Barcelona set to host surprise major motorsport event after F1 calendar rotation
Barcelona will host a new major motorsport event in 2027 in F1's absence.
Barcelona is reportedly set to host a round of the IndyCar Series from next season.
The former home of the Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix, the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, has agreed a multi-year deal to host an IndyCar round beginning from 2027, as first reported by El Periodico.
The IndyCar race is set to be held in July next year.
Barcelona will not feature on the F1 calendar next season but the venue will remain on the schedule until 2032 after a deal was reached for the event to be staged in a yearly rotation with the Belgian Grand Prix.
The Spanish Grand Prix moved to its new home in the Spanish capital Madrid this year, with the Barcelona round being renamed the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix. It was the scene of Lewis Hamilton’s first win for Ferrari.
F1 will return to Barcelona in 2028, 2030 and 2032 as part of the new agreement.
IndyCar’s agreement with Barcelona is good news for five-time champion Alex Palou, who will now have a race on home soil.
It will be IndyCar’s first race outside of North America since the Sao Paulo Indy 300 in Brazil in 2013, as well as marking the first time the series has visited Spain.
Palou will head into his home race as the reigning IndyCar champion, having won the title for the fifth time during the 2026 season.
It marked the 29-year-old’s fourth consecutive title, and fifth IndyCar title in six seasons.
Palou is the first Spanish driver to win a national championship in American open-wheel racing history, as well as being the first Spaniard to win the legendary Indianapolis 500.
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