Daniel Ricciardo’s horror weekend on the Monaco Grand Prix didn’t get higher on Sunday as he was lapped by McLaren teammate Lando Norris.
Key factors:
- Daniel Ricciardo struggled in Monaco, being lapped by his youthful teammate and never scoring any factors
- Purple Bull’s Max Verstappen gained the race and moved to the highest of the Drivers’ Championship
- Pole-sitter Charles Leclerc fails to start out the race his automotive unable to be correctly fastened after his crash late in qualifying
Whereas the Australian struggled in twelfth and was caught behind the Alfa Romeo of Kimi Räikkönen, Norris lapped him on lap 53, on his solution to a podium end, third behind Ricciardo’s former Purple Bull teammate Max Verstappen, who gained his first Monaco title and took the lead within the Drivers’ Championship.
Carlos Sainz completed second to take his first podium for Ferrari.
Norris waved to Ricciardo as he handed him to end forward of his extra skilled teammate for the fourth time this 12 months.
“That is an ouch second” Sky Sports activities UK commentator Martin Brundle stated of the transfer.
After the race the Australian struggled to seek out the fitting phrases for the expertise each of being lapped and his weekend as a complete.
“I feel the entire weekend merely was a weekend to overlook for me personally.”
Ricciardo advised Sky Sports activities UK he didn’t need to over-analyse the weekend, regardless of having a comparable automotive set-up to Norris.
“They acquired it proper however I do not know if we ever actually acquired it flawed. It simply by no means acquired going,” he stated.
“We did not actually do a loopy totally different set-up.
“The vehicles are, I need to say almost an identical, from a set-up viewpoint.”
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Being lapped by his teammate was the fruits of an terrible weekend at a observe the place the Australian has traditionally carried out effectively, with one race win and three different podiums all through his profession.
However this time Ricciardo was off the tempo all weekend, solely managing to be fifteenth quickest throughout Thursday’s apply, and claiming twelfth on the grid in qualifying.
He successfully began eleventh — after pole-sitter Charles Leclerc did not make it to the grid because of harm to his Ferrari — however fell all the way down to thirteenth by the tip of the primary lap and couldn’t discover a solution to climb by way of the sector.
Norris’s podium end continued his sensible begin to the 12 months, shifting him as much as third within the Drivers’ Championship and 32 factors forward of Ricciardo.
Ricciardo moved to McLaren this season with loads of expectation however has been typically been slower than Norris, most notably at Imola when the crew requested him to let the Briton go.
Norris advised David Coulthard after the race he didn’t suppose he would be capable to safe his first Monaco podium, however success and a quick automotive guided him to fifteen championship factors.
“I do not know what to say, I did not suppose I might be stood right here,” he stated.
“It is at all times a dream to be on the rostrum right here.
“A little bit of luck, I need to say some good driving and a superb automotive so due to the girls and boys there.”
Drama strikes Leclerc, then Bottas
A devastated Leclerc stated it was troublesome to be advised his hopes of profitable a maiden Monaco Grand Prix had been dashed earlier than the race even began.
Leclerc had claimed pole place for the race, regardless of inflicting qualifying to be crimson flagged because of a heavy crash on Saturday.
Lingering points from that crash ended his race earlier than it even started on Sunday.
The Ferrari driver pulled his automotive into the pits with an issue in the course of the pre-race warm-up and the crew initially stated he would begin from pit lane, earlier than then ruling him out with a drive shaft challenge .
“Within the storage it was very, very troublesome to really feel OK,” Leclerc stated.
Leclerc was attempting to create historical past and develop into the primary Monegasque driver to win at his house circuit since Louis Chiron in 1931.
The incident was simply the newest in a string of failures for Leclerc on the well-known road circuit.
His solely end on the race got here in 2018 with Sauber, when he completed 18th in his first full season in F1.
Since becoming a member of Ferrari he has not completed the race and crashed out on lap 16 of that 12 months’s race.
Leclerc’s unhealthy luck left Verstappen alone on the entrance row of the grid, with Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas, who certified third, with a transparent run to the primary flip from the within of the grid however Verstappen took the lead into the primary nook.
Bottas’s race then ended on lap 31 because of his pit crew being unable to take away his proper entrance tyre at a regulation pit cease.
It was revealed shortly after by Sky Sports activities’s Ted Kravitz that Bottas had a cross-threaded wheel nut on the tyre.
It was not the one drama to befall the often dependable Mercedes crew.
A livid Lewis Hamilton sprayed the crew over the radio as each Sebastian Vettel and Sergio Perez handed him on lap 30 as he pitted.
It was a part of a transfer designed to try to get forward of the AlphaTauri of Pierre Gasly, which additionally failed.
“I don’t perceive guys, I saved the tyres to go longer,” Hamilton stated over the radio.
Hamilton surrendered the championship result in Verstappen by ending seventh, however a late pit cease for mushy tyres allowed the world champion to safe the fastest-lap and earn one further level.
Verstappen leads title race
Heading into Sunday’s race, Verstappen had by no means led a lap a Monaco, by no means completed on the rostrum at Monaco, and by no means led the System One Drivers’ Championship.
However a near-perfect race from the Dutchman modified all of that as he took the chequered flag, waved by tennis star Serena Williams on the well-known circuit.
Mercedes’ misfortune performed into Purple Bull’s fingers, particularly for Verstappen who began the race 14 factors behind Hamilton within the standings.
After the pit cease section the Dutchman had a large lead over Sainz, with Hamilton caught in seventh at a observe which is exceptionally laborious to overhaul on.
“Good race. Properly accomplished, I feel we managed that basically effectively guys, actually glad,” Verstappen stated over the radio.
“Tremendous pleased with this win.”