Piastri Clinches His Fifth Victory of the Season at Spanish Grand Prix; Leclerc Finishes Third, Hadjar Scores Points Again
Revved Up in Barcelona: Piastri Wins Spanish GP!
With a blazing start from pole position on the Barcelona circuit, Aussie racer Oscar Piastri snatched his fifth victory of the season during the Spanish Grand Prix on June 1st. Beating his teammate Lando Norris and Monegasque Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), Piastri now leads the Formula 1 World Championship with a 10-point gap over Norris and a whopping 49-point lead over quadruple world champ Dutchman Max Verstappen (Red Bull). The Red Bull Racing star, struggling to keep up, faced a tough day.
Nicknamed "Mad Max," Verstappen locked horns with Leclerc and George Russell (Mercedes) for third place. Despite needing to give way to Russell due to an illegal maneuver, the Dutchman clipped the Brit, landing a 10-second penalty that plummeted him from fifth to tenth. After Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)'s vehicle broke down, triggering a safety car intervention, the event remained rather tame until then, with Red Bull racing an aggressive strategy that worked against Verstappen, who had to belt out three pit stops and finish the race on hard tires that struggled to perform, shattering his podium dreams.
Points Shuffle: Tour de Force
Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber), starting 15th, had a remarkable run: a stellar start and a crafty strategy by his team catapulted him into sixth place, overtaking Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls) and Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) during the race restart after the safety car. Making it across the line in sixth, Hulkenberg moved up to fifth after Verstappen's penalty.
Two out of three Frenchmen wrapped up points, with rookie Isack Hadjar finishing seventh, followed by his compatriot Pierre Gasly (Alpine). Homespun hero Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) nabbed ninth place, garnering his first points for the season. The third Frenchman on the grid, Esteban Ocon (Haas), had an otherwise uneventful race, crossing the line in 16th.
Disclaimer: Information regarding Max Verstappen's penalties can be found in the 2025 Spanish Grand Prix archives, while the Spanish Grand Prix of 2022 remains absent from the search results. Consult historical race reports or official F1 news archives for pertinent details.
Max Verstappen, despite a fierce battle with Leclerc and Russell, received a 10-second penalty for an illegal maneuver, dropping him from potential podium contention to a disappointing 10th position. Despite this setback, French driver Nico Hulkenberg //racing// his way to a strong sixth place finish, later moving up to fifth due to Verstappen's penalty.
