Alonso's first F1 title, 20 years later: 'He was just another level'

"From the inside, it was just like a relief. A weight out of the shoulders of so much pressure in the months before Brazil, because the championship was getting closer and closer, but you're never 100% sure until it happens. So when it did happen, it was maybe 20 years of my life concentrated in those 10 seconds of celebration."

"With two whole races to spare, a 24-year-old from Oviedo, Spain had shattered the sport's status quo. In his duel with McLaren's Kimi Räikkönen, one familiar name had been missing: Michael Schumacher, whose run of five straight drivers' titles -- and Ferrari's six straight constructors' -- had come to an abrupt end without so much as a whimper. Third place at Interlagos had been enough for Alonso to clinch it."

Fernando Alonso secured the 2005 Formula One championship with a third-place finish at Interlagos, clinching the title with two races remaining. The victory ended Michael Schumacher's five-year drivers' streak and Ferrari's six-year constructors' dominance, reshaping the sport's hierarchy. Alonso celebrated atop his blue-and-yellow Renault with a high-pitched scream and pumped fists, an image that became iconic. He described the moment as an immense relief and said it felt like "20 years of my life concentrated in those 10 seconds of celebration." Spain had produced few notable F1 drivers before Alonso; his 2003 Hungarian win was the first Spanish Grand Prix victory since 1950.

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