Phl flag flies high in F1-Madrid

Somewhere in the mad rush of speeding cars in the heart-thumping mayhem that is the Formula 1 Grand Prix, which made its debut at the new Madring circuit in Madrid just this weekend, the Philippine flag waved proudly.

Along with F1’s checkered flags and motorsports enthusiasts’ merchandise of their favorite F1 teams, a distinctly Filipino brand stood out – tycoon Edgar “Injap” Sia II’s 680-room sprawling Hotel101-Madrid served as the backdrop to the crowd-filled circuit.

And even before Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli emerged as the winner of F1 Madrid on Sept. 13, Sia’s DoubleDragon Corp. already claimed its own victory.

In less than five months since it opened in March 2026, DoubleDragon’s Hotel101-Madrid has reached the milestone of 5,000 international customer reviews on Booking.com, earning a high 9.1 out of 10 rating.

Furthermore, Hotel101-Madrid achieved 100 percent occupancy on many occasions since its opening in March 2026 and especially during the historic race weekend, DoubleDragon also said.

“This performance advances the company’s vision of expanding to one million uniform Hotel101 rooms across 100 countries worldwide, in line with DoubleDragon’s goal to eventually make Hotel101 become the largest single-brand uniform hotel chain in the world,” it also said.

For the F1-Madrid weekend, Sia was seen with fellow tycoon Tony Tan Caktiong, co-chairman of DoubleDragon, and DoubleDragon’s independent director Vince Perez Jr., among others, celebrating Hotel101-Madrid’s milestone.

US-based investment analyst Eric Jurado, in a commentary, said Hotel101-Madrid’s 9.1 “Wonderful” rating on Booking.com is particularly impressive.

“Ratings at this level are more commonly associated with significantly more expensive five-star hotels in Madrid’s upscale Salamanca district. For this high-demand Formula 1 weekend, rooms are currently pricing at approximately $527 per night, or about $1,581 for three nights. Weekend prices have also reportedly reached approximately 2,000 to 2,500 euros.

“And Formula 1 is only part of the opportunity,” he said.

Located right next to IFEMA, one of Europe’s largest exhibition centers, Hotel101-Madrid is also well positioned for football fans visiting Ciudad Real Madrid, where Real Madrid’s teams train, as well as visitors exploring Madrid itself.

Jurado said all this potentially means strong occupancy and meaningful room revenue.

“But the bigger story, in my view, is the business model behind it. Hotel101 Global Holdings (Nasdaq: HBNB) is creating ‘one global hotel room’ – the ‘Happy Room.’ Whether in Madrid, Niseko, Los Angeles, Milan or Melbourne, Hotel101 properties are designed around a standardized 21-square-meter hotel room, with the same layout, furnishings and amenities.

“Same room. Same experience. Different countries,” Jurado said.

This radical standardization, he said, is giving Hotel101 the kind of operational consistency and scalability more commonly associated with fast-food chains than traditional hotels.

“And here is what I find particularly interesting as an investor: imagine owning one or two Hotel101-Madrid units when the property was being developed and participating in the hotel revenues generated by a weekend like this,” Jurado also said.

Sold out

Unfortunately, Hotel101-Madrid units are now sold out, Jurado said, but he noted that Hotel101-Niseko, scheduled to open in December 2026, still has units available, offering investors an opportunity to participate in the same broader Hotel101 model in one of Japan’s most popular ski destinations.

This is good news for the Philippines – a homegrown Philippine brand is making waves abroad, showing the world that yes, the Filipino can.

It’s especially a welcome development given the challenging environment both here and abroad.

It’s also good news for investors who believed in the business and decided to park their funds on condotels like Hotel101.

For sure, Sia has made his bet early, anticipating the need to spread his businesses across the globe instead of just putting DoubleDragon’s eggs in one basket.

Island of opportunities

Speaking of opportunities, the Philippines has invited Chinese businesses to look beyond the country as a market and see it as a partner for growth, as it showcased opportunities in services, tourism, trade and agribusiness at the recently concluded China International Fair for Trade in Services 2026.

Ambassador Jaime FlorCruz, in promoting the Philippines at the Philippine Country Promotion Forum, highlighted the country’s young and talented workforce, growing economy, service capabilities and strategic location in Southeast Asia and the wider Pacific.

“Trade today is no longer about just physical goods being shipped across borders. Increasingly, we also trade knowledge, skills, technology and services,” Ambassador FlorCruz said in a statement.

FlorCruz also said that the two countries’ strengths can complement each other.

“China brings strong capabilities in technology, digital platforms, logistics and infrastructure, while the Philippines offers its people, growing market, service capabilities, resources and strategic location.”

As proof of a success story of the complementing strengths of Philippines and China, the country forum featured Liwayway, the Philippine company owned by taipan Carlos Chan, as an example of a Philippine enterprise that has built a long-standing presence in the Chinese market.

The company is behind the Oishi snack foods brand.

“Our ‘Islands of opportunity’ are not defined only by what we produce. They are also found in the skills of our people, the services we provide, the ideas we develop and ultimately the partnerships we can build – with you,” FlorCruz said.

Hopefully, amid the geopolitical tensions, businesses and people-to-people exchanges can co-exist and perhaps help the succeeding generations of Filipino and Chinese people find the path to peace.

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Email: [email protected]. Follow her on X @eyesgonzales. Column archives at EyesWideOpen on FB.