Well the point is it's an option to stand even if it's far from ideal. I personally would prefer to stand for an hour or two (trains tend to empty out en route)

Well the point is it's an option to stand even if it's far from ideal. I personally would prefer to stand for an hour or two (trains tend to empty out en route) than stand at the station to wait for a seat. I've done it multiple times in the UK and Germany. There are not enough trains in Spain for the cost of the high speed infrastructure. Looking today both the 19.30 and 20.40 MAD BCN are sold out, which means you would have to wait until the next day to travel if you couldn't get to the station before 19.00 (which isn't uncommon).