Spain has accumulated 33 victories in Formula 1, all achieved by Fernando Alonso , except for one achieved by Carlos Sainz in the 2022 British GP. And among them, Pedro MartÃnez de la Rosa and Alfonso de Portago (whose ‘feat’ we remember here) , have added 112 podiums in the highest category. However, just as the 1956 British Grand Prix is remembered, which was the first race in which a Spaniard finished in the top three, the 2003 Hungarian Grand Prix will never be forgotten.
Spain had won the European Football and Basketball Cups, a distant European Championship; titles in all motorcycling categories; various competitions in handball; silver in basketball at Los Angeles 84 (in addition to gold and other metals in many other disciplines at the Olympic Games); World Rally Championships; Tour de France, La Vuelta, Giro d’Italia, world championship and Olympic gold in cycling; Davis Cup, Roland Garros and Wimbledon in tennis and many other sporting successes. But never a Formula 1 race , let alone a championship.
After his debut season with Minardi and a year as a tester for Renault, Alonso was once again a Formula 1 starter in 2003. And although he took part in a race in that world championship, Marc Gené had lost his seat as the first driver after the season. 2000, while Pedro de la Rosa, who would return in 2005, was a McLaren tester that year. A 22-year-old named Fernando Alonso , with Renault, was the only Spanish representative, and already in the second Grand Prix, in Malaysia, he would achieve a historic event: the first pole position for our country.
In addition to the podium that he would achieve in that test, he added another two more in the first five races, but little by little Williams and McLaren positioned themselves as the main companions of Ferrari in the trophy ceremony. The season went by and at the end of August the Hungarian Grand Prix arrived, the 13th round of a championship that had 16. In a circuit less demanding on power and more on aerodynamics and the pilot’s hands, Alonso would add his second pole position , and on Sunday, starting from the first place on the grid, he was the favorite to win.
Dominating from start to finish (he led all the laps except the one where he entered to make his first stop), the Renault driver saw the checkered flag first, making history in our country and in Formula 1, by becoming the youngest to win a race.
The first World Cup would come two years later, and in addition to being a two-time champion, after that summer Sunday he achieved 31 more victories. There have been many different ways, with three teams, in various circumstances and with various flavors. But there is never another like the first time .
The best images of the 2003 Hungarian GP
Photo by: LAT Images
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Photo by: Ferrari Media Center
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Photo by: DaimlerChrysler
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Photo by: LAT Images
Photo by: LAT Images
Photo by: LAT Images
Photo by: LAT Images
Photo by: LAT Images
Since that Hungarian Grand Prix, in addition to standing out in other sports, Fernando Alonso put the name of Spain among the winners in the highest category of motorsport. He didn’t win there again, but going back to Budapest and arriving at the end of August always brings back that first victory. Hungaroring, ‘Holy Land’ for Spanish motorsports. It all started with you.
