Sergio Perez endured torrential rains, race delays and red flags to win the Monaco GP . Pole setter Charles Leclerc was let down by strategy and finished P4 .
Leclerc said , “It was a freaking disaster today . The win was clearly in our hands: we had the performance, we had everything. I just don’t really understand the call that I had and I need explanations for now.I couldn’t do much, I was called just before the last corner, so I couldn’t react or ask for any information, but that was clearly the wrong choice… We need to get better.”
By winning the Monaco GP , Perez has put up a three way title fight for F1 Drivers championship . He is currently 3rd in the championship with 110 points , just 6 points behind Leclerc and 15 points behind Verstappen .
Perez, being the first ever Mexican to win a Monaco GP said, “Winning Monaco, it’s a dream come true as a driver; when you come into F1 and when you come to Monaco and when you drive for the first time, you always dream about one day winning the race or racing in here.
“So, it’s just incredible, such a big day for myself. I was driving with Pedro Rodriguez’s helmet today and I’m sure that up there he will be super proud of what we have achieved in the sport “, he said .
Carlos Sainz finished P2 . He had a better chance of winning the GP , but things didn’t go his way . He said, “The race win was there but unfortunately these things happen around Monaco. It was my turn to get a bit unlucky and then I tried everything I could to get past but around here with these wide cars is tricky.”
Carlos Sainz was leading the race for a few laps , then had a terrible out-lap behind a lapped car , which gave way for Perez to lead the Grand Prix .
He finished by saying , “I’m not going to complain too much. I know that this sport is like that. Checo was unlucky in Jeddah – obviously today he did a great race plus he got a bit lucky with myself. In this sport it will turn around one day or later.”
Fernando Alonso scored his best result of the season with a P7 finish . Alonso slowed down his race pace to manage his tyres till the end of the race , which formed a queue of traffic behind him , causing frustration to Lewis Hamilton who was trying to overlap him throughout the race .
Alonso said , “We had to do a lot of tyre management .we didn’t know if we could finish the race, so I managed a lot the tyres for 15 laps, and then I pushed for the remaining 15 when they told me that Esteban [Ocon] had the penalty.”
Mick Schumacher had a big shunt at Lap 27 through the swimming pool complex and escaped unhurt .Schumacher’s point drought continues as he is yet to score a point in F1 .
Schumacher said , “I’m feeling alright .The pace felt strong, and it felt like we were able to attack and push. We just ended up being a little too wide, which is maybe a matter of 10cm at the end, and that was enough to lose all grip that you thought you had. And unfortunately the result is as it happened.”
A disappointed Haas Team Principal Guenther Steiner was not happy about the crash . He said , “With Mick we obviously saw what happened,” said Steiner. “It’s not very satisfactory having a big crash again. We need to see how we move forward from here.”
The Ferrari Protest :
Ferrari protested that the two Red Bull drivers stayed out of the yellow line while exiting the pits .
The Stewards’ verdict, in two separate documents but combined here, read that, after hearing arguments from both Ferrari and Red Bull: “All parties agreed that Car 1 [Verstappen] did have part of its front left and rear left tyre on the left side of the yellow line. All parties agreed that most of the left front and left rear tyres of that car remained on the yellow line.
“At the hearing Ferrari conceded that Car 11 [Perez] did not have any part of its front or rear tyres on the left of the yellow line and conceded that the Protest was unfounded.”
Podium Finishers of F1 Monaco GP 2022
1.Sergio Perez – Red Bull Racing
2.Carlos Sainz – Ferrari
3.Max Verstappen – Red Bull Racing
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