How to watch the 2022 Spanish GP: F1 race start time, TV schedule and live streams

Following the glitz and glamour of the maiden Miami Grand Prix, where Max Verstappen stormed to his third victory of the season, Formula 1 returns to a more traditional venue this weekend with the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

The track is one all drivers know well, with F1’s last visit only being a few months ago for pre-season testing in February.

Although not long ago, the cars will be now much different this weekend with teams having brought many an upgrade along the way, some coming into effect this weekend.

Red Bull have the momentum, but the high downforce, twisty nature of the circuit could suit the Ferrari car with both of its drivers having a point to prove.

Charles Leclerc will want to stop Max Verstappen’s momentum and even it up at three-wins-a-piece.

Meanwhile 51 points behind his championship-leading team-mate, Carlos Sainz is yet to win a race in his F1 career – the pressure will be on for a man fast becoming Ferrari’s second driver.

This weekend may not be the full-on party-like atmosphere that Miami was, but there is still a lot to look out for in this intriguing 2022 championship fight and beyond.

The W Series also returns in Spain following its opening weekend in Miami, and Jamie Chadwick has the chance to make it three wins on the bounce in 2022.

Will the Spanish Grand Prix produce a weekend worth remembering? Here’s when you’ll need to start watching to find out.

How to watch the 2022 F1 Spanish Grand Prix

Tune in live or watch the highlights. Below are all the timings you need to catch this weekend’s action. Times are BST.

Live TV: Every session will be broadcast live on the Sky Sports F1 channel, starting with the FP1 coverage on Friday afternoon.

Live stream: The action can be live streamed using the Sky Go app for anybody that is subscribed to Sky Sports F1. A Now TV membership will also allow people to watch Sky’s live coverage.

Highlights: Channel 4 is showing highlights of qualifying and the race, however that won’t be broadcast until later in the evening. Therefore, should you want something before then, the official Formula 1 YouTube channel will upload shorter highlights soon after each session has finished.

Where to watch every session

All sessions will be live on Sky Sports F1 with coverage building up to each event, as well as a live reaction. Channel 4 will not be broadcasting the free practice sessions.

The whole of Sunday’s coverage will be on Sky Sports F1, while it will also be broadcast on the Sky Sports Main Event channel up until 3pm.

Sky Sports F1 – Live

Friday: FP1 – 12:30pm | FP2 – 3:45pm

Saturday: FP3 – 11:45am | Qualifying – 2:25pm

Sunday: Grand Prix –  12:30pm

Channel 4 – Highlights

Saturday: Qualifying – 6:45pm

Sunday: Grand Prix – 6:30pm

How to stream

Sky’s live coverage of each session is available on NOW TV with a sports membership, and this can be streamed wherever, regardless of location. The app can be downloaded on mobile and tablet devices, as well as a PC, laptop or console. Weekend passes are also available which give you access to the coverage across each session.

Existing Sky subscribers can watch the action using the Sky GO app on mobile and tablet devices, as well as a PC, laptop or console.

Who will win?

Despite the Red Bull momentum, Ferrari arrives into this weekend knowing there is every chance it could have the upper hand on its championship rival.

The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is a track that isn’t heavily reliant on straight-line speed, which is where Red Bull has had the edge in 2022 with a 10km/h advantage in the speed trap around Miami – a similar gap to Ferrari in all the previous rounds.

With 16 turns and only one long straight, but with a very slow chicane at Turns 14 and 15, it’s very hard to carry top speed from the final corner onto the start-finish straight – nullifying the Red Bull advantage.

Therefore, Ferrari arrive in Spain full of confidence and considering the races in 2022 thus far, it is likely its challenge will be spearheaded by Charles Leclerc.

The Scuderia’s main man is currently 51 points ahead of Ferrari team-m Carlos Sainz in the championship, who has allowed mistakes to creep into his game that weren’t usually there before he adopted a championship-contending car.

However, the Spaniard will still have a point to prove, already danger of being considered the number two driver.

Meanwhile Max Verstappen will be looking to make it three consecutive wins at the place where he took his first grand prix victory in 2016.

Mercedes should also be in the midfield fight and have an outside shot of the podium, following its upgrades for the Miami race.

The car was fitted with a new front and rear wing which left it as solid third best in the race, meaning Lewis Hamilton and George Russell are still ones to look out for.

How many laps is the Spanish Grand Prix?

There will be 66 laps around the 2.9-mile Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, resulting in a total race distance of 191.4 miles. There will be two DRS zones with the first being on the start-finish straight, and then the second between Turns 9 and 10.

2022 Spanish GP session times

(All times BST)