Vowles warns Madring could be ’car-wrecking’

James Vowles has added to concerns about Madrid’s new Formula 1 circuit, after Carlos Sainz warned that overtaking could be difficult and urged patience with the venue.

With the inaugural race now less than a week away, the Williams boss said data from the recent Formula 3 test had caught his attention.

"We were surprised by the level of sustained G-forces during the banking, which is four and a half seconds, and that will be a challenge not only for the car but also for the systems," he said.

"There’s nothing like it on the calendar."

Vowles was even more concerned by the damage seen during the F3 running.

"In the Formula 3 test, there were 19 red flags, three broken chassis, and six broken suspensions," the Briton noted.

"Ok, they’re F3 drivers, but it’s a car-wrecking track. It will be interesting to see what happens."

F1 chief executive Stefano Domenicali also commented on Madrid in his meeting with the press at Monza.

"Next Sunday we have Madrid, on a new track where everything is almost ready or will be ready at the last minute. It’s not perfect, but there’s always room for improvement," said the Italian.