Spanish Grand Prix Predictions & Betting tips - Formula 1

Prediction published on 12/09/2026, 13:04  by Devesh Jaganath | Modified on 12/09/2026 at 13:06

With qualifying complete, the Spanish Grand Prix is now in full focus at the brand-new Madring circuit in Madrid on Sunday. Kimi Antonelli leads the F1 Drivers' Championship standings with 267 points, 66 points ahead of teammate George Russell, while Lewis Hamilton is third with 191 points. Let’s get into the race prediction. 

Free Practise on Friday and Saturday suggested that Mercedes would be the team to catch on the first-ever race at the brand-new Madring circuit, but qualifying did not go as planned for the Silver Arrows. 

Instead, it was the reigning world champion Lando Norris, who produced a stunning lap to clinch pole of the 2026 Spanish Grand Prix, clocking a time of 1:31:824, just 0.011s ahead of Kimi Antonelli. 

Norris’ performance was a massive turnaround after a terrible Friday, when his McLaren encountered a gearbox problem that restricted him to just two laps and no time in Free Practice 2. 

Antonelli was the benchmark in FP2 and FP3, and starting alongside the Papaya team on the front row means that he will have an immediate opportunity to attack Norris down the 200m run upto Turn 1. 

Max Verstappen held pole position earlier in the session but eventually finished in P3, alongside Lewis Hamilton, who bounced back impressively after a crash in the final practise session earlier in the day. 

George Russell failed to find his best after going fastest in FP1, and he will start in P6 behind Charles Leclerc. Oscar Piastri, Liam Lawson, Franco Colapinto and Arvid Lindblad were P7 to P10, respectively.