Monaco – The highs and lows from the editorial team
It's now time to discuss the main satisfactions and disappointments of this weekend in Monaco!
The top 3
Ricciardo, Prince of the Monaco Grand Prix
The Australian has achieved one of his greatest dreams. Wronged by his mechanics in 2016, the Red Bull driver experienced another close call with a Renault engine and a gearbox at the end of its cycle. His victory, with two gears less for over 60 laps, demonstrates remarkable composure. Of course, the RB14 was the best machine on the grid this weekend, but it still had to be brought home. “The Honey Badger” finished all the timed sessions in the lead. And for the first time, he won by leading the Grand Prix from start to finish. Without the collision in Baku and with reliable performance in Sakhir, Ricciardo would be at least on Vettel’s level in the championship. Will the rest of Ricciardo’s season be of the same caliber?
The moment @danielricciardo has dreamed of all his motor racing life #MonacoGP 🇲🇨 #F1 pic.twitter.com/WGlQE5CFhf
— Formula 1 (@F1) 27 mai 2018
Gasly, king of management
The Toro Rosso driver didn’t even realize his speed during the Grand Prix. We won’t hold it against him, considering his first stint on hyper-soft tires was explosive: 41 laps! Pirelli’s estimate was around 15 laps… His two years as a Red Bull test driver and his complete career path (GP2, Japanese Super Formula, Formula E) have been beneficial. At 22, Pierre Gasly is already driving like an old pro! A promising sign for the future. After his impressive fourth place in Bahrain, the Rouen native must continue to seize opportunities to make his mark in Formula 1.
Ocon, Dauphin of France
The Force India driver kicked off his season in the Principality. Force India is regaining its 2017 form, and this time, the Frenchman took advantage of it. Mentally, the other Norman in the paddock was strong, making no mistakes, which wasn’t easy given his position as the “leader of the others.” However, we regret the error by Pérez’s mechanics during the Mexican’s pit stop, which removes a point of comparison. But on Saturday, Ocon had finished three places ahead. A slight downside, the young man is too honest, revealing that he isn’t allowed to slow down the Mercedes cars, which was evident during the race against Hamilton. Let’s not forget that his race ended 4.8 seconds behind Bottas. Hello Toto?
Half-top, half-flop
Max Verstappen, acrobat between the rails
The top/flop articles follow one another, but Verstappen is still operating on alternating current. The driver #33 even allows us to innovate with this intermediate section. The Dutchman is as talented as he is proud. Beaten a few seconds earlier by Ricciardo in FP3 time trials, Verstappen reproduced a 2016 crash in the second pool sequence. Now, even Christian Horner shows signs of annoyance. On the other hand, Verstappen’s overtakes in the race managed to keep the minimum action required. The Dutchman gained 11 places in the race. As for the title race, we’ll come back to it!
We had the right strategy and I enjoyed the race. Considering I started last, this was the best result possible. Congrats to @danielricciardo on the win and the great job by @redbullracing 👍 #keeppushing #MonacoGP #Monaco250 pic.twitter.com/zAlYJExewH
— Max Verstappen (@Max33Verstappen) 27 mai /f1/actualite/22730-soulage-ricciardo-revient-sur-sa-victoire-les-reactions-du-top-3-a-monaco-.html
The Flop 3
Stoffel Vandoorne, vassal of Fernando Alonso
The season of Belgian hope is dangerously anonymous. Worse, his race in Monaco was completely sacrificed for his double world champion teammate. Vandoorne thus extended his first stint on track to hold up the Dutchman and protect the Spaniard. Last in the midfield battle on Saturday (P12), the #2 driver still hasn’t beaten Alonso on track, whether in qualifying or in the race. Ouch!
“It’s bitterly disappointing to be walking away with no points.” Thoughts on the #MonacoGP in our race report: https://t.co/xtctXQDauW pic.twitter.com/fJxyDUlauP— McLaren (@McLarenF1) 27 mai /f1/actualite/22730-soulage-ricciardo-revient-sur-sa-victoire-les-reactions-du-top-3-a-monaco-.html
Lance Stroll, weak lord
The progression curve of his season has just stalled. 8th in Baku and 11th in Barcelona, the Canadian hit the rail during the race and paid the price with a puncture that pushed him to the last position in the standings, subjected to blue flags. But on Saturday, Stroll had conceded a deficit of six-tenths on Sirotkin, a huge gap in Monaco. Not at ease, Lance Stroll went through the weekend like a shadow. Fortunately, Montreal is coming.
P16 🇷🇺 Sergey Sirotkin
P17 🇨🇦 Lance Stroll
A difficult, disappointing and unfortunate afternoon, but we won’t give up!#F1 pic.twitter.com/ubpPpQIJKN
— WILLIAMS RACING (@WilliamsRacing) 27 mai /f1/actualite/22730-soulage-ricciardo-revient-sur-sa-victoire-les-reactions-du-top-3-a-monaco-.html
**Brendon Hartley, squire of Gasly**
A promising start to the weekend and then chaos. Caught in traffic and yellow flags in Q1, the New Zealander let Pierre Gasly take a spot in the sun alone. Terrible especially since the Frenchman copied his settings from Thursday night. During the race, the former Porsche Endurance driver broke his front wing and received a five-second penalty for speeding in the pit lane. He was no longer contending for points before Leclerc hit him on the 69th lap. Not very convincing overall, the pressure on Brendon Hartley will increase with each race, as Honda wants a Japanese driver in the Faenza team. 😢 A dramatic end to @Charles_Leclerc’s maiden race on home soil #MonacoGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/dnKKZsgvbx – Formula 1 (@F1) 27 May
