A handful of imposing trucks from Italy, specifically from the Monza circuit, are taking positions inside Ifema after 20 hours of exodus. Inside they carry some of the secrets of the teams that this coming Friday will fly for the first time over the asphalt of Madring, during the first free practice sessions in its history. A real challenge for much of a grid that will go in blind that first time. There are just a few minutes left for the clock to strike 11:00 and some have already been tuning a circuit where Formula 1 is already being breathed in full force. “On Sunday there must not be a speck of dust on the asphalt,” joke those responsible for a race that will have more than 5,000 workers in charge of overseeing every detail: 350,000 fans are expected.
At the same time, the mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, steps down from his official vehicle to savor the curves of the brand-new layout for the first time. He does so two days after the visit of the regional president, Isabel Díaz Ayuso. Waiting for him, among others, are the president of Ifema, José Vicente de los Mozos, and the director of the Grand Prix, Luis García Abad. He arrives accompanied by part of his Government team – the deputy mayor, Inma Sanz; the delegate of Urban Planning, Environment and Mobility, Borja Carabante; the councilor for Economy, Innovation and Finance, Engracia Hidalgo, and the head of Tourism and the San Blas-Canillejas district, Almudena Maíllo – and he has no plans to be taken for a ride. “I drive,” he says without blinking, while some recall some of his tense flirtations with the world of sports. Especially when a ball was involved.
So Almeida adjusts his seat in a bright blue Ford Capri and starts the same 5.4-kilometer route that the Formula 1 drivers will travel 57 times on Sunday to find the first winner in Madring’s history. GRAN MADRID gets into that same vehicle and witnesses the first municipal lap, while De los Mozos throws out brushstrokes about the challenges of a complex that has become a reality in just over a year. “What you see from the outside is already brutal, but achieving this has been a heroism,” the mayor articulates with some amazement, a protagonist along with Ayuso in the official presentation of the layout on June 16. “It is absolutely unrecognizable,” he points out about those Ifema facilities that he says he knows by heart but does not recognize after that almost complete metamorphosis that is still not finished. In fact, he has to dodge obstacles in the form of workers along the journey.
The palm trees go through the hairdresser and Almeida directs his gaze towards the Las Cárcavas area, the origin of some municipal headaches due to neighborhood complaints about engine noise. Some suggest there is another protest that would go in the opposite direction: acoustic panels have been installed to dampen the sound which, however, block the view of some nearby homes… All that and more happens in that microcity of Madring that stopped being a mere dream a long time ago. “It seems unbelievable that we can have this in Madrid and under these conditions,” the mayor manages to say before being shocked by the fierce parabola of La Monumental. “The curve is a spectacle; you only see the sky,” he admits, though without pressing the pedal too much.
– Nervous?
– Not nervous. But we are tense because Formula 1 returns to the city for the first time in four decades. And because there is a security device that must respond. I am sure we will be up to the task, but you always have to be tense to be able to provide solutions to any eventuality. The organization has been complicated, but we have done everything so that everything goes as it should. I insist that there is no better way to get here than by public transport.
They say that Stefano Domenicali, CEO of Formula 1, is thrilled with this new stop on the calendar that aspires to become one of the crown jewels of the schedule. “If all goes well, the trophy will have to be taken to the Cibeles Palace. In a way, it will be like a title,” someone suggested, already on the ground, after the mayor completed, wide-eyed, the just over 500 meters of the main finish straight, which until recently was nothing more than the southern access to the fairgrounds. By the way, next week the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Madrid will be held there and, in October, Fruit Attraction (fruit fair).
Almeida completes his mission at the wheel of the automatic blue Capri, from which he observes Atlético de Madrid’s hospitality – “We will have to stop by,” he says – or negotiates the 22 curves – some with a certain air of La Rascasse from Monte Carlo -. The mayor marks La Monumental, with that 24% banking star, as his favorite point, but also highlights the risks of the first curve: “It will be interesting to see how the drivers negotiate it.” He passes as if nothing through the same place where Lewis Hamilton, during a July express test – filming day – with Ferrari, complained about lack of traction. Logically, with a few kilometers per hour difference between the cars.
– Do you understand the certain skepticism that has surrounded the circuit?
– I understand good-faith skepticism, but not bad-faith skepticism. I understand that facing a challenge of this nature can generate doubts at some point, despite the track record we have in the city of Madrid. But more than skepticism, in certain political and social sectors there is a deep desire for Madrid to fail in this attempt. They will be disappointed again.
“The best in the World Championship”
The mayor enters the labyrinth of corridors and stairs that are the Madring facilities. With those nearly 20,000 hospitality seats finalizing details for the big day. And he looks out onto the terrace where the first winner of the race will uncork his well-deserved bottle of champagne. The first of at least 10 planned according to the signed contract.
– How do you imagine this in 2036?
– As a race already established as the best on the calendar. What is seen in this first year already indicates the great ambition: it will not be just another Grand Prix, but the best in the World Championship. And we will achieve it.
Before leaving Madring, where he will return with the single-seaters roaring on the asphalt, Almeida takes one last look at the horizon. Towards that unrecognizable main straight through which visitors have been accessing for years. When Formula 1 in Madrid was not even a fantasy. “This is a heroism,” he repeats, while Madring, which does not rest, continues to get ready for the most important event of its still short life.
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