2025 Spanish Grand Prix: Everything F1 Fans Need To Know

Forbes

a day ago

BARCELONA, SPAIN - MAY 29: A general view of the main straight during previews ahead of Round 5 ... More Barcelona of the Formula 3 Championship at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on May 29, 2025 in Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by Malcolm Griffiths - Formula 1/Formula Motorsport Limited via Getty Images)
After a controversial Monaco Grand Prix last week, the first European triple-header of the Formula 1 season ends in Barcelona this weekend with the Spanish Grand Prix.
The mandatory two-stop rule introduced in Monaco to liven up the event failed to do the trick, leaving drivers and team principals disgruntled at the processional nature of the race.
There will be no such thing in place at the Circuit de Catalunya, a track drivers and teams know well as it has long been the home of winter testing.
With a mix of low- and high-speed corners, the track, which is could drop out of the calendar next year when the Spanish Grand Prix moves to Madrid, is particularly testing for tires.
McLaren arrives into the race as the favorite with Oscar Piastri leading the drivers' standings by three points over Lando Norris, who won in Monaco a week ago ahead of Charles Leclerc.
The Papaya is 172 points clear of Mercedes in the constructors' standings with Red Bull four points further adrift.
Here's a number of storylines to keep an eye on ahead of this weekend.
MONTE-CARLO, MONACO - MAY 24: Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing looks on ... More during qualifying ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Monaco at Circuit de Monaco on May 24, 2025 in Monte-Carlo, Monaco (Photo by)
World champion in each of the past four seasons, Verstappen has been the man to beat in Formula 1 since he first dethroned Lewis Hamilton in controversial circumstances on the final race in 2021.
The Dutchman has won twice in seven races this season, but does not expect to add a fifth consecutive world title to his CV.
"I just try to do my best, have a bit of fun out there," he said at a media day as the paddock arrived in Barcelona.
"I'm more excited if I know that we're going to be super quick. That's the most exciting. I always try to do my best, but this year so far it had some real positives, but of course also some negatives.
"With some races we are really off the pace, which is not enjoyable.
"That also doesn't mean that I'm enjoying it or loving it. I like it. Up until this point it's not going to be remembered forever."
Red Bull has struggled in circuits with low speed corners, but should be faring much better in Spain this weekend, due to the Circuit de Catalunya's mixture of medium and high-speed corners.
And Oscar Piastri, who leads the standings with a 25-point gap over Verstappen, suggested the Dutchman remains as dangerous an opponent as ever.
"I don't think he can be counted out," the Australian said.
"The gap is not very large at the moment, and they've genuinely been competitive at a decent number of circuits now.
"Of course, there's been weekends where we've been stronger, but they've been developing their car, they've been finding more performance, so I think at this point, Max is definitely still in the fight."
McLaren's British driver Lando Norris sprays champagne as he celebrates on the podium after winning ... More the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix at the Circuit de Monaco, on May 25, 2025. (Photo by Andrej ISAKOVIC / AFP) (Photo by ANDREJ ISAKOVIC/AFP via Getty Images)
Victory in Monaco last weekend was much-needed tonic for Lando Norris, who was in danger of watching teammate Oscar Piastri disappear into the distance in the drivers' standings.
Norris' second win of the season cut the gap from the Australian, who has already won four races, to three points.
For his part, the Briton suggested winning in Monaco was not a cure to all ills.
'What I felt this weekend was a small step forward,' he said. 'But it's not it. It's not like I've nailed it now and everything's back.'
Last year, the Briton started on pole in Barcelona with Piastri 10th and finished second behind Max Verstappen, some 30 seconds ahead of his McLaren teammate in seventh.
A repeat of the same scenario is unlikely this weekend, but Norris must live up to his tag of pre-season favorite and McLaren's No1 driver.
Ferrari's Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc looks on as he sits in his car in the garage during ... More qualifying for the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix at the Circuit de Monaco, on May 24, 2025. (Photo by Andrej ISAKOVIC / POOL / AFP) (Photo by ANDREJ ISAKOVIC/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Charles Leclerc secured only his second podium of the season a week ago in Monaco, coming second behind Lando Norris, Ferrari's highest finish in a Grand Prix this season.
So can the Scuderia build on an unexpected positive result? Not according to the Monegasque, who remains downbeat about his and his team's prospects this season.
'We've got to reset a bit our expectations going into this weekend compared to a weekend like Monaco where it was a bit more positive,' Leclerc told the media in Barcelona.
'However, it doesn't change our approach.
"More than an extreme setup, the balance that we are trying to target is very, very aggressive this year and we've got to run like that and that doesn't change now. So we are still in the same situation for this.'
Both Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton have struggled to get the best out of the SF-25 so far this season, with the pair complaining the rear end of their Ferrari feels unstable going into corners.
The Scuderia has also lacked pace in qualifying leaving the duo playing catch up, but Ferrari showed good pace in Monaco with Leclerc qualifying second and Hamilton fourth, before receiving a three-spot penalty for impeding Max Verstappen.
TOPSHOT - McLaren's British driver Lando Norris drives during qualifying for the Formula One Monaco ... More Grand Prix at the Circuit de Monaco, on May 24, 2025. (Photo by Gabriel BOUYS / AFP) (Photo by GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP via Getty Images)
Another weekend, another set of new rules coming into effect. A week ago, Monaco saw the introduction of a mandatory two-stop rule, which was meant to liven up a soporific event but only succeeded in making the race look even more of a procession.
This week in Barcelona, Formula 1 will introduce stiffer tests on front wing flexibility, which can be exploited to enhance aerodynamics.
Teams use clever carbon-fibre techniques to create flexible front wings, which allow them to balance car performance between high-speed and low-speed corners.
These wings also increase top speed on straights by reducing drag, without sacrificing cornering performance, as the wing naturally lifts at lower speeds when the car turns.
In practical terms, wings will have to flex less for a given amount of weight applied to them in official tests carried out by the FIA - world's motorsport governing body.
McLaren's rivals have long complained its front wings are among the most flexible on the grid, but the Woking-based team has not brought wholesale changes to Barcelona.
'There are little tweaks here and there but nothing that will change how we have to do anything,' Norris said.