Race favourite Charles Leclerc finishes only fourth in home Formula 1 race
Smart strategy and crafty driving paid off for Sergio Perez at the finish of a chaotic Monaco Grand Prix yesterday.
So, too, did the brains trust at Red Bull Racing, which was able to defeat a Ferrari protest after the finish, following its 1-2 finish in Spain last weekend.
One race after being moved aside in favour of his championship leading teammate, Max Verstappen, the speedy Mexican did everything right to steal the biggest individual prize in Formula 1.
But the race was mired by a pair of red-flag stoppages due to heavy rain, a power outage that prevented a traditional standing start, and the legal battle after the podium celebrations.
Ferrari squandered a front-row lock-out in qualifying by switching from rain tyres to slicks at the wrong time, opening the door for Perez to assume the lead and leaving Carlos Sainz in second ahead of Verstappen.
Hometown hero Charles Leclerc was the quickest qualifier but only trailed home fourth, ahead of George Russell, who again trumped his legendary teammate Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes-AMG.
Daniel Ricciardo? Only 13th and with even bigger questions about his future after team boss Zak Brown, who missed Monaco in favour of the Indianapolis 500 – won by Marcus Ericsson for Chip Ganassi Racing – said the team has options for an early end to his contract.
The first four cars were virtually nose-to-tail at the finish, but it was Perez who got to celebrate.
“It’s a dream comes true. I mean, as a driver, you dream of winning here. After your home race I think there is no other more special weekend to win,” said Perez.
“I had to not make any mistake, to bring it home, but keeping Carlos behind wasn’t easy.”
Ferrari concedes it bungled the strategy despite an apparent advantage on speed.
“Sometimes mistakes can happen but there has been too many mistakes today overall,” said Leclerc.
It attempted to reverse the result by protesting both Red Bull racers for allegedly crossing a dividing line at pit exit, but the challenge was dismissed and the results stand.
The Formula 1 world championship continues at Baku with the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on June 12.
2022 Monaco Grand Prix results:
- Sergio Perez, Red Bull
- Carlos Sainz, Ferrari
- Max Verstappen, Red Bull
- Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
- George Russell, Mercedes-AMG
- Lando Norris, McLaren
- Fernando Alonso, Alpine
- Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes-AMG
- Valtteri Bottas, Alfa Romeo
- Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin
- Pierre Gasly, AlphaTauri
- Esteban Ocon, Alpine
- Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren
- Lance Stroll, Aston Martin
- Nicholas Latifi, Williams
- Zhou Guanyu, Alfa Romeo
- Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri
- DNF Alex Albon, Williams
- DNF Mick Schumacher, Haas
- DNF Kevin Magnussen, Haas
2022 Formula 1 championship standings:
- Verstappen, 125
- Leclerc, 116
- Perez, 110
- Russell, 84
- Sainz, 83
- Hamilton, 50
- L Norris, 48
- Bottas, 40
- Ocon 30
- Magnussen, 15
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Keyword: Perez and Red Bull triumph in Monaco