FORMULA ONE will have two Grand Prix events in Spain next year following the announcement of the 2026 calendar.
The last time the country did this was between 2008 and 2012.
The first was in Barcelona which remains a host for next year, while the second host – rather than Madrid – was Valencia for the European Grand Prix was the Valencia Street Circuit.
Located near the port of Valencia, the F1 track record at the 3.4-mile circuit was set by Timo Glock in 2009 with a time of 1:38.683, though Fernando Alonso was the last race winner at the circuit.
However, the track was far from popular with drivers for its mundane layout and eventually a lack of interest and funding saw F1 move away.
The deal to bring it to F1 had allegedly been part of an election promise between former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone and Valmor Sport group, led by former motorcycle racer Jorge “Aspar” Martínez and Villarreal CF’s president Fernando Roig.
But when Valmor went bankrupt through taking care of all the costs involved in running the races, the tracks seven-year deal was cut down to five and dug a financial hole worth £255million in debt.
An estimated £87m is said to have been paid to Ecclestone, while there were also considerable costs for the construction of the circuit, television broadcasting and various invoices related to the organisation.
All told, the Generalitat Valenciana had to fork out a bill of more than £85m to cover the losses.
And the circuit itself has been left in a state of disrepair after being closed in 2013.
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Some of it was converted back to walkways for the public.
But the majority of the track looks like something out of an urban jungle.
Weeds have overtaken the slip roads on the site, rust has taken root on old safety barriers, and access tunnels have been flooded.
Buildings on the site look every hour of their age, with a repurposed 19th-century warehouse showing signs of needing a major paint job.
The track itself has not fared much better, with heaps of rubbish seen lying across it while weeds and plants grow out from under the kerbs of the circuit.
Pit markings and tyre burns can also be seen over what was not cleared away, while there is even still some evidence of race sponsors from never-removed hoardings to painted pavement which has faded over time.
Thieves have also had their way with what was left at the site.
Anything valuable that might have been left over from the days of F1 has been gutted out.
There was hope for the site in 2022 when an investment group was in talks with the City Council to reclaim the space, turning it into housing and flats for residents.
