F1 Pre Race Drivers Press Conference | Spanish Grand Prix 2026 | PART 1

A very warm welcome everybody to our Drivers Press Conference ahead of the FIA Formula One Spanish Grand Prix. The usual two groups coming your way and left to right in group one. We're joined by Fernando Alonso, Esteban Ocon and Franco Colopinto. A very warm welcome to you all. Fernando, perhaps we could start with you please. A second home race for you this season. Can you give us your thoughts on racing in Madrid and what you think of the all-new Madrid? Yeah, it's going to be a very nice weekend. As you said, we have this privilege to race two times in Spain this year and for the very first time in Madrid. I think the last time was in Jarama many, many years ago. It is special. Also a new track, so it adds this challenge for everyone to learn the track as quickly as possible in the free practice. These cars as well, with the new regulations, it's always tricky to fine-tune energy here and there, especially if it is a new track. So yeah, a lot of challenges ahead and for me, yeah, double special because being in Spain. Tell us a little bit more about the layout of the track, what you think of it. Have you driven it on the simulator yet? Yeah, I drove in the simulator, but maybe it's a better question for the Ferrari drivers. They were here earlier in the year, of course, on a filming day. Look, what about car performance then, Fernando? Do you expect to be more competitive here than you were at Monza last weekend? I expect to be more competitive than Monza in any other circuit in the world, probably, but let's wait and see. As I said, there are a couple of challenges to discover. I think there is a lot of kerb riding, as we saw in the simulator and on the layout, and the confirmation from the Formula 3 as well that it was not an easy track. And then, yeah, the grip level on the asphalt is a question mark, you know, it's going to be grippy or not. Track Evo, you know, from FP1 to qualifying and race, normally in a street circuit, you know, there is a huge improvement, so you need to keep up on the pace, you know, every time you jump in the car, normally the track will be faster than your previous run. And yeah, you need to anticipate that from your driver input, but also on the setup directions. So yeah, there are interesting things that will happen on the weekend, and yeah, looking forward, especially, you know, accumulating laps. I think every street circuit, you know, you need to do as many laps as possible to, you know, get that confidence close to FP1 to qualify and race. You know, all these different things happening, and sometimes you are lucky or unlucky if you are on the box or you are out of track. So yeah, we hope for a good weekend, no issues on the car and good reliability and accumulating laps, that will be the key. Final one from me, when can we expect We are still working with, you know, the inconsistency across cars, you know, that's what's hurting us at the moment. Yeah, I mean, this is what we need to try and solve this weekend, but the upgrade has been very positive and we are looking forward to see, you know, what kind of gain it gives us here. Okay, thank you for that. And Franco, let's come to you now. You used to live in Madrid, so this is about as close to a home race as you're going to get this season. Yeah, this season, hopefully only. No, really excited to be back here in Spain, in Madrid, the second race of the year in Spain, which is very exciting. Madrid does feel like the closest to home, I think, especially because of all my, you know, previous experiences and how I started in Europe and how I started in Formula, I started here in Madrid. So to be racing here in Formula 1, it's a dream come true. I think it's very good for the sport as well, you know, to have another big city like Madrid being back in the calendar and, you know, putting a very exciting track and looks like a very good one to drive as well. It's going to be cool. So, yeah, looking forward to tomorrow and to the weekend. Now, Monza was a great weekend for the team. Do you think it'll be a slightly tougher assignment here in Madrid? Hopefully not. But I think it's going to be a bit more difficult. Monza suited really well our car and the places where we were strong, and especially the straights, but also the low-speed corners where we were quite good there. And then I think the upgrade did bring us a lot. That upgrade in sandboard was very positive for the car. It put the car in a much better window. And again, we could deliver a much better performance in Monza. So I think still a lot of work to do, but hopefully we can translate it into a good weekend here in Madrid as well and have a quick car. Okay, thank you very much for that. Let's now open this to the floor. We will start with the broadcasters. Who's first? Yeah, Craig. Craig Slater, Sky Sports UK. Question for Fernando. Fernando, you say you're not in a rush to decide your future. Is there any impatience from the Aston Martin side? They've perhaps seen one or two big-name drivers who might have replaced you commit to their teams. I don't know what options they think they have. Are they showing urgency in trying to get you re-signed for next year? Because the project does need to be carried on, obviously. Sure, sure. No, but those drivers, they were visiting Florence in summer, yes. So yeah, no urgency. What about from your own perspective, carrying the project on, Fernando, and the enthusiasm? As I said, I think it's a matter of understanding what the rules from next year will have an impact or not on the racing and on the driving side of things. I think the current cars, as I said many times, are not the best cars to drive and to enjoy. But next year, there is a step, I think, in the right direction, hopefully. But yeah, at the same time, I need to think what is the best programme for next year and sit with the team. If behind the wheel or in another role, I will be helping the most. That will be the most important thing to decide together. David Croft, Sky Sports F1. A question, Esteban, for yourself. Inconsistency across the cars, that's what's hurting us at the moment. Can you expand on that a little bit? Where's the inconsistency and how is that affecting your season? Yeah, I mean, this is something that we face so far this season. Myself, Ayo and Oli are very aware of that. When we got the cars to a healthy state, well, they can perform. We perform as drivers, as a side of the garage. Oli last week had a car that was delivering what we were expecting. And on my side, it wasn't, but that was very different. In Budapest, for example, where he faced these difficulties. So, we are aware of these things and this is our full focus at this stage to try and not have these issues to start the weekend, just working normally with the car. It gets difficult once you are running after a deficit, let's say, in terms of performance. And yeah, that's the situation we are in, but that doesn't take away all the good work that the team has done in the recent races. It's been three Q2s in a row. Of course, it's not Q3, but I feel like I've extracted the maximum out of the car that I could. And yeah, I mean, there was nothing left on the table. So, it's not the result that we want. We, of course, need more performance to be fighting into the points, but it's still a satisfaction to say, okay, that was the car we had. We may get the maximum out of what it could do. Now, we need to work on this and that, and that's what we are doing. And I think we've been doing a pretty good job on our side recently. So, we need to keep going. Thank you. Next. A question to Oscar. Esteban, sorry. Sorry, Esteban. Sorry. No, sorry. Esteban, knowing that your team is testing with other drivers and this week maybe are so important, what kind of discussion are you having with your team about your future? And if you are speaking with other teams? Yeah, we are having discussion, obviously, regarding the future in these recent weeks. I've been convinced to come for this project with IAO since 2025. And of course, the first discussion needs to happen with this team and they are happening right now. But yes, the team is allowed to test other drivers if they want. We have a TPC program that's very important to us. It's also some kind of revenue for us. But it is clear that inside the team, the drivers are not the problem. We are all pushing together in the same direction to try and get more out of the car. And myself and Ollie, when we have the car to perform, we do. And at the moment, that's all I'm focused about, is to get the maximum of what we can do, fix the issues of the car, learn this new track and hopefully have good results. Thank you. Next. Hello, Fernando. Rui Chagas for DAZN Portugal. Apart from all the races that you've won in all of the circuits in Spain since Formula Nissan, where you started here, you've won in Barcelona and Valencia at the European. So it's the only two tracks that since you've been, and I think you are the only driver, wouldn't it be nice to be in a condition to win here in Madrid as well and make it the three perfect ones? That's a question? It's always a question. I mean, the answer is so very obvious. It will be nice, but it will not happen this year. But we are aware of that and we will work towards getting a more competitive package and have that possibility in the future. But yeah, I think Madrid, first of all, is one of the best cities in the world. So to have a Grand Prix and to welcome Formula 1 here is incredible. So I think for any racing driver, to win in Madrid will mean a lot and even more for me, probably. Thank you. Next. You are very well known for adapting very quickly to new tracks. I suppose you have been training in the sim. What do you expect in terms of driving here, if it's a more quality track or a more racing track on Sunday? And what do you expect from this weekend? Well, I think, yeah, as we all said, I think the track seems difficult, first of all, to track, to learn. Very technical, a lot of kerb riding and a couple of high-speed sections where you need to get very close to the walls, which is very attractive and very high adrenaline for a driver. Close to Jeddah, I think, some sections. But then, as I said, I think one thing is the simulator and then reality always gives you a different feeling. So I'm looking forward to FP1 and learn the track from the car and discover all these details that always you change a little bit perception of what you came with an idea from the simulator. I think the grip level will be probably the biggest thing for me. If the track is dusty and too dirty at the beginning, that mask a little bit the learning process and in a way the fun of it, because you are just taking a lot of risk and unwanted risk because the car is not really responding to your inputs. And then you only get to qualify another race when the track is in good place. But we have F3, we have F2, so maybe the track can be already good on Friday. If that's the case, I think we have a very good weekend in front of us as a show for everyone else. And regarding the quali and the race, I think all the street circuits are rewarding more quali. I struggle to believe that the race on Sunday will be better than the quali on Saturday in terms of rewarding and driver feeling. This year, Sundays sometimes are fun as well to watch because with this battery championship, you just overtake. There are unwanted overtaking. In Monza, even for us, I did two or three overtakings and I didn't want to overtake in that place. The car in front of me was just with an empty battery and I overtook, but it was not the plan. Well, hello everyone. Welcome back to the channel. We have a new week of racing. We have a newly made track that is in Madrid. We have the first three drivers of this first conference. I'm going to try to do my own recap and see what happened. Mainly, I'm going to talk about topics that were talked about in the press conference in general, but otherwise we will see what's happened. The first part of this Thursday's pre-race press conference in Madrid focused heavily on the challenge of arriving at completely new Formula 1 venue. The three drivers were all asked about their first impression of Madrid and the common theme was uncertainty. Simulator preparations have been extensive, but all three agreed the virtual lap can only take you so far. The real test begins on Friday, when they finally experience the grip levels, braking zones, bumps, curbs and elevation changes for themselves. One of the biggest talking points was the circuit's most distinctive feature, the long banked section known as La Monumental. The drivers were asked how much confidence they expect to carry through that section and the general feeling was that it will take time to understand exactly how aggressive they can be, because the simulation as they said can give you some some, but the real feel is on a different level. At the new circuit, confidence is built lap by lap that makes FP1 and FP2 particularly important. Another subject was overtaking. Because nobody has raced here before, there are still questions about how easy it will be to follow another car, where the strongest passing opportunities will be and whether track position could become especially important in qualifying. The drivers also discussed the lack of historical data. Normally teams arrive at Grand Prix with years of information, they know which tires work, they know where the race can be won or lost, they know how the track evolves over a weekend and here those reference points simply do not exist. That means engineers and drivers will have to react much faster than usual. Championship pressure has another major topic. With a title fight entering a circle phase and a crucial one, the drivers were asked whether a new circuit increases the risk of mistakes. The response was that while the uncertainty is greater, the approach remains the same. You still need clean sessions, you still need to understand the car and you still need to maximize every opportunity. The drivers were also asked about the atmosphere in Madrid. There is a real sense that this weekend is bigger than a normal race. The city has fully embraced Formula One, the fan turnout is expected to be huge and the two Spanish drivers will naturally receive enormous support. But once the helmets go on, the focus shifts back to performance and we will have just to see what is going to happen. This press conference really was about discovery, three drivers, one completely new circuit and a weekend where nobody can rely on the past. Tomorrow Formula One finally gets its first final, the final real answer is going to be from tomorrow onwards. All the three drivers were excited, at the same time they were a little bit feared, but in general they felt all excited and hyped about this new track. We will have to watch and see what's going to happen in the next three days. We have Friday, Saturday and Sunday, the most important day. But for me, Saturday, the qualifying day, will be the most important one. Thank you everyone for watching this video with us. Please don't forget to like and subscribe our channel. If you have something to add up, comment down below. We'll see you in the next one.