Ferrari’s #sebastianvettel won the Monaco Grand Prix with a one-stop ultrasoft-supersoft strategy as expected, after running a longer first stint than his team mate #kimiraikkonen at a quicker pace, who qualified on pole and finished second. The same ‘overcut’ strategy was also used by Red Bull’s #danielricciardo to make up two places from his grid position and claim a podium finish. McLaren’s Jenson Button and Sauber’s Pascal Wehrlein instead tried an early stop in the hope of gaining track position. Most drivers adopted a one-stop tactic, although some tried an alternative approach. During the safety car period with about 15 laps to go, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen took on a final set of ultrasofts in an attempt to get past the Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas. Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton started from 13th on the grid and completed a long opening stint on the ultrasoft before ending up in a points-scoring seventh. A couple of punctures were noted during the race, because of a problem with the track at the exit of Turn 1 towards the end of the grand prix. Leaving aside the safety car period, this was one of the fastest grands prix in Monaco ever held, with the fastest race lap set by Force India’s Sergio Perez being more than three seconds faster than the 2016 equivalent (which was already beaten on lap two today).
More information on the press release
© Copyright 2024