Race Start
Sunday, June 14 at 9:00 AM EDT
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Free .ics download — sessions appear in your local time in Google, Apple & Outlook calendars.
Round 7 of 22 · Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya · June 12–14, 2026
Free .ics download — sessions appear in your local time in Google, Apple & Outlook calendars.
| Session | Eastern | Central | Mountain | Pacific |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Practice 1 | Fri, Jun 12, 7:30 AM EDT | Fri, Jun 12, 6:30 AM CDT | Fri, Jun 12, 5:30 AM MDT | Fri, Jun 12, 4:30 AM PDT |
| Practice 2 | Fri, Jun 12, 11:00 AM EDT | Fri, Jun 12, 10:00 AM CDT | Fri, Jun 12, 9:00 AM MDT | Fri, Jun 12, 8:00 AM PDT |
| Practice 3 | Sat, Jun 13, 6:30 AM EDT | Sat, Jun 13, 5:30 AM CDT | Sat, Jun 13, 4:30 AM MDT | Sat, Jun 13, 3:30 AM PDT |
| Qualifying | Sat, Jun 13, 10:00 AM EDT | Sat, Jun 13, 9:00 AM CDT | Sat, Jun 13, 8:00 AM MDT | Sat, Jun 13, 7:00 AM PDT |
| Race | Sun, Jun 14, 9:00 AM EDT | Sun, Jun 14, 8:00 AM CDT | Sun, Jun 14, 7:00 AM MDT | Sun, Jun 14, 6:00 AM PDT |
Barcelona-Catalunya is the calendar's great measuring stick: every team has tested here for decades, and a car that's quick through the long, loaded corners of sector three is usually quick everywhere. In 2026 Spain has two races — this one in Barcelona and the new Madrid event in September — giving Spanish fans a double helping and the rest of us a perfect mid-season form check.
Barcelona-Catalunya is the most complete examination on the calendar: a long pit straight into a heavy braking zone, the fast, cambered Turn 3 right-hander that loads the outside tires for seconds at a time, a technical middle sector, and a final sector whose long-duration corners reveal exactly how much downforce a car really has. Engineers say a car that is quick here is quick everywhere, which is why decades of preseason testing happened on this tarmac.
That familiarity cuts both ways for the racing: teams know the circuit so well that setups converge and race pace differences shrink. The main passing opportunity is the DRS run into Turn 1, and track position remains powerful despite layout tweaks that restored the fast final chicane-free corners. Expect strategy — two stops versus three, and when to pull the trigger on an undercut — to decide positions that raw pace can't.
Opened in 1991 in the build-up to Barcelona's 1992 Olympics, the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya announced itself immediately: its first Grand Prix produced the iconic image of Nigel Mansell and Ayrton Senna running wheel-to-wheel down the front straight, sparks flying, inches apart at 300 km/h. It was also the scene of Max Verstappen's shock maiden win in 2016 — at 18, the youngest Grand Prix winner in history, in his first race for Red Bull.
Standard European timing: the race starts Sunday morning in US time zones — comfortable on the East Coast, early on the Pacific. Historically a hard track to overtake on, so qualifying position matters enormously; Saturday morning's qualifying session is worth your time.
Standard European-round timing applies: a 9 AM Eastern / 6 AM Pacific race start on Sunday morning. With Spain hosting two Grands Prix in 2026, think of Barcelona as the form-book race — the track everyone understands, where the true pecking order shows — and September's new Madrid street event as the wildcard. Comparing the two weekends will tell you a lot about which teams adapt fastest.
The race starts Sunday, June 14 at 9:00 AM EDT. That's 8:00 AM CDT Central, 7:00 AM MDT Mountain, and 6:00 AM PDT Pacific.
No, it uses the standard format: three practice sessions, qualifying (Saturday, June 13 at 10:00 AM EDT), and the Grand Prix.
66 laps of the 4.657 km Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, a race distance of about 307 km.
Barcelona keeps the traditional Spanish Grand Prix in June while the brand-new Madring circuit in Madrid debuts in September as the Madrid Grand Prix. 2026 is the first season both Spanish venues appear on the calendar together.
New to Formula 1 or planning your viewing weekend? Read our guides to watching F1 in the US, how a race weekend works, and why F1 start times vary.