Where are they now? The F1 2005 grid, 20 years on

Now that 2025 is finally upon us, we’re inching ever closer to the start of a new Formula 1 season, and all the drama that entails! But first, let’s take a peek into the past.

Twenty years ago, we were about to embark upon the F1 2005 season, a year that would see the infamous six-car start to the US Grand Prix and that would crown Fernando Alonso with his first of two titles. The Spaniard may still be racing in F1 —  but where is the rest of the grid today?

Where are they now? The F1 2005 grid, 20 years on

Anthony Davidson

Anthony Davidson started just one race in 2005 but ultimately retired, netting him no points or any official classification in the final standings.

He competed in F1 in 2007 and 2008, albeit without much distinction.

Moving onto the World Endurance Championship brought him more success, including a championship title.

Now, Davidson also serves as a commentator and pundit with Sky Sports F1.

Robert Doornbos

Finishing dead last in the F1 2005 standings was Robert Doornbos, who competed in a handful of events for Minardi.

The former tennis player also contested a few events with Red Bull Racing before heading off to America for a season of Champ Car, where he took a win at Mont-Tremblant.

Doornbos bounced between A1 Grand Prix and IndyCar for a few years before going on to join Ziggo Sport as an F1 analyst.

Fascinatingly, he also co-founded a company named Kiiroo, which specialized in erm…personal pleasure devices.

Vitantonio Liuzzi

Vitantonio Liuzzi’s Formula 1 debut took place in 2005, when he contested four events for Red Bull Racing. The subsequent two years were spent at Toro Rosso before the Italian racer moved to Force India, then HRT.

After a stint in Super GT, Super Formula, and Formula E (where he fielded his own team), Liuzzi stepped back from active competition. In 2018, he opened a restaurant in Milan that was recently featured on the Food Network alongside his wife Francesca Caldarelli.

Takuma Sato

Japanese racer Takuma Sato kicked off his professional racing career with Formula 1 in 2002. Between 2003 and 2005, he took part in a handful of events for BAR-Honda before moving to Super Aguri.

When Super Aguri folded, Sato’s F1 career came to a premature end.

Instead, he moved over to the IndyCar Series, where he has taken two coveted victories at the Indianapolis 500.

Now, he runs one race a year, the Indy 500, and works with the With You Japan charity that he founded.

Antonio Pizzonia

Brazilian racer Antonio Pizzonia was in his final year of Formula 1 competition in 2005, substituting for an ill Nick Heidfeld at Williams.

Sadly, that was the end of his time in F1. Since then, he has contested Champ Gar, GP2, and Stock Car Brasil.

Most recently, he has been competing in the BOSS GP single-seater series, where he became the Open Class champion in 2023.

Patrick Friesacher

Austrian racer Patrick Friesacher competed in exactly 11 races for Minardi during the 2005 season, which was the sum total of his time in F1.

He was dropped from the team after his personal sponsors failed to pay Minardi.

In 2006, he joined A1 Grand Prix, then moved into the American Le Mans Series — though a back injury brought his racing career to a premature close.

When Formula 1 had its two-seater experience, Friesacher was one of its drivers. Now, he’s a regular at Red Bull show runs.

Pedro de la Rosa

Pedro de la Rosa’s intermittent F1 career saw him contest only one race in 2005, the Bahrain Grand Prix.

He returned for handful of events in 2006 with McLaren, then again in 2010 and 2011 with Sauber, before wrapping up his time in F1 with HRT.

De la Rosa runs his own driving school, served as a technical and sporting director for the Techeetah Formula E team and is now an ambassador for Aston Martin’s F1 team.

Christijan Albers

In 2005, Christijan Albers contested the full F1 season with Minardi, scoring his first points at the 2005 US Grand Prix.

Later that year, he confirmed that he’d join Midland for 2006, which was bought out the subsequent year by a Dutch company called Spyker.

His lack of sponsorship money, though, ultimately resulted in his departure from racing — though he did make a brief return in 2014 as team principal at the Caterham F1 team.

Albers’ post-F1 career consisted of DTM, sportscar racing, and more. Most recently, he has joined Viaplay as a broadcaster.

Narain Karthikeyan

Narain Karthikeyan made his F1 debut in 2005 with Jordan, competing in every race, albeit without much success; his only points-paying finish came at the 2005 Indianapolis 500 — a race that only featured six cars on the starting grid.

He returned in 2011 and 2012 with HRT, though his results left much to be desired.

Instead, he found more success in Auto GP, Super GT, and the Asian Le Mans series. Now, he’s the founder of the NK Racing Academy in India, which calls itself India’s Formula 1 driver pipeline.

Alexander Wurz

Alexander Wurz contested a single race in 2005, but his podium in a McLaren at Imola launched him up the standings ahead of some full-time competitors.

Though his F1 career came to an end in 2007, Wurz established himself as a two-time winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans before retiring in 2015.

Now, he acts as chairman of the Grand Prix Drivers’ Association and supports his sons Charlie and Oscar in their formula racing aspirations.

Tiago Monteiro

Portuguese racer Tiago Monteiro made his F1 debut in 2005 with Jordan, taking one career podium at the US Grand Prix in Indianapolis — making him the only driver from his home nation to secure an F1 podium finish.

He remained with the team for another year before moving to the World Touring Car Championship.

Now, he manages the career of Antonio Felix da Costa and has taken part in various forms of racing at the Nurburgring in 2024.

Christian Klein

Austrian racer Christian Klein contested just a handful of races in 2005 as a Red Bull driver, sharing his car with Vitantonio Liuzzi. Over the course of 49 starts between Jaguar, Red Bull, and HRT, Klein scored 14 points.

After his stint in F1, Klein moved to the Australian V8 Supercars series and joined various touring and sports car racing series around Europe.

Most recently, he contested the Nurburgring Langstrecken-Serie in 2024.

Jacques Villeneuve

Son of the renowned Gilles Villeneuve and 1997 F1 Champion, Jacques Villeneuve was in the closing stages of his F1 career coming into 2005.

He departed the sport midway through 2006, after which he took up a varied career racing in sports cars, touring cars, and NASCAR. His latest stint behind the wheel came in 2023, when he contested a handful of WEC events with Vanwall.

Today, Villeneuve is a regular pundit for Sky Sports F1.

More flashbacks from F1’s past:

👉 Where are they now? The class of the 1998 F1 season as McLaren won previous Constructors’ crown

👉 Where are they now? The last time F1 had 22 drivers on the grid

Felipe Massa

Sauber driver Felipe Massa was still a fairly fresh face in F1 back in 2005, taking home a best finish of fourth that season.

But his talent was clear — Ferrari soon signed the Brazilian racer, and in 2008, he very nearly snatched the World Drivers’ Championship.

Massa remained in F1 through 2017, ending his career with Williams. Now, he’s a regular in Brazil’s Stock Car Pro series, with the occasional appearance in IMSA’s LMP2 class.

And we can’t forget the controversial lawsuit Massa has mounted, alleging that he’s the rightful winner of the 2008 F1 WDC — not Lewis Hamilton.

David Coulthard

Red Bull driver David Coulthard was winding down his F1 career in 2005, before he’d leave the sport altogether in 2008 after taking 13 total wins in F1.

He moved into DTM for several years before ultimately stepping back from full-time competition.

He remained in the paddock as a Red Bull consultant, however, and also joined the BBC, Channel 4, Viaplay and F1TV as a regular commentator. You’ll still regularly find him on broadcasts.

Nick Heidfeld

German racer Nick Heidfeld had to step away from Williams after 15 races in 2005, having injured himself first in testing, then after being hit by a motorbike.

Despite the bad luck, he was back with BMW Sauber in 2006, ultimately retiring in 2011 with 13 podiums but no wins.

He contested Formula E between 2014 and 2018, racing for both Venturi and Mahindra, and also took a class win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2014.

Now, he’s one of the minds behind the FG Series, an allegedly upcoming electric open-wheel racing series.

Mark Webber

Austrialian racer Mark Webber was a BMW Williams driver in 2005, though many modern F1 fans will likely remember him partnering with Sebastian Vettel at Red Bull Racing.

After leaving F1 in 2013, he headed off to WEC where he became a world champion with the Porsche outfit.

Now, Webber serves as the occasional pundit, though he’s better known as being the manager for McLaren driver Oscar Piastri.

Jenson Button

Between 2000 and 2017, Jenson Button charmed his way through the F1 world, and in 2005, he was a BAR-Honda driver.

Later, in 2009, he’d go on to become a World Champion with Brawn before ending his career at McLaren.

Though his final years in F1 were a bit disappointing, Button was still possessed by the racing bug and took a championship in Super GT in 2018.

He’s also contested a handful of NASCAR Cup Series events, and even raced the Camaro Garage 56 entry at the 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans as a way to showcase NASCAR’s improving technology.

He is also a (very good) pundit for Sky F1.

Rubens Barrichello

Between 1993 and 2011, Rubens Barrichello took 11 wins in the sport; in 2005, he partnered with Michael Schumacher at Ferrari, finishing on podium four times that season.

After F1, Barrichello competed in a season of IndyCar before moving into Brazil’s Stock Car Series, endurance racing, and commentary.

Now, he’s a co-host of the Acelerados YouTube channel, where he tests some of the world’s greatest cars.

Jarno Trulli

Another former F1 driver who went on to found his own Formula E team, Jarno Trulli competed for Toyota in 2005 before leaving F1 in 2011. In F1, he was well known for his qualifying pace.

Since his team left Formula E, though, Trulli has stepped back from racing himself.

Instead, he calls himself a “specialist” who advises other drivers, as well as being a wine producer.

Ralf Schumacher

Ralf Schumacher, brother to the inimitable Michael, competed in F1 between 1997 and 2007, representing Toyota for all but one race.

After leaving F1, he joined DTM, first as a driver and then as a mentor for young drivers.

Today, Schumacher is a regular face in the world of F1 punditry.

Giancarlo Fisichella

Italian racer Giancarlo Fisichella competed in F1 for a variety of teams between 1996 and 2009; in 2005, he was Fernando Alonso’s teammate at Renault.

Though his individual performance left something to be desired, his consistency was critical to Renault’s constructors’ championships.

Fisi went on to compete with AF Corse in endurance racing, taking class wins at Le Mans and Petit Le Mans, as well as getting back behind the wheel in an S5000 event back in 2022.

Most recently, he’s been the back-t0-back champion of the Italian GT Endurance Championship in the GT3 category.

Juan Pablo Montoya

Colombian racer Juan Pablo Montoya’s penultimate year in Formula 1 was 2005 — which also happened to see him take his last win in the series in Brazil.

McLaren parted company with Montoya at the halfway stage of 2006; instead, he headed to America to contest NASCAR, IndyCar, and sports car racing, where he became a huge success.

He took the 2019 IMSA title, and took his second Indianapolis 500 win in 2015.

Today, Montoya has ventured into the world of F1 punditry and also serves as a strong support for the racing career of his children.

Michael Schumacher

In 2005, Michael Schumacher’s championship dominance came to an end.

The seven-time World Champion would continue on in Formula 1 through 2006, then return between 2010 and 2012 with Mercedes, but he would never again be crowned a champion.

Sadly, Schumacher suffered a severe head injury while skiing with his son Mick in 2013.

Since then, the German has been recovering in the privacy of his family home.

Kimi Raikkonen

The “Iceman” Kimi Raikkonen took second overall in the F1 2005 championship, two years before he secured his one and only title.

Raikkonen’s turbulent career saw him briefly leave the sport for rallying, only to return to F1 between 2012 and 2021.

Since then, Raikkonen has largely retired from full-time racing.

In 2024, he took part in a handful of NASCAR Cup Series races, but he largely seems to be focused on spending time with his family.

Fernando Alonso

The only driver from 2005 still competing in Formula 1 is none other than Fernando Alonso, the man who won the title that season.

Modern F1 fans are familiar with Alonso’s accomplishments.

The driver would go on to win an additional F1 title, as well as a World Endurance Championship, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and the Rolex 24. He’s also raced in the Dakar Rally and the Indianapolis 500.

Heading into the 2025 season, Alonso will put in another year with Aston Martin alongside teammate Lance Stroll.

Though the team hasn’t had it easy these last few years, hopes are high as the outfit opens its own wind tunnel and will employ Adrian Newey in 2025.

Read next: 12 F1 drivers we still can’t believe won a Grand Prix