Max Verstappen showcased his mastery of wet conditions to claim victory at the Monaco Grand Prix amidst a rain shower that added drama to the race. Remarkably, the top three finishers were the same as the leading trio at the start of the race.
Fernando Alonso, who had opted for slick tires but later switched to intermediates, managed to maintain his advantage over Esteban Ocon, securing a second-place finish ahead of his former teammate.
Verstappen, starting on medium tires, made a stronger start than Alonso, who swiftly moved across the track to fend off Ocon. Carlos Sainz successfully held off Lewis Hamilton to secure fourth place, followed by Charles Leclerc.
Further down the grid, Nico Hülkenberg gained four positions, one of which was at the expense of Lance Stroll, who dropped back by four places. Hülkenberg’s progress was cut short when he suffered a puncture during a battle with Logan Sargeant and Stroll at Mirabeau. The Haas driver was subsequently penalized five seconds for causing a collision. Zhou Guanyu and Sergio Perez, starting from the back of the field, also made pit stops.
Verstappen controlled his pace in the early laps, running consistently in the late 1:17s, while Perez, his teammate, lapped one and a half seconds faster. Despite Perez’s efforts, Verstappen managed to increase his lead over Alonso by two seconds, with the two drivers creating a significant gap to Ocon, who had Sainz on his tail.
However, an incident between Sainz and Ocon brought about a twist in the race. Sainz attempted to make a daring move on Ocon in the tunnel, resulting in his front wing endplate colliding with the rear of the Alpine car. Despite having a new front wing ready, Sainz opted not to pit and continued racing.
In the meantime, Leclerc was chasing Hamilton for fifth place, but Hamilton’s car sustained damage from the debris of Sainz’s front wing. Pierre Gasly and George Russell were close behind, running three seconds adrift.
At the front, Verstappen gradually extended his lead, amassing a comfortable 10-second gap over Alonso. Ocon held onto third place, followed by Sainz, who received warnings about potential rain towards the end of the race. Despite team suggestions to pit and undercut Ocon, Sainz refused to do so for the second time, frustrating the Alpine driver.
Approaching the halfway point of the race, Alonso began to close the gap to Verstappen, taking advantage of the traffic as the hard tires on his car performed optimally. Verstappen and Hamilton, both on medium tires, were the first among the top-ten drivers to pit. Mercedes executed a perfect pit stop for Hamilton, allowing him to maintain his position but dropping from sixth to eighth. Ocon and Sainz followed suit, with Ocon managing to retain his position ahead of the Ferrari driver.
Perez’s challenging weekend in Monaco continued as he attempted to follow Verstappen past Stroll, who impeded the Red Bull driver. Perez cut the chicane and overtook Stroll, but his front wing was damaged when he collided with Kevin Magnussen. Stroll regained the position, and Perez had to pit for a new front wing. A few laps later, Stroll collided with the back of Magnussen’s car.
Verstappen, pushing hard on his medium tires to keep Alonso at bay, expressed uncertainty about how long he could sustain his performance. Leclerc, on the other hand, opted for fresh mediums, pitting on lap 45. He rejoined the race 10 seconds behind Hamilton but with fresher tires.
