David Coulthard has warned that Formula 1 cannot simply return to the Madring circuit unchanged in 2027, reasoning that the negative fan reaction to its first race demands changes to the layout.
The Spanish capital’s new hybrid street circuit was panned by a large number of drivers and pundits, with a low number of overtakes during the 57-lap event.
Turns 1 and 5 were identified as the most likely overtaking areas, but still required a level of bravery and accuracy to make them stick and avoid contact.
The circuit was completed just in time for the race, and is set for another September race on the 2027 calendar, giving organisers and designers roughly a whole year to implement restructuring.
Speaking on the Up To Speed podcast, former F1 driver Coulthard said the championship has to take the criticism of the race seriously rather than dismiss it.
“I think the fans, we’ve got to listen to them,” he said. “We can’t say, ‘Oh, you’re wrong.’ If they’re saying they think the race was boring, then hey, that’s what they think.
“What we do have is the opportunity to make changes because if we don’t make changes and we come back and have a similar processional race… And Max Verstappen commented that he was not at all concerned when he was being caught by Lando Norris because he said, ‘All I need to do is drive in the middle of the track as you would in Monaco.’
“If we take all that information and come back next year with exactly the same, then put the same cake mix into the oven and expect a different outcome, that’s stupidity.”
Coulthard offers Madring suggestions for 2027
Coulthard went on to offer specific suggestions for how the track could be reworked to encourage more overtaking.
“A good old-fashioned, slower chicane like you have at Monza creates overtaking because you have braking distance,” he added. “The first and second chicanes currently are too fast. So you enter on a shallow line with too much speed.
“Or somewhere around that area, you chuck in a loop, a hairpin loop that encourages people to have a go. That’s the only thing you can do.
“In the middle part of the circuit where it’s all fast and flowing, you can’t do anything because you need the circuit to join up with the end, and you need to get there somehow.”
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