The Canada GP was quite eventful, but don’t worry – Monaco will be the same old snooze fest as usual. Well, maybe not the same as usual – this year could be even worse, as the FIA have decided there won’t be any opportunity to use the new “straight mode” for extra overtaking boost.
Free Practice
- FP1: LEC (1:13.978), HAM, VER, ANT, RUS
HAM has a super-sparkly helmet
HAD clipped a barrier, lost the tail and stuffed his Red Bull into the wall at the Swimming Pool; red flag to recover his car
LAW and LIN discovered they didn’t have enough steering lock for the hairpin
LIN blocked PIA
LEC locked up and used the escape road at Mirabeau
ALO’s Aston Martin kicked the rear out as he come out of the tunnel, hitting the barrier, causing the second red flag
HAM had a big lock up into Ste Devote (Turn 1) - FP2: HAM (1:13.026), LEC, VER, RUS, ANT
HAM pushing hard, bouncing over the kerb at the chicane
RUS blocked by BOR
NOR parked his McLaren after the tunnel – looks like the car shut down
STR locked up at Portier but stayed out of the barriers
LIN dawdling on the racing line, nearly had ALB plough into him
PER had smoke in the cockpit of his Cadillac – looked like his front-right brake was on fire when he stopped at Casino - FP3: ANT (1:12.720), LEC, HAM, RUS, VER
ANT complained about traffic… but he should know that’s to be expected on this outdated circuit
NOR felt HAM blocked him, but HAM thought NOR was exaggerating
ALB locked up and had to use the escape road at Ste Devote
COL spun in the hairpin, tapping the barrier
BEA found some dust/dirt when he passed RUS in Massenet, causing his Haas to slide into the barrier, destroying his rear-right corner
Penalties
McLaren were fined €5,000 (suspended for 12 months) as NOR was late to a press conference; Ferrari got the same for LEC also being late
Mercedes were fined €100 for RUS speeding in the pit lane in FP1
LEC received a warning for impeding LAW; LIN for blocking PIA
Aston Martin were fined €100 for ALO speeding in the pit lane, as did Mercedes for ANT, both in FP2
McLaren were fined €30,000 (€10,000 suspended for 12 months) because the CDS was not working on NOR’s car when he stopped in FP2
Alpine were fined €900 for COL speeding in the pit lane in FP3
Williams were fined €100 for ALB speeding in the pit lane in FP3
Qualifying
This is the only part of the weekend that really matters
Qualifying session 1 (Q1)
LEC 1:13.293
BOR has put his Audi in the barriers at the Nouvelle Chicane, bringing out the red flags
Replay shows his front-left wheel clipped the barrier on entry
Chequered flag; bottom 6 are PER, BEA, SAI, BOT, ALO, STR
PER P17
BOT P20
BEA P18
ALO P21
SAI P10, relegating OCO to P17
Back of the grid: OCO, PER, BEA, BOT, ALO, STR
Qualifying session 2
ANT 1:12.704
VER 1:12.499
Chequered flag; bottom 6 are ALB, SAI, HUL, COL, LIN, BOR
COL P14
LIN P15
Middle of the grid: ALB, SAI, HUL, COL, LIN, BOR
Qualifying session 3
PIA 1:12.916
NOR 1:12.765
HAM 1:12.553
ANT 1:12.375
VER P2
LEC pushing hard, sliding his Ferrari; goes P1, 1:12.351
Chequered flag; order is LEC, ANT, VER, HAM, PIA, NOR, RUS, HAD, GAS, LAW
VER 1:12.094
HAM P2
HAD P5
RUS P6
Brief yellow – LEC tapped a barrier
ANT 1:12.051
Front of the grid: ANT, VER, HAM, LEC, HAD, RUS, PIA, NOR, GAS, LAW
Provisional grid: ANT, VER, HAM, LEC, HAD, RUS, PIA, NOR, GAS, LAW, ALB, SAI, HUL, COL, LIN, BOR, OCO, PER, BEA, BOT, ALO, STR
Penalties
Williams was given a formal warning and fined €5,000 for causing LIN to swerve around ALB and a mechanic
Audi was given a warning for telling HUL it was “all clear behind” when he slowed in the tunnel, travelling slowly ahead of LEC
Historically you’ve got to be in the top three grid spots to win it. Of the winners from 2000 to 2025, 60% started in P1, 20% in P2, 20% in P3, and zero from anywhere below P3.
So all that remains on Sunday is to see whether ANT leads the procession to the end or if he has a bad start and VER takes P1. After that, grab a pillow.
Race
It’s McLaren’s 1,000th Grand Prix; only Ferrari has started more races
Pit lane is open; drivers can make their way to the grid
Grid: ANT, VER, HAM, LEC, HAD, RUS, PIA, NOR, GAS, LAW, ALB, SAI, HUL, COL, LIN, OCO, PER, BEA, BOT, ALO, STR; BOR is in the pit lane
Air temperature 24°C; track 39°C; humidity 59%
ANT leads everyone away on the formation lap
VER a bit slow pulling away
Everyone starting on medium tyres except BOR, PER and BOT on softs
BOR returns to the pit lane as the grid forms up
01/78: VER is still on the grid as everyone streams past him
ANT leads through the first turns
VER has got started but he’s a long way behind BOR who started from the pit lane
02: ANT, HAM, LEC, HAD, RUS, GAS, NOR, LAW, ALB
BEA, BOT and BOR all pit
VER pits; retires
03: ANT already 3sec clear of HAM
RUS noted for a false start and being out of position
PER has taken P14 from LIN – there was an overtake but the TV coverage missed it
04: ALO pits; rejoins P18
05/78: ANT, HAM, LEC, HAD, RUS, PIA, GAS, NOR, LAW, ALB; out: VER
06: No further investigation for RUS’ start
09: Drive-through penalty for PER for a false start
10/78: ANT, HAM, LEC, HAD, RUS, PIA, GAS, NOR, LAW, ALB
PER’s penalty is because he started in BOR’s grid spot
15/78: ANT, HAM, LEC, HAD, RUS, PIA, GAS, NOR, LAW, ALB; out: VER
18: BOT pits, retires the Cadillac
20/78: ANT, HAM, LEC, HAD, RUS, PIA, GAS, NOR, LAW, ALB; out: VER, BOT
21: Radio from HAD reporting “Something’s going to explode!”, concerned about his engine’s temps
22: RUS tucked right under HAD’s rear wing
23: Radio for HAD telling him they don’t have a fix for his engine problem
28: HAD cut the chicane (Turn 10), so expect RUS to report that HAD gained an advantage
29: HAM pits from P2; hard tyres go on; rejoins P3
30/78: ANT, LEC, HAM, HAD, RUS, PIA, GAS, NOR, LAW, ALB; out: VER, BOT
31: BEA pits; retires the Haas
32: RUS pits from P5; hards; P8
33: HAD pits from P4; hards; P8, behind RUS
34: HAM under investigation for speeding in the pit lane… and he’s given a 5sec penalty
Radio from NOR reporting power issues, nothing from the battery
35/78: ANT, LEC, HAM*, PIA, GAS, NOR, RUS, HAD, LAW, ALB; out: VER, BOT, BEA
NOR’s McLaren definitely seems to be struggling for power
36: LEC pits from P2; hards; P3
37: RUS noted for speeding in the pit lane
38: ANT pits from P1; hards; still P1, about 17sec clear of HAM
RUS gets 5sec penalty
Half distance
40/78: ANT, LEC, HAM*, PIA, GAS, NOR, RUS*, HAD, LAW, ALB; out: VER, BOT, BEA
42: COL also gets 5sec penalty for speeding in the pit lane
44: RUS noted for crossing the line at pit exit
45/78: ANT, LEC, HAM*, PIA, GAS, NOR, RUS*, HAD, LAW, ALB; out: VER, BOT, BEA
RUS past NOR for P6 in the tunnel; NOR is slowing
46: NOR pits from P7; retires the McLaren
LAW pits too; softs; P8
47: GAS pits; hards(?); P7
ALB lets teammate SAI through for P9
48: ALB slowing up the pack to give SAI a chance to pit
49: LIN squeezing past ALB for P10
Replay shows ALB cut the chicane, so he let LIN through
50/78: ANT, HAM*, LEC, RUS*, HAD, PIA, GAS, LAW, SAI, LIN; out: VER, BOT, BEA, NOR
51: GAS under investigation for speeding in the pit lane – why are they catching so many today?
52: SkySports say ALB cut the chicane a lap earlier, so it was actually a pass by LIN
53: GAS given 5sec penalty
ANT has lapped HAD (P4)
54: SAI pits from P9; softs; P10
55/78: ANT, HAM*, LEC, RUS*, HAD, PIA, GAS*, LAW, LIN, SAI; out: VER, BOT, BEA, NOR
STR given 5sec penalty for exceeding track limits
PIA under investigation for speeding in the pit lane
56: PIA given 5sec penalty
Radio from ANT reporting “There’s something weird with the engine going up the hill”; Bono tells him not to worry
57: Bono tells ANT he’s set fastest lap again, but wants him to focus on getting the car to the end
58: ANT laps teammate RUS who’s in P4
Williams swap ALB and SAI back around
LEC clips the barrier on the way out of the chicane
60/78: ANT, HAM*, LEC, RUS*, HAD, PIA*, GAS*, LAW, LIN, ALB; out: VER, BOT, BEA, NOR
Yellow flag – STR is in the barriers at the final corner
Safety Car deployed
61[SC]: HAM and PIA pit; both serve their 5sec penalties; softs for both
LEC pits too; softs
Race control: all cars will go through the pit lane
62[SC]: ANT pits; softs go on; same for RUS… but did he serve his 5sec penalty?
63[SC]: Replay shows RUS didn’t serve his penalty at the pit stop, so he’ll get an additional penalty
64[SC]: Lapped cars (i.e. everyone except ANT, HAM and LEC) can pass the SC
65/78[SC]: ANT, HAM, LEC, RUS*, HAD, PIA, GAS*, LAW, LIN, ALB; out: VER, BOT, BEA, NOR, STR
SC in at the end of this lap
66: LEC is in the barriers – same place as STR went off
SC deployed again
GAS noted for speeding in the pit lane
67[SC]: SC leads everyone through the pit lane while LEC’s Ferrari is removed
LEC is already in the garage and looks furious
RUS noted for failing to serve his penalty
68[SC]: Will the SC let lapped cars pass again? LIN (P8), and everyone behind him, is still a lap down
Red flag – race suspended
GAS given 5sec penalty
Everyone parked in the pit lane
FIA are going to check the state of the track in the final turn
HAD under investigation for SC infringement
RUS given a drive-through penalty for not serving his 5sec penalty when he pitted
Replay shows HAD was a long way behind the car in front, backing up RUS
HAM also under investigation for SC infringement
10 minute warning of the restart (17:12 local time)
Presumably everyone has already done their free tyre change
At the start: air temperature 24°C; track 39°C; humidity 59%
Now: air temperature 23°C; track 35°C; humidity 66%
The mechanics shuffle the cars so they’ll exit the pit lane in order, with lapped cars at the front
The lapped cars (LIN, P8 et sec) head out for a lap; they’ll re-enter the pit lane and form up behind LAW
Radio for PIA warning him not to fall more than 10 car lengths behind the car in front
69/78[SC]: ANT leads everyone out of the pit lane
Radio from RUS complaing HAD is too far behind the car ahead
70/78[SC]: ANT, HAM, HAD, RUS*, GAS**, PIA, LAW, LIN, ALB, SAI, OCO, HUL, COL*, ALO, PER, BOR; out: LEC, STR*, NOR, BEA, BOT, VER
Race control confirm it will be a standing start
Radio for RUS telling him they’ll serve the drive-through penalty two laps after the restart
71: HAD slow off the line; RUS takes P3
HUL hits SAI in the hairpin
SAI spins, heads behind the barriers just as the medical car comes round a blind corner
GAS also passed HAD
72: ALB alongside HUL before the chicane; HUL cuts it
73: RUS serves his drive-through penalty; rejoins P14
HAD noted for red flag infringement – it’ll be investigated after the race
74: Replay shows COL also hit SAI, and it was this one that spun the Williams around
75/78: ANT, HAM, GAS**, HAD, PIA, LAW, LIN, ALB, HUL, OCO
76: PER noted for being out of position at the restart
78/78: GAS is 14sec behind HAM, and the Alpine has two 5sec penalties to be applied, so he’ll probably be P7 but there are other penalties to be applied and some post-race investigations to follow
ANT takes the chequered flag
10sec penalty for HUL for causing a collision
Provisional result: ANT, HAM, HAD, PIA, LAW, LIN, GAS, ALB, OCO, PER; ALO, BOR, RUS, HUL, COL
DNF: SAI, LEC, STR, NOR, BEA, BOT, VER
Penalties
I think I recorded all the pit lane speeding penalties in my race notes – there were a lot, with a 5sec penalty for each infringement! HAM, RUS, COL, GAS, PIA, GAS (2nd time)
STR was given a 5sec penalty for exceeding track limits; he didn’t serve it before he crashed out
PER received a 10sec penalty for being out of position on the grid at the restart – this relegated him from P10 to P15
The stewards reviewed the claim of Red Bull mechanics working on HAD’s car during the red flag period, and decided there was no infringement
HAD and HAM were both alleged to have left too large a gap from the car in front when they were running behind the SC; no further action taken
PER was reprimanded for making a practice start in the wrong position
HUL was handed a 10sec penalty for causing a collision with SAI; COL was not penalised for his collision with SAI
Final Classification: ANT, HAM, HAD, PIA, LAW, LIN, GAS, ALB, OCO, ALO; BOR, RUS, HUL, COL, PER
UPDATE! The FIA have reversed a decision! (Gasps!) Alpine appealed GAS’ two time penalties for speeding in the pit lane and both were rescinded, which means GAS finished P3, same as he did on-track and that bumps HAD down to P4.
Revised Final Classification: ANT, HAM, GAS, HAD, PIA, LAW, LIN, ALB, OCO, ALO; BOR, RUS, HUL, COL, PER
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