Fernando Alonso finally returned to the points at the 2025 F1 Spanish GP, ending a difficult run of form with a spirited ninth-place finish in front of his home crowd. After a dramatic race, the veteran Spaniard admitted he was “pleased” with the result—particularly for the fans who had been cheering him on throughout.
Strong comeback after a gravel run
Alonso’s race was far from straightforward. In the early stages, he suffered a spin that sent his Aston Martin through the gravel trap, seemingly derailing any hope of a top-ten finish. However, the two-time World Champion kept the car running, rejoined the track, and gradually clawed his way back into the fight.
Having dropped to P13, Alonso fought past Liam Lawson to reach 10th position in the 2025 F1 Spanish GP, where the grandstands erupted in support. The cheers grew louder as, post-race, Max Verstappen received a time penalty that dropped him behind Alonso in the classification, promoting the home hero to ninth. This saw Aston Martin claim two points, salvaging a race which saw them fight with only one car in the race.
Alonso reflects on a”more difficult” race than expected
When asked about his first points of the 2025 season, Alonso remained honest in his assessment of the race’s challenges. Though happy with the end result, he made clear that it had been a tough fight.
”Yeah, I’m pleased, pleased for the fans as well, that they were very excited at the end. I saw the people, you know, standing up and things like that in the last few laps. So yeah, happy for them. The race for us was more difficult than anticipated.“
He elaborated on the team’s struggles, particularly with straight-line speed: “We were very slow in the straights. All the moves, we have to be aggressive on Turn 3 on the outside. So not a normal overtaking place, but it’s what we had today. Definitely, I felt more comfortable on Saturday than on Sunday.”
The need for risk-taking at the 2025 F1 Spanish GP
Alonso also touched on the level of aggression required to make progress through the field in such a tightly contested race.
“Yeah, it was a little bit higher level of risk in this race, because overtaking is difficult, following is difficult, it’s killing the tyres.”
“So yeah, we were aggressive, but as I said, I was expecting a little bit more from the race pace. Let’s try to take the points that we scored today and build the momentum from now on.”
A break in the drought
Alonso’s result marks the end of a bleak run, his worst start to a season since his debut in 2001. After eight races without a single point—including a DNF in Monaco—Barcelona delivered some long-overdue relief.
Fittingly, the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is also the venue of Alonso’s last F1 victory, which came back in 2013. More than a decade later, it remains a track where Spanish fans turn out in force—and this time, they had something to celebrate.
