The inaugural Formula 3 race at the Madring ended in a dominant victory for Theophile Nael, but the lack of overtaking left fans worried about what the Spanish Grand Prix might bring.
The newest F1 track in Madrid was expected to provide a glimpse of the chaos that could unfold in Sunday's F1 race. Instead, it delivered a procession. From the start, drivers exploited the wide runoff areas in sector one, cutting Turn 2 entirely and hopping across the roundabout at Turns 5 and 5a. Teams quickly radioed their drivers to give back any gained positions, avoiding steward intervention. Beyond that, the start was surprisingly clean and drivers settled into a rhythm.
A brief yellow flag on lap two for debris caused a moment of intrigue, but there was little action thereafter. Nael cruised to a comfortable win. Worryingly, overtaking was almost non-existent. For the first 12 laps of the 16-lap race, there was not a single notable pass. It wasn't until lap 13 that Taito Kato used DRS to dive past Tukka Tapponen into Turn 5.
Track limits will be a key factor for F1, as violations lit up the timing screens throughout the sprint race. Drivers repeatedly ran wide over the painted kerbs on the inside of corners. However, it's worth noting that F3 will run the first of two feature races later on Saturday, so drivers may have been driving within themselves to avoid damage before the more important race.
Despite five red flags across all categories on Friday, the sprint race ran without disruption. Apart from the lap two yellow, even yellow flags were kept behind the barriers. The dull race will concern fans, given pre-existing fears that the Madring layout lacks overtaking opportunities.
With such a tame show, F1 will need to deliver something special to avoid a similarly processional Spanish Grand Prix.
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