No live notes from me this weekend – we’re moving house.
After Monaco, VER is 9 points ahead of LEC with PER a further 6 points back; Red Bull are 36 points ahead of Ferrari.
Grid: LEC, PER, VER, SAI, RUS, GAS, HAM, TSU, VET, ALO, NOR, RIC, OCO, ZHO, BOT, MAG, ALB, LAT, STR, SCH
I’ll update this with some notes once I have time to watch Quali and the race.
Grid: LEC, PER, VER, SAI, RUS, GAS, HAM, TSU, VET, ALO, NOR, RIC, OCO, ZHO, BOT, MAG, LAT, ALB, STR, SCH
Race:
Air temperature 99°C; track 48°C
LEC leads everyone away on the formation lap
Front of the grid are all on medium tyres
Radio for PER telling him to get his elbows out into Turn 1
01/51: PER inside LEC to steal P1 into Turn 1
SAI filling VER’s mirrors
LAT under investigation for an incident at the start – I think a mechanic was late moving away from the car
02: VET takes P8 from TSU
03: 10-sec stop/go penalty for LAT
04: LAT serves his penalty; rejoins P20
05/51: PER, LEC, VER, SAI, RUS, GAS, HAM, VET, TSU, ALO
VER closing on LEC
06: On-board with HAM, bobbing up and down on the main straight
08: RIC has been told to stay behind NOR; RIC says “if this is all he has, I have more”
09: SAI has run off at Turn 4 – “Something failed”
VSC deployed
10[VSC]: PER, LEC, VER, RUS, GAS, HAM, VET, TSU, ALO, NOR; out: SAI
LEC pits; hard tyres go on; rejoins P3
RUS and GAS pit too, followed by HAM and VET
VSC ends
13: VET blasts past OCO for P9… but locks up and runs off at Turn 3; spins around and rejoins P12
14: PER lets VET take P1
On-board with HAM – the porpoising is horrible
17: PER pits from P2; new hard tyres; rejoins P3 with RUS just inches behind
18: HAM inside OCO for P9
19: VER pits from P1; hards; rejoins P2
20/51: LEC’s Ferrari engine has let go; he limps back to the pits, retires
22: GAS takes P4 from RIC
25/51: VET finally passes OCO for P8
Half distance
26: HAM inside RIC for P5
27: ALO takes P9 from OCO
NOR inside ALB for P14
29: HAM reports “my back is killing me”; I wonder why Mercedes have not been able to fix the porpoising?
33: MAG has parked his Haas off the track but the marshals are very slow to assist him
VSC deployed
34[VSC]: VER pits, followed by PER and RUS
GAS stays out but HAM pits
37: TSU’s rear wing has broken – only half the DRS is opening
38: Black & orange flag for TSU telling him his car is unsafe
39: TSU pits; mechanics tape his rear wing and he’s told no more DRS for the rest of the race
SkySports report an FIA official was heading to TSU’s garage but he’s already left the pits and there’s no official notice from the stewards
40/51: VER, PER, RUS, GAS, HAM, VET, ALO, RIC, NOR, OCO; out: MAG, ZHO, LEC, SAI
44: HAM closing on GAS; follows him through T1 and T2; uses DRS to take P4 before T3
48: STR told to box & retire the Aston Martin
VER takes the chequered flag
Provisional result: VER, PER*, RUS, HAM, GAS, VET, ALO, RIC, NOR, OCO; BOT, ALB, TSU, SCH, LAT
DNF: STR, MAG, ZHO, LEC, SAI
*Fastest lap: PER