Pastor Maldonado reflected on his iconic 2012 Spanish Grand Prix victory, a win which came after he pushed for an upgrade to remain on the Williams car, despite a suboptimal amount of data.

The Venezuelan’s initiative was rewarded as he claimed one of Formula 1’s most treasured upset wins. A driver who built up a huge F1 fanbase, Maldonado reflected on that life-changing win, and explained the source of his popular, combative driving style.

Pastor Maldonado details 2012 Spanish Grand Prix decision

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Maldonado joined the F1 grid back in 2011 with Williams. Over his five seasons on the grid across stints with Williams and Lotus, he became one of the sport’s most popular racers and characters with the fans.

In reflection with the Formula 1 website, Maldonado said: “Honestly, it was amazing for me and for my career because I came from a small country like Venezuela and my first team was Williams, so I stepped into Formula 1 with a very historic and special team who stay with me forever in my heart.

“They became my family at the time and I knew it was like living a dream, but at the same time [I was] fully committed to bring them back to the top.”

Maldonado achieved that as a one-race gig. His 2012 Spanish Grand Prix win remains one of the most memorable and treasured Formula 1 underdog stories.

It proved to be the only win of his F1 career.

Maldonado, like all drivers, held the ambition to “become world champion”, and while he “never had the chance” to compete for such an honour, he says he demonstrated that he was “fully ready” to win a race in his only opportunity.

Maldonado recalled how he pushed for Williams to run a relatively untested aero package from Saturday in Barcelona that year, after “feeling a difference” when he ran it in FP3, and bolted up the standings into the top two.

“We had an internal discussion for two hours, from my side just trying to push as much as possible to the team owners.”

Maldonado’s wish was granted.

From there, he felt the “responsibility” to deliver, which he did.

From pole, Maldonado relinquished the lead to Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso at the start, but kept the two-time World Champion within range.

Maldonado leapfrogged Alonso after the second pit-stops. Both boxed for a third time, and after holding off Alonso’s attack, Maldonado drew clear and clinched a shock victory, three seconds clear of Alonso at the line.

Maldonado needed to tap into an “extra skill to manage Fernando” in that race, describing the Spaniard as a “proper racer”.

It was a win which “completely changed” Maldonado’s life, and it had a profound positive impact on Williams too, as “we found more sponsors to finish the year.”

He added: “We did an amazing season.

“We scored many points that season – we were off the podium many times just because of failures on the car, but I was always fighting for the top three after Barcelona.

“That was my best year in Formula 1, so I really enjoyed the experience, but also because I was with the Williams team.”

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Maldonado had a special connection with the F1 fanbase. His elbows-out, unpredictable style kept people on the edge of their seats. Barcelona 2012 rubber-stamped Maldonado’s status as a fan favourite.

“People many times said that I was an aggressive driver, in all of my career,” Maldonado acknowledged. “Everyone is different – every driver has their style, their approach on the track, not only technically on track and in terms of skills but also in terms of approach.

“Sometimes you need to value the conditions of every driver, and my condition back at the time was that I needed to perform, otherwise there would be no more support for me, so I was always trying to deliver my best with passion. In the car I was always driven by my passion and delivering my 100 per cent.

“When I became a Formula 1 fan in the late 1980s or early 1990s, I always followed Ayrton Senna, Alain Prost, these big battles in Formula 1. And what made Formula 1 special to me was these kinds of battles – I was living and dreaming to fight in the same way.”

He added: “I always said to myself, ‘You always can deliver and you can do things different – if you are last on the grid, you can become second to last. If you are P11, you can go for P10’.

“I was always looking to turn things around and to deliver more, and to look for an opportunity during the race. Sometimes it didn’t work, but at least I came back home saying, ‘I did my best. I feel good with myself because I tried something different, to be in the points and to bring something else to the team’.

“In my career I was criticised sometimes because of my approach, but imagine having an approach of starting in your place and finishing in your place – why [do] that? If I can deliver more, if I can go after a better place or performing better.

“Of course, sometimes you need to take some risks to achieve something in your life, and I took all the risks necessary to achieve a different result. Sometimes it worked, most of the time, and sometimes it didn’t work. It was a little bit polemic, my approach, but I really enjoyed [my time in Formula 1].”

To this day, Maldonado continues to enjoy “very special” support from his “huge community” of fans, which now outside of the F1 bubble, he is able to truly enjoy and embrace.

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