The 2012 Spanish Grand Prix was the last time that Williams won a Formula 1 race and the only time Venezuelan Pastor Maldonado tasted victory in F1.
Now 39 years old, Pastor Maldonado raced in Formula 1 on 96 occasions but his outing at the Circuit de Catalunya was the only time he finished on the podium.
Twelve years later, Formula 1 is once again preparing to return to Barcelona for the 10 race of the 2024 season.
It might be a race that drivers have to savour with Madrid hosting a race on the calendar from 2026 and no guarantees that there will be two Spanish races in the future.
Looking back at that race, it’s fascinating to see where each of the drivers who finished in the top ten of the Spanish Grand Prix that day are now.
Unsurprisingly, several have shown they have incredible stamina and are still on the grid today.
1st – Pastor Maldonado – Williams
Pastor Maldonado had just started his second Formula 1 season with Williams when he won the Spanish Grand Prix back in 2012.
He had only scored points in one of the first four races that season before heading to Barcelona and eventually finished the campaign in 15 in the Drivers’ Championship.
Maldonado moved to Lotus in 2014 and lost his seat at the end of the following season, developing a reputation for crashing more often than not.
The most dramatic moment of that weekend was when Williams’s garage burst into flames during their celebrations, as retold on the Bring Back V10s Podcast.
The Venezuelan then spent two years as Pirelli’s test driver before moving on to endurance racing, competing for the last time in 2019.
2nd – Fernando Alonso – Ferrari
The first driver still on the grid that raced that day is Fernando Alonso and he may be frustrated that he didn’t go on to win in his home race 12 years ago.
The two-time world champion is now driving for Aston Martin and has signed a deal that will mean he’s racing in F1 until at least the end of the 2026 season.
His 32 race wins and 106 podiums is an extraordinary record, however, he missed out on adding a third title to his collection in 2012 by just three points on the final day of the season.
3rd – Kimi Raikkonen – Lotus
Kimi Raikkonen is another driver who appeared as though he was never going to end his time in Formula 1.
Another former champion, he led the Lotus team this season before leaving at the end of the following season to drive for Ferrari.
After five campaigns with the Scuderia, Raikkonen saw out his F1 career at Alfa Romeo, eventually retiring at the end of the 2021 season with more than 350 races to his name.
Raikkonen took part in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2022 and 2023 but hasn’t raced in 2024 yet.
4th – Romain Grosjean – Lotus
Romain Grosjean went into the 2012 Spanish Grand Prix off the back of his first-ever podium in F1 in Bahrain at the previous round.
He had been on the cusp of a full-time race seat for years and was finally given his chance with the British team.
Grosjean never went on to win an F1 race like Maldonado but did have nine full seasons in the sport, mainly with Haas.
His Formula 1 career ended in dramatic fashion as he escaped a horrendous crash at the site of his first podium in 2020.
Since then, Grosjean has raced in IndyCar, but once again has been a regular visitor to the podium without securing that elusive win.
5th – Kamui Kobayashi – Sauber
One of the most successful Japanese drivers in the history of Formula 1, Kamui Kobayashi was a consistent performer throughout his four full seasons in the sport.
After a late outing in Toyota’s final two races in F1 in 2009, Kobayashi was signed up by Sauber for the next three years.
A single podium at his home race in Japan in 2012 was the peak of his Formula 1 career before a final year with backmarkers Caterham in 2014.
Since then, Kobayashi has gone on to be a phenomenal sports car driver, winning multiple endurance titles.
He currently sits 3 in the Hypercar category of WEC having won the title in 2021.
6th – Sebastian Vettel – Red Bull
The 2012 F1 season was in the middle of Sebastian Vettel’s dominance of the sport and his 6-place finish was his joint-third worst result of the year.
He narrowly clinched the title over Fernando Alonso in 2012 before winning his fourth and final F1 championship the following year.
Six years at Ferrari and two seasons with Aston Martin ended his Formula 1 career and despite being linked with a 24 Hours of Le Mans appearance in 2024, Vettel’s last outing was the season finale in Abu Dhabi two years ago.
7th – Nico Rosberg – Mercedes
Another driver who hung up his racing gloves after leaving Formula 1 was Nico Rosberg.
The Mercedes team were still in their infancy in 2012 having only joined the grid in 2012.
Rosberg would go on to have a phenomenal rivalry with Lewis Hamilton before finally defeating his teammate in 2016 and immediately calling time on his F1 career.
He still pops up in the paddock occasionally but doesn’t seem tempted to return behind a wheel.
8th – Lewis Hamilton – McLaren
Arguably Formula 1’s greatest ever driver, Lewis Hamilton was going through a tough spell with McLaren in 2012.
He had to wait until Monaco that year to achieve his first of four victories before calling time on his spell with McLaren, making the unexpected switch to Mercedes.
What followed was one of the most impressive spells of dominance in Formula 1’s history, winning six world championships.
Hamilton is now preparing for his next seismic move, with Ferrari ready and waiting for him in 2025.
9th – Jenson Button – McLaren
McLaren had one of the most formidable driver line-ups on the grid in Hamilton and Jenson Button in 2012.
Button finished just two points behind his teammate that year, winning three races including the season opener in Australia.
He had already completed the pinnacle of his F1 career when he won the championship with Brawn GP in 2009 and eventually walked away from the sport in 2016, aside from a cameo the following year when Fernando Alonso raced in IndyCar.
Button is still racing at the age of 44, finishing 9 at the 2024 24 Hours of Le Mans with Team Jota.
10th – Nico Hulkenberg – Force India
Nico Hulkenberg snuck into the points with Force India and was already in the second season of his F1 career.
Hulkenberg had three separate spells outside of Formula 1 and after more than 200 races is still chasing his first podium.
He’ll hope he can achieve that when he joins Sauber in 2025 ahead of Audi’s takeover and is aiming to finally end the long wait for a German to stand on an F1 rostrum.
The likes of Mark Webber, Daniel Ricciardo, Felipe Massa, Sergio Perez and Michael Schumacher were all also on the grid that day but missed out on points.
It’ll be fascinating to see if any of the drivers who raced that day 12 years ago can emulate their performances on Sunday.
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