In a season that started off slow with disappointment after disappointment, Lewis Hamilton capitalized on the pit road blunder of the pole sitter to score the victory in Monte Carlo.
The driver of the No. 44 Mercedes AMG Petronas machine took advantage of Red Bull not having tires ready when Daniel Ricciardo pitted and held off Ricciardo to win the Monaco Grand Prix. It’s the 45th career victory for the reigning world champion and second at the track for the resident of the principality.
“Thank God that today went the way that I hoped,” Hamilton said after the race. “Big thank you to all the fans that came out today, really made the weekend, big thank you to my team for providing me with a great car to see it through to the end. Honestly, I’m lost for words really. I prayed for a day like this and it came true. I feel truly blessed.”
Pole sitter Ricciardo had the race under his control from the start until a miscue on pit road by his team not having the tires ready cost him the lead and the win. Needless to say, he wasn’t happy after the race.
“I don’t even want to comment on the race to be honest,” a dejected Ricciardo said. Thanks to the fans, thanks for sticking out in this weather. From the outside we put on a show. Shouldn’t have been as exciting as it was to be honest. Two weeks in a row now I’ve been screwed, so it sucks. It hurts.”
Sergio Pérez earned his seventh podium finish of his career with a third-place finish at Monaco.
“I’m extremely happy because my team has done a tremendous job with the strategy, with the calls, with the pit stops,” Perez said. “It’s been an amazing day for us, my their podium with the team, a special one to have in Monaco, especially in these race conditions. I want to dedicate this podium to our boss, Vijay Mallya. He has been very supportive during these times, and I really want to dedicate this one to him.”
Sebastian Vettel brought his No. 5 Ferrari home fourth. Fernando Alonso rounded out the top-five in his No. 14 McLaren Honda.
Nico Hülkenberg finished sixth in his No. 27 Sahara Force India Mercedes. Defending race winner Nico Rosberg finished a disappointing seventh in his No. 6 Mercedes. Carlos Sainz Jr. finished eighth in his No. 55 Scuderia Toro Rosso Ferrari. Jenson Button finished ninth in his No. 22 McLaren Honda. Felipe Massa rounded out the top-10 in his No. 19 Williams Mercedes.
The two Haas drivers finished 12th and 13th.
Rosberg leaves in the points lead with teammate Hamilton moving up to second just 22 points back. Mercedes continues to run away with the constructors fight as they lead Ferrari by 67 points.
