was abandoned because the motorcycle chicane had a surface change that created more safety issues with the transition. Further changes were made to the circuit in December 2017 as grandstands were removed to add additional runoff that allowed the FIM to eliminate that chicane (although the Turn 10 hairpin was kept). The track was resurfaced in 2018 as a result of calls by MotoGP riders to improve the amount of grip on the surface. Previously the track had been resurfaced in 2004. The circuit hosted many other international racing series, including the FIA Sportscar Championship (1999–2002),
European Touring Car Championship The European Touring Car Championship was an international touring car racing series organised by the FIA. It had two incarnations, the first one between 1963 and 1988, and the second between 2000 and 2004. In 2005 it was superseded by the World ...
(2003), FIA GT Championship (2003),
Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters The Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters, commonly abbreviated as the DTM, is a sports car racing series sanctioned by ADAC. The series is based in Germany, with rounds elsewhere in Europe. The series currently races a modified version of Group GT3 gra ...
(2006–2009),
European Le Mans Series The European Le Mans Series (abbreviated as ELMS) is a European sports car racing endurance series inspired by the 24 Hours of Le Mans race and organized by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO). The European Le Mans Series is similar to the fo ...
(2008–2009, 2019, 2021–present), and World Series Formula V8 3.5 (2002–2004, 2006–2013, 2016),
GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup The GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup, formerly for sponsorship reasons the Blancpain Endurance Series from 2011 to 2015 and Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup from 2016 to 2019, is a sports car racing series developed by Stéphane Ratel Or ...
(2017–present), 24h de Barcelona Trofeu Fermí Vélez, and
FIA World Rallycross Championship The FIA World Rallycross Championship (official abbreviation is World RX) is a rallycross series organised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, FIA in conjunction with series promoter Rallycross Promoter GmbH (founded by Red Bull G ...
(2015–present). Since 2016, the racetrack hosts the 24h BiCircuit Festival, an ultra-distance cycling event featuring 24-hour, 12-hour and 6-hour races for soloists and relay teams up to 8 riders. For the 2020 Formula One season
Liberty Media Liberty Media Corporation (commonly referred to as Liberty Media or just Liberty) is an American mass media company founded by John C. Malone in 1991. The company has three divisions, reflecting its ownership stakes in the Formula One Group, S ...
expected the calendar would consist of twenty-one Grands Prix and that any new races would come at the expense of existing events, in particular the
Dutch Grand Prix The Dutch Grand Prix () is an annual Formula One World Championship auto racing event, held at Circuit Zandvoort, North Holland, the Netherlands, from 1950 through 1985, and after a 35 year hiatus, from 2021 to 2026. It has been a part of the ...
in Zandvoort replacing the Spanish Grand Prix on Circuit de Barcelona, but later negotiated an agreement with the teams to allow up to twenty-two Grands Prix, salvaging the Spanish Grand Prix. Before 2021 season, the circuit's F1 deal was extended for one more year. However, in November 2021, the circuit's F1 deal was extended to 2026, with 2025 as the last year the Spanish Grand Prix will be held here; a new circuit in
Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
built around the in would be its home from 2026 onwards. Barcelona has the 3-star FIA Environmental Accreditation and the
ISO 14001 The ISO 14000 family is a set of international standards for Natural environment, environment management systems. It was developed in March 1996 by International Organization for Standardization. The goal of these standards is to help organizations ...
certification. In a 2021 report, it was ranked the second most sustainable racetrack in the world, together with
Circuit Paul Ricard The Circuit Paul Ricard () is a French motorsport race track built in 1969 at Le Castellet, Var, near Marseille, with finance from pastis magnate Paul Ricard. Ricard wanted to experience the challenge of building a racetrack. The circuit has ...
and behind
Mugello Circuit Mugello Circuit (in Italian language, italian: ; in English language, english: ''Mugello International Autodrome'') is a motorsport race track in Scarperia e San Piero, Florence, Tuscany, Italy. The circuit length is . It has 15 turns and a lo ...
.


Racing history

The circuit has been the site of some memorable moments. In
1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...
,
Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna da Silva (; 21 March 1960 – 1 May 1994) was a Brazilian racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Senna won three Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles with McLaren, and—at the time of his death—held ...
and
Nigel Mansell Nigel Ernest James Mansell (; born 8 August 1953) is a British former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Mansell won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Williams, and won 31 Grands Prix across 15 seasons ...
went down the entire front straight side by side while dueling for second place, with Mansell eventually taking the position and ultimately the race itself. In
1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...
,
Michael Schumacher Michael Schumacher (; born 3 January 1969) is a German former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to and from to . Schumacher won a record-setting seven Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, tied by Lewis Hamilton in ...
managed to finish in second place despite driving over half the race with only fifth gear. In
1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...
, Schumacher took his first win as a
Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...
driver, after a dominant performance during a torrential rainstorm. In
2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...
, Mika Häkkinen suffered a
clutch A clutch is a mechanical device that allows an output shaft to be disconnected from a rotating input shaft. The clutch's input shaft is typically attached to a motor, while the clutch's output shaft is connected to the mechanism that does th ...
failure while leading the race on the last lap, handing the win to Schumacher. At the 2006 event,
Fernando Alonso Fernando Alonso Díaz (; born 29 July 1981) is a Spanish racing driver who competes in Formula One for Aston Martin in Formula One, Aston Martin. Alonso has won two Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he won in and with ...
became the first Spanish Formula One driver to win at his home country's track. In
2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
, a crash at turn four took Mercedes drivers
Lewis Hamilton Sir Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton (born 7 January 1985) is a British racing driver who competes in Formula One for Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari. Hamilton has won a joint-record seven Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles—tied with M ...
and Nico Rosberg out, allowing Red Bull's
Max Verstappen Max Emilian Verstappen (; born 30 September 1997) is a Dutch and Belgian racing driver who competes under the Dutch flag in Formula One for Red Bull Racing. Verstappen has won four Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he w ...
to win the race on his first race for the team. Doing so, Verstappen was the youngest to win a race, the youngest driver to stand on the podium, and the youngest to lead a lap of a race, in addition to being the first Dutchman to win a Formula One race. In
2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...
,
Heikki Kovalainen Heikki Johannes Kovalainen (; born 19 October 1981) is a Finnish auto racing, racing and rally driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Kovalainen won the 2008 Hungarian Grand Prix with McLaren. In sportscar racing, Kovalainen won Super GT ...
left the track at after a wheel rim failure at turn 9. He managed to decelerate to when he hit the tyre barrier. He was temporarily unconscious and suffered a minor concussion, but a few minutes later, spectators were relieved when he gave a thumbs up. The circuit has been the scene of two debut wins in Formula One. Pastor Maldonado took his first and only Grand Prix victory and podium here in
2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
, and in
2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
Max Verstappen Max Emilian Verstappen (; born 30 September 1997) is a Dutch and Belgian racing driver who competes under the Dutch flag in Formula One for Red Bull Racing. Verstappen has won four Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he w ...
won his first Grand Prix. As a result, he became the youngest driver to ever win an F1 Grand Prix race. At the 2009 motorcycle Grand Prix, teammates Valentino Rossi and
Jorge Lorenzo Jorge Lorenzo Guerrero (; born 4 May 1987) is a Spanish former professional Grand Prix motorcycle racing, motorcycle racer. He is a five-time World Champion, with three List of 500cc/MotoGP Motorcycle World Champions, MotoGP World Championships ...
fought all race long for first place, culminating in an overtake on the final corner by Rossi. Riders and pundits described the race as "historic" and "genius". On 3 June 2016, during Moto2 Free Practice for the 2016 Catalan motorcycle Grand Prix, Luis Salom crashed in turn 12, resulting in the session being red-flagged. After being transferred to the local ''Hospital General de Catalunya'', Salom died of the injuries sustained in the crash. Upon hearing this, FIM decided to change the current layout of the track to the same layout as the one used in
Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...
. After off-season discussions, the FIM announced that the track layout would be slightly modified in that the chicane would be moved up a few metres.


Layout

The track is demanding of a car's aerodynamic qualities. The wind direction at the circuit can change drastically during the day, a significant factor given the importance of
aerodynamics Aerodynamics () is the study of the motion of atmosphere of Earth, air, particularly when affected by a solid object, such as an airplane wing. It involves topics covered in the field of fluid dynamics and its subfield of gas dynamics, and is an ...
to modern Formula One cars. It is then difficult to find a good setup since cars can have massive aerodynamic drag and understeer on one part of the circuit in the morning, but suffer oversteer at the same part of the circuit in the afternoon. A given tyre compound can work well when tested, but not so well a couple of months later. These changeable conditions can make for unexpected performances from some teams during the race. The changeable wind conditions have also caused accidents at the circuit, with
Fernando Alonso Fernando Alonso Díaz (; born 29 July 1981) is a Spanish racing driver who competes in Formula One for Aston Martin in Formula One, Aston Martin. Alonso has won two Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he won in and with ...
's testing accident in 2015 partly blamed on the severity of the wind. Through 2015, the
MotoGP Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the highest class of motorcycle road racing events held on Road racing, road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held sin ...
layout used the 1995–2003 version of the Grand Prix circuit. This was originally the same layout as Formula One, but in 2004 a new, slower La Caixa turn was built; the motorcycles continued to use the old version, and they also ignored the shorter Europcar turn and RACC chicane. The F1 layout was implemented for MotoGP originally in 2016 following the fatal accident of Luis Salom in Europcar corner on 3 June 2016. Race control switched to the F1 circuit for qualifying and the race on 5 June 2016. On 15 December 2016, the FIM announced the change was permanent by announcing plans for a chicane ahead of the current car chicane. However, during the 2017 race, the new chicane was deemed dangerous by riders because of a surface change, and the car chicane was used during that event. After changes to the track in the off-season including removing grandstands in Turn 12, creating additional runoff and a complete repaving of the circuit, the F1 layout from 2004 to 2006, including the new La Caixa hairpin instead of the long sweeper, was used, eliminating the chicane. For 2021, the La Caixa hairpin was remodelled again, slower than the original one but faster than the F1 one. The alterations were done to improve safety for the drivers. The World RX of Catalunya used parts of the track near turns 11–15, with two additional gravel sections. From the 2023 Spanish Grand Prix, Formula One will use the layout used by MotoGP since 2021 removing the chicane in the last sector of the lap that Formula One had used every year since it was introduced in 2007 reverting the final corners for Formula One cars to a sweeping fast configuration that Formula One last used in 2006.


A lap in a Formula One car

A long pit straight leads them into turn 1 which is the main overtaking point at Catalunya, as it is a braking zone at the end of a long DRS straight. The inside and outside are equally difficult for overtaking; drivers who can hold the line around the outside of turn one, can get the inside line for turn two. The corners themselves make up a medium-speed chicane – drivers brake rather late for turn one (Elf) and shift down to gear two, and turn two is almost full throttle as they try to gain as much exit speed as possible. Turn 3 (Renault) is a long, flat-out (in most cars) right-hander that has a
g-force The g-force or gravitational force equivalent is a Specific force, mass-specific force (force per unit mass), expressed in Unit of measurement, units of standard gravity (symbol ''g'' or ''g''0, not to be confused with "g", the symbol for ...
of about four, and it leads to a short straight before turn 4, the Repsol curve. Another right-hander, turn four is similar to Monza's Curva Parabolica – drivers brake and take an early apex (in third gear), carrying great speed out of the exit. Turn 5 (Seat) comes immediately after and is a slow left-hander taken in second gear which drops rapidly downhill towards the left kink of turn 6 which is ignored by F1 cars. Turns 7 and 8 make up a medium-speed, uphill, left-right chicane. Drivers brake and shift down to gear three, and must not run too wide as turn eight has a large kerb on its apex which could potentially damage cars' suspensions. Turn 9, Campsa Corner, is a very fast, sixth-gear right-hander which is made incredibly difficult by being completely blind (drivers cannot see the apex on approach). It is initially quite steep uphill but the exit is then downhill, so it is quite easy to run wide onto the astroturf. The long back straight leads into turn 10 (La Caixa), a third-gear, left-hand corner, then turns 11 and 12, a left kink before a long, slow, third-gear right. Turn 13 and 14, a very fast, sixth-gear double right-hander which takes cars across the start/finish line.


Layout history


Events

; Current * February 28–March 1: Porsche Sprint Challenge Southern Europe * March 6–9: Formula Winter Series, GT Winter Series, GT4 Winter Series, Prototype Winter Series * March 14–17: , 6 Hours of Barcelona * March 21–23: Classic Endurance Racing '' * April 4–6:
European Le Mans Series The European Le Mans Series (abbreviated as ELMS) is a European sports car racing endurance series inspired by the 24 Hours of Le Mans race and organized by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO). The European Le Mans Series is similar to the fo ...
''
4 Hours of Barcelona The 4 Hours of Barcelona (formerly the 1000 Kilometres of Catalunya and the Coppa Montjuich) was a sports car race held at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmeló, Catalunya, Spain. The race began as a non-championship event at the Montjuïc ci ...
'', Le Mans Cup, Porsche Carrera Cup France, Ligier European Series * May 30–June 1:
Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...
'' Spanish Grand Prix'',
FIA Formula 2 Championship The FIA Formula 2 Championship (F2) is a second-tier single-seater championship organized by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). Held on road racing, racing circuits, the championship was introduced in 2017, following the re ...
'' Barcelona Formula 2 round'',
FIA Formula 3 Championship The FIA Formula 3 Championship (FIA F3) is a third-tier international Open wheel car, single-seater racing championship organised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The championship launched in 2019 as a feeder series for ...
,
Porsche Supercup The Porsche Supercup (officially known as Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup, known as Porsche Michelin Supercup prior to 2007 and often abbreviated as PSC) is an international One-design racing, one-make production stock car racing series supporting the ...
* July 5–6: Barcelona motorcycle 24 Hours * July 17–20: Ferrari Challenge Europe * September 5–7:
Grand Prix motorcycle racing Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the highest class of motorcycle road racing events held on Road racing, road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held sin ...
''
Catalan motorcycle Grand Prix The Catalan motorcycle Grand Prix is a motorcycling event held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, as part of the FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. The event is due to take place at the Circuit de Barcelo ...
'',
MotoE World Championship The FIM Enel MotoE World Championship (formerly known as the MotoE World Cup) is a class of motorcycle racing that uses only electric motorcycles. The series is sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme, FIM and the 2019 Mo ...
''Catalan eRace'' * September 19–21: International GT Open,
Euroformula Open Championship The Euroformula Open Championship (formerly the Spanish Formula Three Championship, European F3 Open Championship) is a junior formula racing series based in Spain. It was one of six national and international Formula Three championships in Europe ...
,
Formula Regional European Championship The Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine (FRECA) is a FIA-certified Formula Regional, regional European Formula Three, Formula 3 racing series. On 12 October 2018, it was announced that the Italian autosport regulator Automobile Club ...
, GT Cup Open Europe,
Italian F4 Championship Italian Formula 4 Championship is the first formula racing series regulated according to Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, FIA Formula 4 regulations. The inaugural season was the 2014 Italian F4 Championship, effectively replacing the F ...
* September 26–28:
24H Series The 24H Series is a sports car racing and touring car racing series developed by Creventic and with approval from the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). It features Group GT3, GT3-spec cars, Group GT4, GT4-spec cars, Sports car r ...
'' 24 Hours of Barcelona'', TCR Europe Touring Car Series * October 10–12: GT World Challenge Europe ''Festival de la Velocidad de Barcelona'', Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe,
GT2 European Series The GT2 European Series (formerly the GT Sports Club and Blancpain GT Sports Club), organized by Stéphane Ratel Organisation, SRO Motorsports Group, is an auto racing series for the SRO GT2 class of grand tourer cars, designed for amateur pay dr ...
,
GT4 European Series The GT4 European Series is a sports car championship created and organised by SRO Motorsports Group. It is a pro/am championship which utilizes SRO GT4 class cars, and runs alongside the GT World Challenge Europe as a support series. History ...
, McLaren Trophy Europe * November 1–2: FIM JuniorGP World Championship, FIM Moto2 European Championship, European Talent Cup * November 14–16:
Eurocup-3 Eurocup-3 is a formula racing series regulated according to Formula Regional regulations. The series is founded for levelling up the competition for all drivers, with each team committing on a maximum budget of €400,000 every season. History ...
, F4 Spanish Championship, , , , , 7 Racing Eurocup ; Future *
Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...
** '' Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix'' (2026) ; Former * Alpine Elf Cup Series (2018–2019, 2021–2024) *
Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters The Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters, commonly abbreviated as the DTM, is a sports car racing series sanctioned by ADAC. The series is based in Germany, with rounds elsewhere in Europe. The series currently races a modified version of Group GT3 gra ...
(2006–2009) * Euro 4 Championship (2023) *
EuroBOSS Series The BOSS GP Racing Series is a motor racing series in Europe. The category originated in 1995 as the BOSS Formula series and evolved into the EuroBOSS Series. BOSS is an acronym that stands for Big Open Single Seaters. History The BOSS serie ...
(2007) * Eurocup Clio (2011–2013) * Eurocup Mégane Trophy (2006–2013) *
European Touring Car Championship The European Touring Car Championship was an international touring car racing series organised by the FIA. It had two incarnations, the first one between 1963 and 1988, and the second between 2000 and 2004. In 2005 it was superseded by the World ...
(2003) * European Truck Racing Championship (1996–1999, 2002, 2004–2009) * Euroseries 3000 (2006–2008) *
F1 Academy F1 Academy is a female-only, Formula 4-level Formula racing, single-seater racing championship founded by the Formula One Group. The championship is a One-design racing, spec series, meaning that all teams compete with an identical Tatuus F4-T4 ...
(2023–2024) * FFSA GT Championship (2017–2018) * FIA European Rallycross Championship (2015–2022) * FIA GT Championship ** '' Barcelona 500km'' (2003) * FIA Sportscar Championship (1999–2002) *
FIA World Rallycross Championship The FIA World Rallycross Championship (official abbreviation is World RX) is a rallycross series organised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, FIA in conjunction with series promoter Rallycross Promoter GmbH (founded by Red Bull G ...
** '' World RX of Catalunya'' (2015–2022) * Formula 3 Euro Series (2006–2009) * Formula Abarth (2011) * Formula BMW ADAC (2007) * Formula BMW Europe (2008–2010) * Formula Renault 2.0 Alps (2012) * Formula Renault 2.0 West European Cup (1997, 2007–2009) * Formula Renault Eurocup (1993–1997, 2006–2013, 2017–2020) * Formula Renault V6 Eurocup (2003) *
French F4 Championship French F4 Championship, formerly known as Formula Renault Campus France, Formula Campus, Formul'Academy Euro Series, F4 Eurocup 1.6 is a form of open wheel racing founded in 1993 by Louis Drouet. It is based in France and aims at karting gradua ...
(2010, 2016–2017) *
GP2 Series The GP2 Series was a form of open wheel motor racing introduced in 2005 following the discontinuation of the long-term Formula One feeder series, Formula 3000. The GP2 format was conceived by Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore, while Ecc ...
** '' Catalunya GP2 round'' (2005–2016) *
GP3 Series The GP3 Series, or GP3 for short, was a single-seater motor racing series launched in 2010 as a feeder series for the GP2 Series, introduced by GP2 organiser Bruno Michel. GP3 followed the entire European leg of the Formula One series and the ...
(2010–2018) *
Grand Prix motorcycle racing Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the highest class of motorcycle road racing events held on Road racing, road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held sin ...
** '' European motorcycle Grand Prix'' (1992–1995) ** '' Solidarity motorcycle Grand Prix'' (2024) * International Formula 3000 (1992, 1994–1995, 1998–2004) * Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux (2017, 2019, 2022) * Porsche Carrera Cup Germany (2006–2009) * Renault Clio Cup Europe (2021–2024) * SEAT León Eurocup (2014–2016) *
Sidecar World Championship FIM Sidecar World Championship is the international sidecar racing championship. It is the only remaining original Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme, FIM road racing championship class that started in 1949. It was formerly named Supersi ...
(1994–1996) * (2019–2024) *
Superbike World Championship Superbike World Championship (also known as WorldSBK, SBK, World Superbike, WSB, or WSBK) is a silhouette road racing series based on heavily modified production sports motorcycles. The championship was founded in . The Superbike World Champion ...
(2020–2024) * Supersport 300 World Championship (2020–2024) *
Supersport World Championship The Supersport World Championship, abbreviated to WorldSSP, is a motorcycle racing competition on hard-surfaced circuits, based on mid-sized sports motorcycles. Competition machines were originally based on production-based motorcycles with 600& ...
(2020–2024) *
Trofeo Maserati The Trofeo Maserati is a single-marque motorsport championship that was started by Maserati Corse in 2003, with the introduction of the Maserati Coupé. Its title is commonly confused as ''Maserati Trofeo'', which in fact refers to the name d ...
(2003, 2005) * V de V Challenge Monoplace (2012–2018) * World Series Formula V8 3.5 (1998–2004, 2006–2013, 2016) * W Series (2022)


Lap records

As of June 2025, the fastest official race lap records at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya are listed as:


Financial problems

The public attendance at the Spanish Grand Prix, and at the
Catalan motorcycle Grand Prix The Catalan motorcycle Grand Prix is a motorcycling event held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, as part of the FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. The event is due to take place at the Circuit de Barcelo ...
, have fallen significantly since 2007, which has complicated the economic solvency of this circuit. At least since 2009, the circuit is economically deficient, and in the period 2009–2018, €50.5m of losses were generated. The economic survival of the circuit is only guaranteed by large volumes of public money, which both the Provincial Deputation of Barcelona and the
Generalitat de Catalunya The Generalitat de Catalunya (; ; ), or the Government of Catalonia, is the institutional system by which Catalonia is self-governed as an autonomous community of Spain. It is made up of the Parliament of Catalonia, the President of the Govern ...
provide in the form of grants and rinsing of losses. Given these poor results, some senior officials of the Generalitat de Catalunya have considered eliminating
Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...
from this Circuit. Due to the irregularities detected in the last audit, the
City Council of Barcelona The City Council of Barcelona (Catalan language, Catalan: ''Ajuntament de Barcelona''; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Ayuntamiento de Barcelona'') is the top-tier administrative and governing body of the Barcelona, municipality of Barcelona, Catal ...
decided to cancel the economic grant that the circuit received until now, which has aggravated its economic survival. Recently, some more irregularities have been detected, even by the Generalitat de Catalunya.


Noise pollution

The circuit is located in an elevated area with respect to its environment, and without protective measures to minimize the
noise pollution Noise pollution, or sound pollution, is the propagation of noise or sound with potential harmful effects on humans and animals. The source of outdoor noise worldwide is mainly caused by machines, transport and propagation systems.Senate Publi ...
produced by cars, motorbikes and other vehicles. Therefore, it is a real source of acoustic disturbance, and the noise produced during many days of racing and testing during the year is noticeable for many kilometers around the circuit, especially in the adjacent municipalities, which is recognized by the Generalitat itself, the main owner of the Circuit.


Fatalities

* Luis Salom2016 Catalan motorcycle Grand Prix


References


External links

*
Circuit de Catalunya at Official Formula 1 websiteCircuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on Google Maps (Current Formula 1 Tracks)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Catalunya Venues of the 1992 Summer Olympics Formula One circuits Grand Prix motorcycle circuits Motorsport venues in Catalonia Spanish Grand Prix Sports venues completed in 1991 World Rallycross circuits Olympic cycling venues 1991 establishments in Spain Montmeló Sport in the Province of Barcelona Buildings and structures in the Province of Barcelona