The weather in Monte Carlo was part cloud, but there was a 90% risk of rain during the race. The start held no surprises. Hamilton on pole got an excellent start and get-away, holding on to the lead. Verstappen, who had started from P3, was very hungry to challenge Bottas for P2. However, Max was mature enough to know, that venturesome moves on the narrow streets of the Municipality weren't a good idea, so Bottas maintained his second place. Sebastian was fourth, followed by Renault's Ricciardo, who had been able to overtake Haas' Magnussen at the start. Unfortunately Kimi had some contact on the opening lap, which caused damage to his front wing. The Iceman dropped down to P17, which was a disappointing start to the race for the Finn.
Ferrari's Leclerc was passionate about gaining positions right away. On lap 8 he was in modest P13, right behind Haas' Grosjean. Monaco isn't known for overtaking opportunities, but Leclerc was absolutely stubborn. He made an audacious move on the Frenchman, moving 12th. A lap later he was within DRS distance from Renault's Hulkenberg. Once again Charles was determined to get past, by any means necessary. He made a move on the German, but ended up hitting a barrier. This caused the Monegasque a rear-right puncture, and he had to limp into the pits. Pieces of the punctured tyre and the floor of his SF90 were flying off, as Charles made his way towards the pits. There was so much debris on the track, that safety car was deployed.
The top drivers pitted right away. Mercedes called both their drivers in on the same lap, which cost Bottas a little time, as Hamilton had the advantage to be the first Mercedes driver to pit. Both opted for a fresh set of medium Pirellis. However, Valtteri's battle against Verstappen heated up during the pit stop. Red Bull released Verstappen, but Bottas was just driving past the Red Bull box! Their cars touched, and some small pieces flew off from Valtteri's Mercedes. Verstappen made it ahead of the Finn, claiming P2. However, the contact caused Valtteri a puncture, and he had to pit again on the following lap. Valtteri also switched to the white-walled hard rubber. The extra pit stop cost the Finn a position, as Sebastian had been able to move third during Valtteri's second pit stop.
The re-start took place on lap 14. Race leader Hamilton was the only top four driver on the medium Pirellis; Verstappen, Sebastian and Bottas all had the hard compound on their cars. In spite of pitting for a fresh set of soft tyres, Leclerc was struggling badly with his performance. Hitting the wall had caused major damage to the floor of his SF90, and the Monegasque drove his Ferrari into the garage and retired the race. The stewards had taken Bottas' and Verstappen's pit lane incident into investigation for a suspected unsafe release. And the stewards gave their verdict; Max was handed a 5-second time penalty for the unsafe release!
The top four were driving closely in single file. Hamilton's lap times were actually quite slow, as the Briton had to make sure, that his tyres would last till the end. Verstappen had made it within DRS distance from Hamilton, as there were still 35 laps to go. Hamilton complained on the team radio, that he didn't believe, that he was going to make it till the chequered flag on those tyres. However, a second pit stop wasn't an option, as it would have dropped the reigning world champion out of the podium. Verstappen put serious pressure on Hamilton and kept lurking for even a slightest chance to overtake his rival. But finding a place to overtake without a venturesome move proved extremely difficult. With two laps to go, the Dutchman decided to give it a try at the swimming pool chicane. But it was too optimistic a move, and the cars made light contact. Luckily there was no damage to either one of the cars. Hamilton maintained his lead, and Max kept following him.
Against all odds, Hamilton was able to make it to the chequered flag on his completely dead tyres! This was Hamilton's 13th win in the last 20 races. Due to Max's 5-second penalty, the Dutchman dropped out of podium. Sebastian finished the race second, and Bottas completed the podium. It was about time to get another result than a Mercedes 1-2! It was a shame, that Max was fourth, as he had shown fiery and passionate driving. But it was absolutely heart-warming to see Sebastian on the second step of the podium. He really deserved a good result. Red Bull's Gasly finished fifth and also got the extra point for the fastest lap time. His fifth place was well secured at the end of the race, so the Frenchman could afford an extra pit stop for a new set of soft tyres. Sainz finished 6th for McLaren and Kvyat 7th for Toro Rosso. Teammate Albon was 8th, Renault's Ricciardo 9th and Haas' Grosjean scored the last point. Unfortunately Kimi's race left a handful to hope for, as the Iceman was only 17th in the final standings. Against the odds, rain didn't interfere with the course of the race.
Hamilton increased his lead into 17 points in the drivers' championship standings. At this point it's crystal clear, that the battle for championship will be between the Mercedes teammates. Sebastian is third, 55 points down on Hamilton. Sebastian has a close fight with Verstappen for the third place, as Max is only four points off Sebastian. Practically Mercedes have already won the constructors' championship... I don't see any way, how Ferrari would be able to turn a 118-point defeat into a victory in 15 races!
Championship aside, my heart always beats for Sebastian (and a little for Kimi and Max as well). I'm looking forward to Canada, which offers a new chance for the Red Team to take a leap forward in terms of performance. Go Sebastian!
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