The 3.4-kilometer (2.1-mile) course is the hardest in F1 to overtake on, and Hamilton found himself stuck in traffic for most of the race. He never got the chance as Verstappen pounced at the start. The race director decided not to move Verstappen up from second to pole and left that space blank, giving Bottas more room to overtake on the inside. Two years ago, Leclerc retired early in Monaco in his first season at Ferrari. The team initially said Leclerc was good to go and the gearbox was fine, but about 20 minutes before the race Leclerc drove to the garage. He crashed with 18 seconds remaining in Saturday qualifying and risked a five-place grid penalty if Ferrari changed his gearbox. Leclerc’s chances of winning his home race from pole position ended when he pulled off track with a gearbox problem. Sergio Perez was fourth for Red Bull and Sebastian Vettel was fifth for his best finish of the season. Mercedes has won the last seven drivers’ and constructors’ championships, but Sunday marked the first time in five races this season that Hamilton and Verstappen did not finish 1-2. Sergio Perez was fourth for Red Bull, which moved back on top of the constructors championship ahead of Mercedes. “I don’t know what to say, it’s a dream to be on the podium here,” the 21-year-old British driver said.
Lando Norris scored his third career podium the same week he signed a contract extension with McLaren. Verstappen finished 8.9 seconds ahead of Carlos Sainz Jr. “I remember when I was very little, you always want to win this one.” It’s my first time on the podium here,” said Verstappen, whose father Jos secured two podiums in 106 F1 races and was seven-time F1 champion Michael Schumacher’s teammate at Benetton. He was then greeted by tennis star Serena Williams, who waved the checkered flag and was an honorary guest at the event. “But I’m thinking ahead to the rest of the season.” Of course I’m very proud,” Verstappen said. Verstappen sprinted over to his team and jumped into their arms after the race.
Hamilton finished seventh on an uncharacteristically bad day for the usually reliable Mercedes team.īottas retired from the race after a right-front wheel stub axle was stripped during his pit stop and Mercedes could not remove the tire.
It is the first time since the German Grand Prix in 2018 that Mercedes has not led the championship.
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