Pastor Maldonado driving for Williams during practice at the 2012 Malaysian GP — Photo: Morio — CC BY-SA 3.0 (Credit links at the end of the content)
We continue bringing the stories of the past. Last time, we looked at the one-time winners of the 1970s, while from the 1980s onward, there were fewer drivers with just one F1 victory, so we decided to bring them all together as one-time race winners since 1980.
One-Time Race Winners Since 1980
From Alessandro Nannini’s controversial victory at Suzuka to Esteban Ocon’s remarkable success in Hungary, these drivers each experienced the feeling of winning a F1 race, but never managed to repeat it.
Alessandro Nannini, 1989 Japanese Grand Prix
Alessandro Nannini’s only F1 victory came at the Suzuka GP in 1989, one of the most talked-about races of the era.
Driving for Benetton at Suzuka, the Italian was running strongly when the battle for the championship between McLaren teammates Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna dramatically changed the race, with the two title rivals fighting for position, Prost and Senna collided at the final chicane, Prost retired, while Senna continued after recovering his McLaren, he managed to catch and overtake Naninni with few laps to go and won the race.
The result, however, didn’t remain that way, Senna was later disqualified for cutting the chicane, promoting Nannini to first place and giving the Benetton driver his first and only F1 victory.
Many believed he will be able to win again in F1, but his F1 career, however, was brought to an early end the following year, leaving the 1989 Japanese GP as the defining victory of his F1 career. Nannini remains alone, he is only one of F1 drivers with one win in the 1980s.
Jean Alesi, 1995 Canadian Grand Prix
Jean Alesi’s only F1 victory arrived in one of the most emotional moments of the 1990s, at the 1995 Canadian GP, the Frenchman was driving Ferrari’s famous number 27, the same number associated with Gilles Villeneuve.
Alesi started fifth and gradually moved into contention as the race unfolded, with 11 laps remaining, championship leader Michael Schumacher encountered a problem with his Benetton, allowing Alesi to inherit the lead, what made the moment even more special was that Alesi initially didin’t realize he was leading, as he approached the hairpin, he saw Ferrari fans celebrating around the circuit and finally understood that victory was within reach.
The atmosphere became extraordinary as Alesi crossed the finish line on his 31st birthday, fans celebrated the Ferrari victory, while Alesi himself was visibly emotional, his Ferrari eventually ran out of fuel on the cool-down lap, meaning Alesi had to return to the pits on Schumacher’s car, it was an unforgettable ending to a race that gave Alesi the only race win of his career, the triumph was also historically significant as the final F1 win for a V12-powered car!
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Olivier Panis, 1996 Monaco Grand Prix
Few one-time victories were as unexpected as Olivier Panis’ success at the Monaco GP in 1996, starting only 14th on the grid with Ligier, Panis faced difficult conditions as rain transformed the streets of Monte Carlo, the race quickly became an elimination contest, with several leading drivers crashing or encountering problems.
Panis remained composed while many of the favorites disappeared from contention, he steadily moved through the field and eventually found himself fighting for the lead, Panis also made several bold moves during his charge, including a memorable battle with Eddie Irvine, as the race continued, he managed his fuel and resisted late instructions to make another pitstop!
When the race was finally stopped because of the two-hour time limit, only three cars remained, Panis was the winner!
Jarno Trulli, 2004 Monaco Grand Prix
The Italian driver is also one of the drivers who won just once in Formula 1.
Jarno Trulli was famous for his qualifying, known as one-lap master. But in 2004, he finally converted that quali master into his only F1 victory.
At Monaco, Trulli secured pole position for Renault and started the race at the front, unlike many races where the Italian was known for his qualifying performances but struggled to maintain the same advantage on Sunday, this time he controlled the race from beginning to end, the race itslef was far from quiet, several major incidents unfolded behind Trulli, including dramatic events in the tunnel that removed both Montoya and Schumacher, also Fernando Alonso a bit earlier from contention.
Trulli remained focused at the front and eventually faced pressure from Jenson Button in the closing stages, the Renault driver held his advantage and crossed the finish line just 0.4 seconds ahead, the victory was Trulli’s only F1 win!
Story of that weekend: Lost F1 Diamond: The Unsolved Mystery of the 2004 Monaco GP
Robert Kubica, 2008 Canadian Grand Prix
Once Alonso said that he was one the best drivers of the generation, but Robert Kubica remains one of the drivers with single-race winners in F1.
Robert Kubica’s only F1 win came at the Canadian GP in 2008, creating one of the most remarkable stories of the modern era.
The same track where Kubica had suffered a crash one year earlier, twelve months later, he returned to the circuit with BMW sauber and produced the drive of his career.
The race became chaotic when a safety car period brough several cars into the pit lane, Hamilton subsequently collided with Kimi Raikkone, dramatically changing the order at the front, Kubica took advantage of the situation and emerged as the leader.
His BMW Sauber teammate Nick Heidfield finished second, giving the team a memorable one-two finish.
For BMW Sauber, it was their only F1 victory, for Kubica, it remained his sole F1 win, making the 2008 Canadian GP the defining success of his F1 career.
Heikki Kovalainen, 2008 Hungarian Grand Prix
Heikki Kovalainen claimed his only F1 victory at the Hungarian GP in 2008 after a dramatic late-race turn of events, driving the competitive McLaren MP4-23, the Finnish driver started second but was quickly passed by Felipe Massa.
Massa looked set for a comfortable victory and remained firmly in front for most of the afternoon, however, with just three laps remaining, his Ferrari suffered an engine failure on the main straight, suddenly handling the lead to Kovalainen.
The win also gave Kovalainen a unique place in F1 history, as he became the 100th different driver to win a F1 World championship race, although he would remain in F1 for several more seasons, he never returned to the top step of the podium!
Pastor Maldonado, 2012 Spanish Grand Prix
Pastor Maldonado produced one of the biggest surprises of the modern F1 era when he claimed his only victory at the 2012 Spanish GP.
Driving the Williams FW34, Maldonado started from pole position after Lewis Hamilton was excluded from qualifying results for a fuel-related infrigment, what followed was an impressive performance from the Venezuelan, who kept Fernando Alonso’s Ferrari behind him for much of the race, Williams exectuted an effective strategy, while Maldonado managed his tires carefully despite increasing pressure from Alonso, he maintained his advantage through the closing stages to take a memorable victory.
The result made Maldonado the first and only Venezuelan driver to win a F1 race, it was also a major moment for Williams, which had endured several difficult seasons before returning to the top step of the podium!
Pierre Gasly, 2020 Italian Grand Prix
Pierre Gasly secured his only F1 victory at the 2020 Italian GP in one of the most unexpected results of the season, just a year being moved out of the senior Red Bull team, Gasly found hismelf fighting for victory with AlphaTauri at Monza.
Starting tenth, he benefited from a well-timed pitstop before the race was interrupted by a red flag, the situation changed again when Lewis Hamilton received a penalty after entering the pit lane while it was closed.
Gasly suddenly found himself leading the race after the restart, with Carlos Sainz chasing closely behind, Gasly resisted Sainz throughout the closing laps and crossed the finish line just 0.4 seconds ahead of the McLaren driver.
The victory was Gasly’s first and remains his only F1 win, it was also the first victory for a French driver since Olivier panis won the 1996 Monaco GP.
Esteban Ocon, 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix
The Frenchman is the last in the list of F1 drivers with only one victory.
Esteban Ocon claimed his only F1 win at Hungaroring in 2021 after one of the most chaotic opening laps of the season.
Driving for Alpine, Ocon benefited from a dramatic first lap that removed several leading contenders from the race, Valtterri Bottas made contact with multiple cars in the first corner, triggering a sequence of incidents that completely changed the order.
After the red flag, an unusual situation at the restart saw Lewis Hamilton line up alone on the grid while the rest of the field had switched to dry-weather tires.
Ocon emerged from the confusion among the leaders and soon found himself fighting for an unexpected victory, keeping Sebastian Vettel’s Aston martin behind him for most of the remaining race, behind them, Ocon’s teammate Fernando Alonso also played an important role by holding off Hamilton for several laps. For many fans, that moment is still remembered more than Ocon’s victory itself, as Alonso’s defense became one of the most memorable moments of the race.
Ocon crossed the finish line first to claim the biggest victory of his career, it was his first F1 win and remains his only one, giving him a memorable place among the sport’s one-time winners.
Previous part: F1 One-Time Winners of the 1970s: Their Only Victory
FEATURED IMAGE CREDITS: Pastor Maldonado driving for Williams during practice at the 2012 Malaysian GP — Photo: Morio — CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
