How to follow Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix on the BBC

Round seven of the 2026 Formula 1 campaign heads to Spain – the first of two races in the country this season – for the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix from 12-14 June.

Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli secured his fifth consecutive victory of the season in Monaco to extend his advantage at the top of the drivers’ championship to 66 points.

Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton was on the podium once again in second place and has now moved above George Russell in the standings.

Russell has dropped to third, 68 points behind team-mate Antonelli, after failing to score points for the second race weekend in a row.

Lights out at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya will be at 14:00 BST.

Commentary of the race will be available across BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC Sounds and the BBC Sport website and app.

You can also listen by asking most smart speakers to “play BBC Radio 5 Live” or “play BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra”.

Make sure to listen to every episode of the Chequered Flag podcast. For the first time this year, the post-race show for every grand prix is available to watch on BBC iPlayer and YouTube, external.

All times BST.

Friday, 12 June

First practice: 12:30-13:30 (Sports Extra via BBC Sounds and smart speakers)

Second practice: 16:00-17:00 (Sports Extra via BBC Sounds and smart speakers)

Saturday, 13 June

Third practice: 11:30-12:30 (Sports Extra 2 via BBC Sounds and smart speakers)

Qualifying: 15:00-16:00 (Sports Extra 2 via BBC Sounds and smart speakers)

Sunday, 14 June

Race: 14:00 (BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC Sounds and smart speakers)

The weather forecast predicts a hot, dry and sunny weekend in Spain.

Friday’s practice sessions and Saturday’s qualifying are set to be sunny with light winds, with temperatures reaching highs of between 26C and 28C.

For Sunday’s grand prix, which starts at 3pm local time, the weather will again be nice, with a top temperature of 27C during the race.

You may have noticed a name change to the race in Barcelona, as it is no longer the ‘Spanish Grand Prix’ but instead, it is the ‘Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix’.

The Spanish Grand Prix will now be held in Madrid from 11-13 September at the Madring, a new purpose-built, 22-corner track which uses both public roads and private land.

This is the last year both Barcelona and Belgium’s famous Spa-Francorchamps circuit will appear on the calendar at the same time, as the two circuits will then alternate until 2032.

Barcelona begins the influx of rookies taking part in first practice, as each full-time driver is mandated to give up their seat for a newbie during two practice sessions throughout the season.

American Colton Herta is making his first Formula 1 appearance this weekend, sitting in for Sergio Perez over at Cadillac in the opening hour.

The 26-year-old former IndyCar driver made the move to Formula 2 with Hitech this season and is 13th in the standings.

Also new to FP1 is Leo Fornaroli. The 21-year-old Italian won back-to-back titles in Formula 3 and Formula 2 and has been picked up by McLaren as a reserve driver for the 2026 season.

Mercedes

Fred Vesti – replaces Kimi Antonelli

Ferrari

Dino Beganovic – replaces Lewis Hamilton

McLaren

Leo Fornaroli – replaces Lando Norris

Red Bull

Ayumu Iwasa – replaces Isack Hadjar

Williams

Luke Browning – replaces Alex Albon

Audi

Paul Aron – replaces Nico Hulkenberg

Cadillac

Colton Herta – replaces Sergio Perez