F1 Spanish Grand Prix Race Report
- Matt Hylen
- Jun 5
- 10 min read
Updated: Jun 9
Round 9 and the final race of the triple header is done and dusted, and man, was it entertaining. Controversy was the name of the game this weekend, as we saw multiple penalties and collisions. A Safety Car riled things up tenfold, causing a major shakeup in the race to the finish line. Additionally, the new front wing regulations did not seem to change much at the top of the field, as it was another day in the office for the Papaya team.
Before we review how each team fared this weekend, a couple of things to mention:
Formula One has two main championship competitions. The first is the Drivers' Championship, which is a competition based on the drivers' individual performance. On a non-Sprint style weekend, the drivers who finish in the top 10 in each race will score points (the higher you place, the more points you get). These points are added up, and whichever driver finishes with the most points at the end of the season will win the Drivers' Championship.
The next is the Constructors' Championship, a competition between the teams. The number of points the drivers within a team get each race is combined, creating the total points for the team (e.g., Lando Norris has scored 176 points and Oscar Piastri has scored 186 points, giving the McLaren team 362 points in the Constructors' Championship). The team whose drivers accumulate the most points combined for their team will win the Constructors' Championship.
Also, 21 drivers will be listed within the Drivers' Championship Standings, as Franco Colapinto replaced Jack Doohan at Alpine.
Now, here is a look at the standings for both Championships:
Drivers' Championship Standings:
Oscar Piastri 186 points
Lando Norris 176 points
Max Verstappen 137 points
George Russell 111 points
Charles Leclerc 94 points
Lewis Hamilton 71 points
Andrea Kimi Antonelli 48 points
Alexander Albon 42 points
Isak Hadjar 21 points
Esteban Ocon 20 points
Nico Hulkenberg 16 points
Lance Stroll 14 points
Carlos Sainz 12 points
Pierre Gasly 11 points
Yuki Tsunoda 10 points
Oliver Bearman 6 points
Liam Lawson 4 points
Fernando Alonso 2 points
Gabriel Bortoleto 0 points
Jack Doohan 0 points
Franco Colapinto 0 points
Constructors' Championship Standings:
McLaren 362 points
Ferrari 165 points
Mercedes 159 points
Red Bull 144 points
Williams 54 points
VCARB 28 points
Haas 26 points
Kick Sauber 16 points
Aston Martin 16 points
Alpine 11 points
Standings were found at F1.com.
Alpine
Alpine looked decent this weekend, as they were able to scrape away with a couple of points. Franco Colapinto qualified 19th (started 18th) and finished 15th, while Pierre Gasly started and finished in 8th.
Though the car was not amazing around Barcelona, Gasly was able to make the best of it. He kept his car clean and was able to maintain his position without any major threat. I will say, however, I am quite concerned about the lack of sparks coming from Franco Colapinto.
Franco took the world by storm last year, instantly becoming a fan favorite not only with his personality but with his performance on track. Granted, Alpine is far off from having a truly competitive car, but we are just not seeing that same spark from Colapinto that we saw from him at Williams a season ago. With Team Principal Flavio Briatore admitting that he has not committed to Colapinto, Franco needs to step it up and find something fast before it's too late.
Aston Martin
Aston Martin only had one car to drive in the race this weekend, but were still able to score some points. Lance Stroll qualified 14th but did not participate in the race due to a wrist injury, while Fernando Alonso qualified 10th and finished 9th.
Aston Martin has looked a lot better as of late, especially during this triple header. Even with an unfortunate finish in Monaco, the car pace-wise was right up there in Imola, Monaco, and this past weekend in Spain.
Fernando Alonso drove brilliantly all weekend long, which resulted in his first points of the season. It's crazy to think, considering how he has looked so far this season, that Spain was his first points-scoring race, but what better place to do it than your home race!
The biggest concern for Aston Martin right now is the status of Lance Stroll. The wrist injury that kept him out of the Grand Prix was a re-aggravated injury that he suffered at the start of the 2021 season. If an injury that occurred two years ago could be re-aggravated from a qualifying session in which he did not crash, Stroll has a bigger problem on his hands. Whether he will miss extended time has yet to be announced, but I am sure the team will try to get him ready for his home race in Canada next time out.
Ferrari
Ferrari took advantage of the opportunities given to them this weekend, but also got taken advantage of in other parts. Charles Leclerc qualified 7th and finished 3rd, while Lewis Hamilton qualified 5th and finished 6th.
Ferrari seemed to be on for a mediocre race until the Safety Car hit. This put Leclerc, on a fresh set of tires, right behind Max Verstappen, who originally was quite a bit ahead. Since Max was on hard tires, Leclerc was able to overtake him with ease and secure a podium finish. Leclerc was definitely not the fastest this weekend, but he hung in there until the very end. He shook off his poor qualifying performance, managed his tires beautifully, and overtook Verstappen quickly, which is not an easy thing to do. Leclerc did exactly what he needed to do in order to score the maximum points he could, which is all Ferrari could have asked for.
Hamilton, on the other hand, was less fortunate. Instead of helping, the Safety Car put Hamilton in a vulnerable position, as he did not have a new set of tires to change onto. This caused the likes of an Alfa Romeo to overtake Hamilton on merit, which, if you told me this would happen before the race, I would have been shocked. However, this has been the story of Hamilton's season thus far. There have been too many unknown variables as to why his pace has been what it has been, with too many miscommunications and a lack of communication on top of it.
The worst part is that Lewis just looks sad out there. His motivation and drive, which have been the keys to his legendary success, just are not there at the moment. You can tell in the way he is driving, as well as the way he has been talking to the media. Overall, this is definitely not what Hamilton envisioned when he left Mercedes for Ferrari.
Haas
Haas disappointed once again this weekend, proving that their car is too inconsistent to be considered a true midfield contender. Esteban Ocon qualified 17th (started 16th) and finished 16th, while Oliver Bearman qualified 15th (started 14th) and finished 17th due to a 10-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage.
Haas just can't make up their mind. One weekend, they look like the 5th or 6th best team, and others, they look like the slowest car on the grid. Ocon looked horrific all weekend long, while Bearman made it five races in a row without coming that close to scoring a point. Their strategy was poor, which caused Bearman to fight Lawson for too long (which got him penalized), while also giving Ocon no chance at improving whatsoever.
Haas has a lot to fix if they don't want to fall out of midfield contention. The car needs to be quicker and more consistent, but the drivers also need to find a way to aid the car. Bearman and Ocon have had flashes of greatness, but overall have been disappointing this season. The pace can be found; we have seen it on multiple occasions. It is just a matter of having more good weekends than bad.
Kick Sauber
I mean, my goodness, what a performance from Kick Sauber! For the first time in a long, long time, we saw Kick Sauber have a competitive car that both drivers capitalized on. Gabriel Bortoleto qualified and finished 12th, while Nico Hulkenberg qualified 16th (started 15th) and finished 5th.
You could not have possibly dreamed of a better race if you're Kick Sauber. Considering where they have been all season long, this could very well end up being the biggest surprise result of the season. It was not just luck, though; both Bortoleto and Hulkenberg looked fantastic when it mattered most. The fact that Nico was able to climb all the way up to a points-scoring position before the Safety Car was remarkable. Not only that, but overtaking a Ferrari to secure a top-five finish capped off the perfect weekend for him and the team.
Spain showed what both Hulkenberg and Bortoleto can do if given a competitive car. Both drove cleanly and flawlessly, and though Bortoleto did not come away with points, a 12th place finish in qualifying and the race is a great achievement for a rookie. Overall, this weekend just makes it all the more exciting for when Nico and Gabriel drive for Audi next season.
McLaren
New regulations? No problem.
McLaren was dominant once again this weekend, proving that these new regulations have no effect on the car's performance. Lando Norris qualified and finished in 2nd, while Oscar Piastri qualified and finished in 1st.
Not too much to say about McLaren after this weekend, other than they were absolutely dominant. Both drivers kept things clean and left zero opportunity for anyone to compete with them. In a weekend that many thought would be a turning point in the season, it was, but just not in the way they were hoping for.
McLaren is so far past anyone on the grid in terms of pace, and unless a team can make multiple significant upgrades while McLaren stalls, it is very difficult to see McLaren losing either Championship this season.
Mercedes
I feel as though this photo sums up this triple header that Mercedes had. George Russell qualified and finished 4th, while Kimi Antonelli qualified 6th and did not finish the race due to a mechanical failure.
Mercedes looked better this weekend; however, they still cannot figure out how to improve their performance in hot temperatures. This was a massive problem last season that has carried into this season. Despite Russell's strong finish, Mercedes lost their 2nd place in the Constructors' Championship, which is due to no one but themselves.
One could even say Russell was lucky to have finished 4th. A late dive into turn 1 on Max Verstappen had a penalty absolutely in the cards, but he was bailed out by the stewards. This then caused him to get bumped into by Verstappen, which did not affect his race but did cause some controversy as to why he was not given a penalty for the move beforehand. All in all, you take what you can get in this sport, so Mercedes will be glad they were able to get a top-four finish after failing Antonelli.
VCARB
VCARB had another productive and strong weekend, as they gained another place in the Constructors' Championship. Liam Lawson qualified 13th and finished 11th, while Isak Hadjar qualified 9th and finished 7th.
Isak Hadjar may be the biggest surprise of the season. After what happened in his F1 debut in Australia, he has come so far and has given VCARB some incredible results. Coming away with points in all three races of the triple header proved that Hadjar is legit and is here to stay. Let's just hope he isn't a victim of his own success and gets called up to Red Bull anytime soon.
Lawson also had a pretty solid weekend. Though points were off the table for him this weekend, he had some nice battles while not getting too aggressive. All Lawson needs to do is make the gap to Hadjar smaller and smaller, and yes, he is doing that, but at a slow pace. If the car is this good, Lawson will need to compete for points while he still can if he wants to keep his seat.
Red Bull
Oooooh boy...
It is still early in the season, but this feels like rock bottom for Red Bull. After this weekend, it is hard to picture a world where they truly compete for anything this year. Yuki Tsunoda qualified 20th (started 19th) and finished 13th, while Max Verstappen qualified 3rd and finished 10th due to a 10-second penalty for causing a collision.
Red Bull absolutely collapsed in every facet this weekend. Yuki Tsunoda was incredibly slow, through no real fault of his own, while Verstappen had to fight for his life all race long. The car is in shambles right now, as we saw that Spain was one of those weekends where the "but he was the best driver on the grid" card couldn't save them.
On top of this, the team was the reason Max Verstappen lost his cool in the race. Not only did they put Max on hard tires when they pitted under the safety car (which was never going to be a good decision, no matter which way you looked at it), but Red Bull was never officially told by the FIA to inform Max to give the position back to Russell. Yet, they told him anyway, which caused Verstappen to have a meltdown and intentionally collide with Russell.
Honestly, Verstappen was lucky to have only received a 10-second penalty. What he did was absolutely grounds for a disqualification. Granted, he did receive 3 penalty points, putting him one away from a one-race ban, but Red Bull should be counting their lucky stars that they only escaped with what they got. There is no place for racing like that in F1, which I hope Verstappen and the team will acknowledge going forward.
Williams
Williams had a dreadful weekend in Spain, showing zero pace all weekend long. Alex Albon qualified 11th and did not finish the race due to damage to his car, while Carlos Sainz qualified 18th (started 17th) and finished 14th.
After a fantastic start to the year, Williams took a major step back in Spain. Looking like the Williams of old, neither Albon nor Sainz could manage the car. Though this could absolutely be a one-off sort of situation where the style of track did not suit their car, Williams have VCARB right on their tail now. The gap is still big for Williams, but they can't afford many weekends like Spain, or else that lead will diminish very quickly.
With that said, I have the belief that Williams will be just fine. They have shown enough for me to believe that this was an outlier, and that they will be back to their usual form come Canada. The team has come too far to fall off this drastically, while the team has too much to play for this to be a recurring theme. Williams should not panic just yet.
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Until next time!
-Matt Hylen
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