The grid was formed with Verstappen immediately across the track to block Bottas, Sainz in third ahead of Norris, Gasly, and Hamilton.
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Red Bull’s Max Verstappen claimed his first Monaco Grand Prix victory on Sunday to lead the Drivers’ Championship after a race in which defending Lewis Hamilton expressed his frustrations over Mercedes’ strategy. Verstappen effectively started from pole position after Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was ruled out of the race with a broken driveshaft. Verstappen led from start to finish, only losing his position when he pitted, to not only bag his first Monaco podium, but to do so with a first-place finish. Carlos Sainz finished second in what was his first podium with Ferrari, while Lando Norris finished third. The Monaco qualifying winner, Leclerc, however, did not get to drive at all. Verstappen sits atop the championship table with 105 points, four ahead of second-placed Lewis Hamilton.
The grid was formed with Verstappen immediately across the track to block Valtteri Bottas, Carlos Sainz in third ahead of Lando Norris, Pierre Gasly, and Hamilton. The pack looked set for the initial stages of the race, however, lap 31 saw Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas retire from the race after he came into his pit. A cross-threaded wheel nut meant he could not even leave his pit box and Hamilton was the only Mercedes representative left on the track.
At the top of the race, Carlos Sainz did his best to put pressure on Verstappen but the Red Bull driver could not be deterred and finished in the first position. Sainz finished in second. Lando Norris eventually finished in third place but he had to hold off a tremendous late charge by Verstappen’s partner Sergio Perez, who finished fourth. Perez and Verstappen’s strong finishes put Red Bull in the lead for the Contractors’ Championship.
Hamilton had an utterly disappointing performance in the race, much like in the qualifying one. He started from the seventh position and had an incredibly hard time getting past Pierre Gasly. He was called for a pitstop at lap 30 to try and undercut Gasly but the plan failed, with Hamilton voicing his frustrations to the Mercedes team.
Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel ended up overtaking both Gasly and Hamilton to finish in fifth place after Perez. Gasly and Hamilton finished sixth and seventh respectively, but the Englishman claimed the extra point for the fastest lap to take earn a total of 7 points for himself and Mercedes.
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