F1 hopefuls Antonelli and Bearman struggle to shine in new-look F2: Spanish GP diary

A close battle on track and some drama off it in Barcelona, where the driver market continued to move and the focus on some of the rookies that could join the grid showed up the difficulties being faced by an iconic junior team.

The impact of McLaren’s fire

During the European rounds McLaren often invites media to its hospitality unit on a Saturday morning for breakfast and coffee, allowing a bit of socialising before the final practice session.

It’s not the only team to do such a thing I must add, but the timing has probably lined up in your head already when I tell you that many media members were in what McLaren calls the ‘Team Hub’ when a fire broke out.

Having just hosted the press conference for the top three finishers in the Formula 3 race, I was about to head down myself when I stepped out into a paddock that was clearly more animated than usual and featured blue flashing lights and some smoke. The area had drawn quite a crowd but was well cordoned off by security who sensibly managed access for personnel.

For those in the hospitality unit at the time, it was all extremely calmly handled, with McLaren team members evacuating everyone inside before trying to identify the source of the fire, with only the smoke visible. Mario Isola — the Motorsport Director for Pirelli — was one to rush in and help after hearing that a number of fire extinguishers had already been used up, grabbing his own from within the Pirelli hospitality next door and entering McLaren.

The calm and clear response ensured just one team member needed a precautionary hospital visit, but the incident did leave the building out of action for the rest of the weekend. Rival teams, F1 and the FIA all offered to help in different ways so McLaren could still function effectively within the paddock, offering space for their team members or guests and minimising the disruption.

It was a reminder of the tight-knit community F1 is, despite rivalries, and it helped McLaren maintain its focus on delivering another strong on-track performance and very nearly take victory.

Sainz on the verge

Given how long Carlos Sainz has been weighing up his options for 2025 and beyond, there were multiple occasions when rumours surfaced in the paddock of a potential announcement on specific days of the race weekend in Spain.

As far as my information extended, Sainz had yet to make a definitive decision on his future heading into the weekend, and didn’t sign anything in the opening days, so nothing was likely to be forthcoming. But it does appear that he is now strongly leaning towards joining the Williams rebuilding project (that was shown to still have a long way to go on track in Barcelona).

Kevin Magnussen clearly pointed out that Sainz is the cork in the bottle and that other moves will follow quickly once he signs somewhere, with Stake/Sauber/Audi able to move on other targets if the Spaniard does head to Grove, and then Haas and Alpine also getting a more clear picture.

One unexpected option at Alpine appears to be Zhou Guanyu, who came through the team’s driver academy. The Chinese driver is chasing the seat vacated by Esteban Ocon, but his current team-mate Valtteri Bottas could also be a factor, and Jack Doohan is very much in the frame too.

Whether there is a significant chance for Zhou is more likely to become clear once Sainz makes a decision, and that could come during the current triple header to really speed up the movement in the market over the coming weeks.

The Madrid impact on Barcelona

Sometimes it’s a little bit sad to see races entering the end of their time on the F1 calendar and being allowed to drift in terms of investment and organisation, but credit where it’s due that hasn’t happened at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.