28/05/2006
NEWS STORY
Team McLaren Mercedes driver Juan Pablo Montoya finished today's Monaco Grand Prix in second position. Team mate Kimi Raikkonen retired from second place on lap 51 having never been more than a second behind eventual race winner Fernando Alonso. Both drivers were on two-stop strategies. Juan Pablo came in for the first time on lap 21 (9.9 seconds) whilst Kimi pitted one lap later (10.3 seconds). Both drivers used the Safety Car period starting on lap 49 for their second stops which lasted 6.3 seconds (Kimi) and 7.4 seconds (Juan Pablo). Kimi is fourth in the Drivers' ranking with 27 points and Juan Pablo is now fifth with 23 points. Team McLaren Mercedes holds third place in the Constructors' Championship with 50 points. In preparation for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone the team will be testing at Barcelona this coming week.
Juan Pablo Montoya: "I'm pleased with today's result as it’s a reward for everybody at McLaren and Mercedes who have been working hard for the past couple of weeks to improve our competitiveness. As is often the case in Monaco I really struggled with traffic and lost too much time to Fernando to be able to mount a challenge when I had a clear track ahead of me. The car was good, and I think we could have won today if things had gone our way. However Monaco is such an unpredictable race where you have to be in the right place at the right time. We now want to work hard to continue our progress. There is still some way to go, but I'm really looking forward to the British Grand Prix."
Kimi Raikkonen: "Things just didn't go my way today. Our strategy would probably have meant that I would have been able to take the lead after the second series of pitstops, but we really lost out when the Safety Car came out. Then there was a small fire caused by a heat shield which damaged a wiring loom and that was the end of the race for me. It's always disappointing to retire both for me and the team, but it's particularly hard when you all know that you are in with a good chance to win. However we have made progress, and the car was really competitive today, and we aim to do well at Silverstone."
Ron Dennis: "A good result for Juan Pablo whose challenge for the lead was hampered by the traffic between him and Fernando following his last stop which took place during the Safety Car period. After the first round of pitstops it was clear to us that Kimi had seven laps more fuel than Fernando. Kimi was just saving his tyres and engine but then the deployment of the Safety Car following Webber's on-track retirement caused us to lose this advantage. During Kimi's stop the exhaust temperature rose significantly and failed to cool sufficiently following his return to the track behind the Safety Car. The excessive heat burnt a wiring loom which finished his race. At least we were very competitive, and our target is to maintain the momentum into Silverstone."
Norbert Haug: "We showed good speed during the whole weekend and the right strategy to be in with the best chance of winning. I am sorry for Kimi who had to retire due to a heat shield fire. Well done to Juan Pablo who drove a solid race to finish second. This weekend has seen us taking a step forward, and we want to continue this trend. We are now looking forward to the next race at Silverstone."
To check out our Monaco Grand Prix gallery, click here