It’s certainly not desirable to end up at the bottom in the Formula 1 standings, given the significant impact on financial rewards and the overall motivation to strive for success. However, if a team finds itself in that position, Alpine is demonstrating a unique approach.
The team, with its base in Enstone, has already accumulated 20 points during the 2025 season. This is notably higher than any other team finishing in last place has achieved, and it’s only slightly past the halfway point of the year with just over 14 races completed.
The system for awarding points has been adjusted over time, but Alpine’s current 20 points are similar to the eight points that Toro Rosso secured in 2009. However, Toro Rosso’s total came from a season spanning 17 races.
Back then, Toro Rosso’s points were achieved solely through lower top-eight finishes by Sebastien Bourdais and Sebastien Buemi. However, under the current system, the team would have earned 29 points that year. This does come with the caveat of a higher number of races with retirements, making it easier for a less competitive team to occasionally secure a spot in the top 10.
Another point of reference is qualifying performance, with Toro Rosso advancing beyond Q1 in 14 of 34 possible instances. Alpine’s current record is 18/34, which takes into account sprints – or 16/28 when considering only the regular qualifying sessions.
Sebastien Buemi, Toro Rosso, Sebastien Bourdais, Toro Rosso
Photo by: Mark Thompson / Getty Images
Alpine’s current situation is further complicated by the fact that its second car, driven by Jack Doohan and Franco Colapinto, has severely underperformed, failing to reach the top 12 in any Sunday race. Consequently, Pierre Gasly is responsible for all of Alpine’s 20 points, with his best result being sixth at Silverstone, showcasing the team’s untapped potential. However, avoiding the last-place position will be challenging, with Haas currently leading by 15 points.
Interestingly, Haas had the second-highest points total (without adjusting for different points systems) with 12 points during the 22-event 2023 season. Nico Hulkenberg contributed nine points, while Kevin Magnussen added three, which included Hulkenberg’s seventh-place finish in Melbourne. This translated to qualifying performances with 34 out of 56 sessions in the top 15 (or 27/44 when sprints are excluded).
Haas achieved notable results such as Hulkenberg qualifying second in Canada and fourth for the Austrian GP sprint. These surpass Gasly’s best of fifth in Bahrain this year and Toro Rosso’s Buemi qualifying sixth for the 2009 Brazilian GP.
Haas reached (S)Q3 a total of 14 times in 2023, but faced challenges in translating those performances into Sunday results. A prominent example was Hulkenberg dropping from second to seventh in the early stages of the Canadian GP, and an unfortunately timed safety car thwarted his chances of earning points.
Another strong contender for the title of ‘best worst season’ is Minardi in 2005, at least when looking at the raw data. The team scored seven points, which is more than the five points they had accumulated in the previous 10 years, with fifth and sixth place finishes at the infamous six-car United States Grand Prix.
Patrick Friesacher, Minardi PS05
Photo by: Sutton Images
Nevertheless, the Italian team was undeniably a consistent backmarker that year, illustrated by Patrick Friesacher’s 13th place qualifying in Monaco and Christijan Albers matching it in Japan, while their best finish (excluding Indianapolis) was Friesacher’s 12th in Bahrain and Albers achieving the same in Belgium.
In the history of F1, there have been 13 instances where a last-placed team has managed to score points, spread across nine different teams. The first time this occurred was when Arrows earned two points in 2002, thanks to Heinz-Harald Frentzen securing sixth place twice.
Other teams that have achieved this include Minardi (2004, ’05), Spyker (2007), Toro Rosso (2009), Manor (2016), Sauber (2017, ’24), Williams (2018, ’19, ’22), Haas (2023) and currently Alpine.
Additional reporting by Norman Fischer
