Can you feel the heat?

Temperatures are rising on and off the track as we head into the final leg of the second triple-header of the hotly anticipated 2020 Formula 1 season.

The campaign is really kicking into gear now and Catalunya is calling, so to make sure you’re all set for the Spanish Grand Prix here’s our latest preview where you can hear from home favourite Carlos Sainz, as well as Lando Norris and McLaren F1 Team Principal Andreas Seidl.

Not only that, but we point out a few things to watch out for this weekend and provide the lowdown on our latest competition that’s guaranteed to spice up your summer.

How to follow

What they say

“I can’t wait to be racing at my home grand prix this weekend! However, it’s disappointing not to have all the fans at the track and in my grandstand showing their support, but it’s the right thing to do and it’s important everyone can stay safe and watch at home. I’ll be running a very special helmet this weekend as well, so watch out for it.

“It’s been a very frustrating start to the season for me, but we keep pushing together as a team to maximise our performance. The competition around us is fierce and looks like it’s taken a step forward, that’s why losing those many points in the previous races hurts, but we’re focused on ourselves as we head to Spain and know that we must keep pushing. A new race is a new opportunity. I’m determined to hit the ground running and get a good result on home soil!”

“We had a difficult race last weekend, but I'm ready to get back in the car and go again in Barcelona. Spain is a track that has a bit of everything with a mix of low and high-speed corners. I’m expecting it to be a challenging race especially given the August heat. As a team we need to stay focused and take everything we’ve learned so far to produce the best performance on track this weekend.

“It feels like a long time ago since we were in Spain for pre-season testing. Finally, being able to race in Barcelona will give us a good idea of how the car’s developed since February and what areas we still need to improve.”

"Having spent two weekends at Lando’s and the team’s home circuit, we now head to Spain for Carlos’ home grand prix. Normally we’d expect to see thousands of passionate McLaren and Carlos fans in the grandstands cheering us on, and we’ll miss their support, but holding the race behind closed doors is absolutely the right thing to ensure the safety of all our fans.

“All the teams know the Barcelona circuit well, given the two weeks of pre-season testing we completed here in February, but racing in August, with elevated ambient and track temperatures, will bring a new challenge. We’ve already seen at Silverstone what warmer temperatures can do to the tyres, so managing them well will be crucial over the weekend. With this in mind, it should be an exciting race for everyone watching back at home.”

What the stats say

Along with the many testing miles Carlos and Lando have completed at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya – in 2020 pre-season testing alone, the pair racked up a total of 2,320 miles between them, the duo have got plenty of competitive experience at the track. Home hero Carlos always puts on a great show for his adoring fans and he has never finished outside the points at his home grand prix since he started racing in F1 back in 2015. Meanwhile, Lando has stood on the podium here, as recently as 2018 when he bagged a brace of third-place finishes in Formula 2.

McLaren has eight Spanish GP victories to its name, with four of them coming at this particular venue. Mika Häkkinen completed a hat-trick by winning in ’98, ’99, and 2000, while his fellow countryman Kimi Räikkönen romped to victory behind the wheel of the MP4-20 in 2005.

What to watch out for

Rain? In Spain? Not a chance this weekend folks. At the risk of making a weather forecasting blunder on a par with Michael Fish, we’re going to confidently say that we’re in for another scorching weekend at the track. Although the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is about 1,000 miles away from Silverstone, we can expect more of the same from our old friend Mr Blue Sky. Yep, this weekend looks set to be drier than Räikkönen’s sense of humour. The Spanish track also boasts a very abrasive surface, so tyres are set for little respite after a torturous fortnight at Silverstone. Similarly to the Northamptonshire track, the front left is in for a particularly tough time of things through the punishing, fast right-handers of Turns Three, Nine and 16.

It’s probably just as well then that the tyre allocation for all teams this weekend goes a step harder, with the C1, C2 and C3 tyres available. Identical to the allocation for the British Grand Prix, teams can wave goodbye to the C4 tyre which wasn’t suitable for the race or necessarily the optimum choice for qualifying last time out.

It’s not just the tyres that will be put to the test, the cars will too. With its mix of slow, medium and high-speed corners, there’s good reason for teams choosing to pound around the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for hundreds of laps during pre-season testing every February. It’s an excellent test of a car. And if a car is quick around here, it tends to be quick pretty much anywhere. You can expect the cream to well and truly rise to the top this weekend.

What to wear

Now, we couldn’t head to Carlos’ home race without launching two brand-new, spicy numbers in the shape of a special edition cap and t-shirt. They are the perfect combo to show your support for the man who goes by the name ‘Chili’ and turn up the heat as far as your summer style is concerned. 

Plus one

‘Give it away, give it away, give it away now.
Give it away, give it away, give it away now.
Give it away, give it away, give it away now.’

So said another famous chili pepper… Well, it’s exactly what we’re doing this week by giving away one humungous Carlos Sainz bundle. Short of us wrapping Carlos up and mailing him straight to your doorstep, it’s the most Carlos prize you could ever wish for. We’re talking a cap, t-shirt and replica helmet all signed by the man himself. There’s loads more too, including a team flag and a #WeRaceAsOne fan bundle – yeah, we didn’t think you could get a bundle within a bundle either, but we made it happen. Oh, and there are also enough bottles of Estrella Galicia 0,0 to keep you suitably refreshed for the rest of the summer.

So what are you waiting for? To get your hands on all this Sainz swag, just complete the form below. Vamos!

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