Lewis ended today's Monaco Grand Prix in P3, his sixth podium in Monte Carlo. Valtteri finished today's race in P5.
Lewis (110 points) leads the Drivers' Championship by 14 points from Sebastian Vettel (96 points) with Valtteri (68 points) in P4. Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport (178 points) lead Ferrari (156 points) by 22 points in the Constructors' Championship.
Toto Wolff: In sport, you have to accept that there are days when you won't win and, if you'd offered us third and fifth before the weekend, we'd probably have taken it as a fair result. Congratulations to Daniel, he deserved the win and was the quickest man out there this weekend. It was a tough and frustrating afternoon for Lewis and Valtteri. Lewis suffered from graining on both tyre compounds which he had to manage through most of the race; we discussed making another stop but it would only have cost us positions, not gained any, so it was the right call to stay out. Valtteri ended up running most of the race on the best compound, the SuperSoft, but there was no way past Kimi so he had to follow him to the flag. Overall, this was a weekend of damage limitation for us and we can be pleased to leave Monaco in the lead of both championships. Now we will regroup and aim to return to winning form in Canada.
Andrew Shovlin: It was a frustrating afternoon in many ways, we finished where we started and never really had much opportunity to do any more. Our HyperSoft stints were weak on both cars, we suffered graining early on and fell back so stopped Lewis quite early for UltraSoft to avoid losing race time. Valtteri had a similar issue but we kept him out a bit longer as it wasn't really impacting his race. Our championship rivals were better at managing the HyperSoft today and we need to understand and improve before Montreal as it's likely to be even trickier there. With Valtteri we decided to try the SuperSoft tyre as Lewis was feeling that the ultra was quite delicate and needed managing. This seemed to work well in terms of pace, with Valtteri catching the cars ahead quite quickly but there was no way to pass so he had a rather frustrating afternoon following Kimi for 46 laps. Lewis was concerned that he wouldn't get his tyres to the end as they opened up early on but after some degradation they stabilised and he was able to keep pace with Vettel who seemed to have similar issues and Riccardo who was struggling with a power unit problem. Towards the end of the race, the midfield cars closed up which took away any real options to do anything under a safety car, so we just focused on bringing the cars home. Happily we've not suffered too much of a dent in our championship today and we didn't come here expecting to be the benchmark, so overall we are not too disappointed. However, whilst Montreal should suit our car more, the tyres will play a big role in the strategy there and unlikely Monaco, you can overtake. So, we'll be working hard over the next few days to make sure we understand our weaknesses. We had a tough weekend in Monaco last year and finished first and second in Montreal a few days later so we are confident that we can recover our form and will be aiming to do just that.
Maurizio Arrivabene: Compared to the race weekend here last year, this one seemed more difficult right from the start. But thanks to the efforts of everyone in the team, the SF71H got progressively better, until it proved capable of taking second place in qualifying. However, on a track like this, it was not enough to produce an even better race result. Like everyone else, we opted for a one-stop strategy, which therefore meant having to manage the tyres in the second stint, so as to save them for the final laps. However, at that point, the Virtual safety car came out, meaning it was no longer possible to attack.
Christian Horner, Team Principal: "Difficult to describe the performance Daniel put in today. From lap 28 when the MGU-K expired, which creates all kinds of issues with cooling, with brake and tyre temperatures, he managed it in the calmest of manners while defending with Sebastian Vettel no more than a second behind him, and I never believed with approximately a 25 per cent loss of power that he would hold the lead for another 50 laps and win our 250th grand prix. The day and the entire race weekend has belonged to Daniel with a phenomenal performance. It was a great recovery from Max. From the back of the grid it's always going to be a tough afternoon but he made good progress with some good overtaking which is very difficult to do here, and he benefitted from some good teamwork and strategy and managed to get in to the top 10. Of all the races to win on the calendar, Monaco is the highlight because of that rich heritage and history; this one especially so for Daniel after the disappointment of 2016. To achieve that victory today was testimony to the great car that the guys and girls in Milton Keynes have produced, and Daniel's ability behind the wheel. It is absolutely teamwork that wins races and we have to thank all of our team partners for their support that allows us all to savour special moments like this."
Sahara Force India scored eight points in Monaco as Esteban Ocon finished in sixth place ahead of Sergio Perez in twelfth.
Otmar Szafnauer: "Congratulations to the entire team on a well-deserved sixth place in Monaco. Esteban did an excellent job all weekend and hasn't put a wheel out of place. After his strong qualifying performance it was very satisfying to see him bring home eight points today with a very mature drive. It's a shame that Sergio had an issue at the pit stop, which undoubtedly cost him the opportunity to finish inside the top ten. He showed good pace in the second half of the race but without track position it was hard to make it count. We take a lot of encouragement from out strong performance this weekend and will look to carry this momentum into Montreal in a couple of weeks' time."
Sergey Sirotkin finished 16th and Lance Stroll 17th in the Monaco Grand Prix. Both cars started on the hypersoft Pirelli tyre, with Sergey starting 13th and Lance 17th. Both cars made clean starts with each gaining a position on lap one. On lap seven, Sergey was handed a 10-second stop-go penalty for a tyre infringement on the grid, and re-joined the field in P20. Two laps later, Lance suffered a puncture and limped back to the pits for a front wing and tyre change, relegating him to last. On lap 19, Sergey pitted for a set of ultrasoft tyres, before pitting again on lap 49 for a set of supersoft tyres. Lance suffered more misfortune with another puncture on lap 34, and pitted for a set of hypersofts. On lap 59, Lance made his third and final stop for another set of hypersoft tyres.
Paddy Lowe, Chief Technical Officer: A hugely disappointing day because we'd had a pretty promising weekend so far, certainly with Sergey starting in a better grid position than we've had more recently. Unfortunately, we suffered a wheel assembly problem on the grid with Sergey's car which meant we fitted the wheels after the three-minute deadline. Consequently, he was handed a 10-second stop-go penalty which put him half a lap adrift of the pack. His race was ruined from that point on. He spent the afternoon in that situation suffering constant blue flags. We converted to a two-stop strategy as that is actually the quickest race if you're not holding a position. It was good to see that he could put in some quick laps at the end whilst in free air. On Lance's side, he had a puncture on lap nine due to the brakes becoming too hot, which overheated the rim and caused the failure. We failed to control that on the second set of tyres and he suffered another puncture. The issue was managed for the rest of the race, but with so many pitstops and blue flags, Lance was in no position to make any progress.
Renault Sport Formula One Team posted another double points finish in today's Monaco Grand Prix. Nico Hulkenberg crossed the line in eighth position after a hard charge from eleventh on the grid. Carlos Sainz came home in tenth, giving the team a strong points haul and consolidating fourth position in the Constructors' Championship.
Nico used a creative strategy to run long on the Ultrasoft tyres to gain track position. By his first stop he was a superb sixth, and rejoined still inside the top ten. Taking full advantage of fresh tyres, he put in a series of quick laps to move into eighth. The German finished under half a second from P7.
Starting in P8 and on his qualifying tyres, Carlos ran a different strategy. He ran strongly in the first part of the race but lost out to Max Verstappen and Nico in the latter stages as they passed on newer tyres.
Renault Sport Formula One Team moves six points clear of McLaren in the championship standings.
Nico started the race from P11. He took advantage of the free tyre choice offered by starting outside the top ten to run long on the Ultrasoft tyre and gain track position. He stopped on lap 50 from sixth to switch to the Hypersoft.
Carlos started the race from P8 on his qualifying Hypersoft (pink) tyres, pitting on lap 16 from eighth for a new set of Ultrasoft (purple) tyres.
Cyril Abiteboul, Team Principal: "It's been a mixed weekend. The overall result is good; two cars in the points and a good cushion in fourth in the championship, but a race like this one exposes more of our weaknesses. Carlos did his best with the strategy, but experienced more severe tyre degradation than expected on his set of Ultrasofts. We have to thank him for playing the team game and helping us with the result today. Nico's first tyres came back to life so we could implement the strategy that we had planned and he could secure eighth. Despite the fact it is a much better result than last year in Monaco, we were not as competitive as recent races and more work needs to be done on tyre management and understanding, as in the current situation we are almost better to start P11 and have a free tyre choice than to start within the first ten with the qualifying tyres. Clearly some teams ahead of us manage to make it work, so it is possible. Let's move on to Montreal."
Franz Tost (Team Principal): "First of all, congratulations to Red Bull Racing for this fantastic victory. Ricciardo deserved it more than anyone else, and I'm really happy for him and Red Bull winning this prestigious and important race here in Monaco. From Thursday onwards we were quite competitive, unfortunately, we did not get everything out of our package in qualifying, but what counts is the race. Pierre Gasly did a fantastic job finishing in seventh place, he controlled the race from the beginning onwards and he really took care of his tyres. Taking into consideration it was his first time here in Monaco in a Formula 1 car, he managed the tyres in a very professional way, therefore we could stay out with the Hypersoft so long. The strategy was also absolutely correct, calling him in very late which put him in 7th position. Brendon Hartley was close to scoring some points, but unfortunately, Leclerc crashed into his rear and he could not finish the race. We are now looking forward to Canada, where we expect a similar performance as we've had in Monaco."
Toyoharu Tanabe (Honda F1 Technical Director): "In today's race, we maintained the momentum that we had in yesterday's qualifying and finished higher than our grid position with Gasly, which is always a good thing in Monaco. This was a very strong performance from the whole team, but most of the credit goes to Pierre, who drove a fantastic race. From the PU side, we were able to get our settings just right, including energy management and driveability specific for this unusual track. There's not a lot more to add, except that we are pleased everything ran reliably yet again throughout the whole weekend."
Haas F1 Team drivers Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean finished 13th and 15th, respectively, in the 76th Monaco Grand Prix Sunday at Circuit de Monaco.
The sixth round of the 2018 FIA Formula One World Championship at the historic 3.337-kilometer (2.074-mile), 19-turn track was bound to be a difficult affair for the American squad after a disappointing qualifying performance on Saturday.
Grosjean started 18th and Magnussen was 19th for a race where the outcome is often determined in qualifying. Monaco's tight confines and lack of overtaking places a premium on qualifying, and for those forced to start near the rear of the field, the glitz and glamour of Monaco is non-existent.
Some race chaos and the attrition of others can help one move up the leaderboard, but both were in relatively short supply on Sunday.
The Williams duo of Sergey Sirotkin and Lance Stroll battled their own adversity at the onset of the race and found themselves 19th and 20th, respectively, pushing Grosjean to 18th. Magnussen got the jump on his teammate at the start and then managed his way past Stoffel Vandoorne when the McLaren driver pitted on lap 20, so he was able to rise to 16th.
When Fernando Alonso encountered trouble with his McLaren on lap 53, Magnussen moved to 15th and Grosjean inherited 17th. And then on lap 71 when Charles Leclerc's Sauber collided with Brenden Hartley's Toro Rosso in turn 10, Magnussen rose to 13th and Grosjean climbed to 15th.
Despite what they were up against, neither of the Haas F1 Team drivers threw in the towel. Both Magnussen and Grosjean began with the same strategy – one pit stop where they swapped their Pirelli P Zero Purple ultrasoft tires for Red supersofts, with the goal being to outlast those ahead of them on softer compounds that would, theoretically, wear out at a quicker rate and significantly drop their lap times and, perhaps, force a second pit stop. Grosjean pitted on lap 15, Magnussen on lap 17.
Grosjean made a second stop late in the race. With no one behind him capable of overtaking, Grosjean took advantage of the VSC (Virtual Safety Car) period that followed the Leclerc/Hartley crash, ducking into the pits on lap 68 for hypersofts. Magnussen stayed out and held onto his track position.
Six rounds into the 21-race Formula One schedule, Haas F1 Team is tied with Toro Rosso for seventh in the constructors' standings with19 points apiece, seven points behind sixth-place Force India with an eight-point advantage over Sauber, their nearest pursuer.
Guenther Steiner: "In the end, this is what we had to expect. We got two cars home in 13th and 15th. There was not much more in it. There was no damage, we drove a solid race, and made up positions. Now we go onward and upward."
Fernando Alonso was forced to retire with transmission problems from this afternoon's Monaco Grand Prix, bringing an early end to a drive that looked set to yield more world championship points for the McLaren team.
It was a bitter blow: the Spaniard had run competitively inside the top 10 for his whole race and looked destined to claim a well-deserved seventh position at the chequer. He rolled to a smokey halt at Ste Devote on lap 53.
Starting from 12th position,Stoffel always faced a difficult afternoon. A slightly longer than normal pit-stop and a mid-race flat-spot delayed him, but he kept it on the road to finish 14th.
Despite the no-score, the team retains fifth position in the constructors' championship, with 40 points.
Eric Boullier: "It's bitterly disappointing to be walking away from the most prestigious grand prix of the year with no points - but, sometimes, that's motor racing.
"It's made even more frustrating by the fact that Fernando had driven a faultless race and, through no fault of his own, was forced to park the car with a transmission problem on lap 53.
"Stoffel had limited opportunities to make progress from his 12th position on the grid. But he kept his nose clean all afternoon, managed to recover a flat-spot, and pushed all the way to the flag.
"There are positives to take away from the weekend: our pace on Saturday was a clear improvement, and our upgrades continue to deliver on the track. There's a lot more work still to be done, but we head to Canada feeling confident that we're headed in the right direction."
This weekend's hard work by the Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team in Monaco was seen during today's race with both drivers delivering a consistent and strong performance. On the demanding city track of Monte Carlo, the Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team drivers were fighting in the midfield, with Charles Leclerc in P12 followed closely behind Marcus Ericsson in P13. They were managing the race well with a solid pace when, just a few laps before the chequered flag was waved, Charles Leclerc had to retire following a collision with the car ahead (Brendon Hartley) caused by a brake disc issue on his car. Marcus Ericsson made his way forward step-by-step, ultimately finishing the Monaco Grand Prix in P11.
Frederic Vasseur, Team Principal: "We had a strong pace in today's race with both of our drivers. They lost quite a bit of time behind Brendon Hartley, but still advanced and defended their positions well. The face of the race changed after Charles collided with Brendon ahead. He had an issue with his brake discs and could not avoid it. Marcus had a strong pace, especially towards the end of the race, when he was able to catch up with Sainz. Overall, a good job done by both of them, and we will make sure to continue to fight in the midfield in Montreal."
A one-stop strategy was adopted by the majority of drivers at the Monaco Grand Prix, the race that places the lowest energy demands on tyres of the entire year, where managing the degradation was nonetheless vital to obtaining a good result.
This was key to Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo's win from pole position, who started the race on the brand-new P Zero Pink hypersoft compound, along with the rest of the top 10 on the grid. His firm control of first position combined with the well-known extreme difficulty of overtaking on this track produced quite a slow race. The record lap time came only in the last part of the race thanks to Red Bull's Max Verstappen who had just switched from ultrasoft to hypersoft tyres after 48 laps.
The highest-placed finisher to start on a different compound was Renault's Nico Hulkenberg who got underway from 11th position on the grid and ended up in eighth position, adopting an alternative one-stop ultrasoft-hypersoft strategy.
The race was run in warm and dry conditions despite some slight rain only an hour before the start, in temperatures of 18 centigrade ambient and 32 degrees of track temperature.
Mario Isola: "We saw a much more mixed blend of strategies in Monaco than we have witnessed in previous years, fulfilling the role that we hoped the new hypersoft would play here by adding another variable into the competitive mix. The result was the fastest race lap time ever seen at Monaco, thanks also to a tyre that the drivers enjoyed using both in qualifying and the grand prix. With the circuit constantly evolving and a brand-new compound to get to grips with, most drivers succeeded in extracting the maximum according to their different strategies."
