F1 Monaco GP Thread - containing spoilers

[Fernando]

Set around the harbour in the principality on the Cote d'Azur, the world’s rich and famous have docked their yachts for what is a week-long event and the only race where bars spill out onto the circuit with tables and chairs in the evening.

Track: Circuit de Monaco. Street circuit.

Race start time: 1pm UK time Sunday (2pm local).

Laps: 78.

Track length: 3.337 km (3 metres shorter in 2015).

Tyre allocation: Soft (yellow) and Supersoft (red).

DRS Zones: One (Pit Straight).

Driver steward: Tom Kristensen.

Lap record: Michael Schumacher - 1:14.439 (Ferrari, 2004).

2014 pole: Nico Rosberg - 1:15.989 (Mercedes).

Nico Rosberg repeated his 2013 feat by winning the Monaco GP for a second time last year. Fernando Alonso is the only other current driver to have taken victory on the streets of Monte Carlo on multiple occasions. Both, though, are a long way short of Ayrton Senna’s record of six wins in the principality

Pirelli’s supersoft compound makes its first appearance of the 2015 season as the weekend’s ‘option’ tyre. The red-marked rubber has been revised for this year. As usual, the soft tyre serves as the 'prime' compound on a Monaco track which is the least abrasive of the whole season.

"The supersoft is the only P Zero tyre to have a brand new compound for this year, created to offer even greater resistance to graining and blistering," Pirelli explained. "One of the key evolutions on all the tyres this year has been optimisation of the footprint pressure and temperature distribution. This presents a more even contact with the asphalt, improving grip and handling: vital attributes on the streets of Monaco.

[Fernando]

FP 1

Lewis Hamilton GBR Mercedes-Mercedes 1m 18.750s 49 laps
Max Verstappen NED Toro Rosso-Renault 1m 18.899s 42 laps
Daniel Ricciardo AUS Red Bull-Renault 1m 19.086s 27 laps
Sebastian Vettel GER Ferrari-Ferrari 1m 19.134s 31 laps
Carlos Sainz Jr ESP Toro Rosso-Renault 1m 19.245s 40 laps
Pastor Maldonado VEN Lotus-Mercedes 1m 19.454s 35 laps
Daniil Kvyat RUS Red Bull-Renault 1m 19.520s 33 laps
Kimi Raikkonen FIN Ferrari-Ferrari 1m 19.679s 31 laps
Nico Rosberg GER Mercedes-Mercedes 1m 19.762s 47 laps
Felipe Massa BRZ Williams-Mercedes 1m 19.766s 32 laps
Fernando Alonso ESP McLaren-Honda 1m 19.791s 28 laps
Jenson Button GBR McLaren-Honda 1m 20.202s 15 laps
Romain Grosjean FRA Lotus-Mercedes 1m 20.274s 34 laps
Sergio Perez MEX Force India-Mercedes 1m 20.619s 35 laps
Nico Hulkenberg GER Force India-Mercedes 1m 20.784s 34 laps
Felipe Nasr BRZ Sauber-Ferrari 1m 20.857s 24 laps
Valtteri Bottas FIN Williams-Mercedes 1m 20.917s 36 laps
Marcus Ericsson SWE Sauber-Ferrari 1m 21.219s 25 laps
Will Stevens GBR Manor Marussia-Ferrari 1m 23.234s 28 laps
Roberto Merhi ESP Manor Marussia-Ferrari 1m 23.404s 31 laps

[dyrewolfe]

Think I'll just be catching the BBC highlights for this one.

My hopes don't really amount to much more than someone other than Hamilton winning, to keep the title race interesting - and I am actually a fan of Lewis (how sad that I'm actually hoping he doesn't win?).

[CaledonianCraig]

A spot of rain would certainly liven things up. I shall be watching - the sheer spectacle of racing F1 cars around these tight, twisting, undulating streets has always enthralled me. I know call me sad.

[Guest]

sad thing is the sterilisation of this great track year by year. why call it the jewel in the crown, the ultimate driver test, if they continue to remove or widen areas of the track. The removal of the barrier on the inside of turn 15, the right-hander in the Swimming Pool complex is shocking, watching drivers have to turn in & skim that barrier from the on-board footage was a fantastic watch.

as for the race, anything can happen really. i do want a close championship fight, but i said this from day one, rosberg doesn't have the characteristics or ability of a true world champion in this sport, so would rather hamilton continue building his legacy, until he's hopefully challenged by vettel next season.

[Guest]

The removal of the barrier on the inside of turn 15, the right-hander in the Swimming Pool complex is shocking, watching drivers have to turn in & skim that barrier from the on-board footage was a fantastic watch.

Yeah, agree on that one. As Vettel stated this week, the fear factor in F1 from a drivers perspective has or is diminishing year on year under these regulations.

As for FP3, Vettel quickest, but expect Q3 to be a Hamilton/Rosberg duel

[Guest]

Hamilton pole, Rosberg had some braking issues & settles for second.

[GSC]

And naptime ensues tomorrow

[Guest]

Good job by Hamilton to immediately stop Nico's momentum from last race.

As for Kimi, it's just unacceptable to be down in sixth & again fail on a Saturday. I doubt Ferrari will put up with this much longer & already have an alternative for next year.

[Fernando]

Carlos Sainz Jr forced to start from the pitlane after missing the weigh-bridge.

[CaledonianCraig]

And Grosjean with a five place penalty due to a gearbox change. That means that a McLaren starts in the top ten for the first time this season with Button lining up 10th.

[Guest]

That means that a McLaren starts in the top ten for the first time this season with Button lining up 10th.

be amazed if both mclaren's finish, given the reliability woes

[CaledonianCraig]

At the moment I would settle for one points finish and a DNF.

[dyrewolfe]

Feel desperately sorry for Alonso...seems if it wasn't for bad luck he wouldn't have any. Hoping Button can bring some cheer to the McLaren garage by picking up their first points.

No surprises in quali means only rain can threaten any kind of surprises / upsets.

Was surprised to see Rosberg still has problems braking into turn 1. Ricciardo denied a better time due to using the wrong engine mode.

Think I'll still just catch the highlights. Think it my be more interesting watching England's latest woes in the cricket...

[CaledonianCraig]

Feel desperately sorry for Alonso...seems if it wasn't for bad luck he wouldn't have any. Hoping Button can bring some cheer to the McLaren garage by picking up their first points.

No surprises in quali means only rain can threaten any kind of surprises / upsets.

Was surprised to see Rosberg still has problems braking into turn 1. Ricciardo denied a better time due to using the wrong engine mode.

Think I'll still just catch the highlights. Think it my be more interesting watching England's latest woes in the cricket...

I certainly sniff a points finish for McLaren so that should be worth a watch. Especially if you consider you tend to get a fair amount of crashes and DNF's.

As for the cricket, yes I am watching that just now and England on a knife edge.

[Guest]

You knew that Verstappen crash was imminent. Wow

[Guest]

Hamilton third now. Wtf!!!!!

[Guest]

Pathetic this. We now have to wait 10 mins for the backmarkets to get out the way & deny us a grandstand finish. Mercedes have done Lewis here.

[CaledonianCraig]

Daft pit stop from Mercedes and Hamilton. Depends on whose call it was but whoever it was it was pointless.

[Guest]

Pathetic

[Guest]

Rosberg makes it a hat trick of wins. Absolute gift, this will send Lewis off the edge psychlogically.

[CaledonianCraig]

Pretty incomprehensible why they pitted Hamilton and what input Hamilton had in it. Fascinating (as Mr Spock would say). Rosberg gets a gift of a win and Vettel second. Button earns McLaren their first points of the season.

[GSC]

*gets popcorn*

[Fernando]

This could be the bright point of John's day

Was a shocker from the pitwall It was a 1 stop because the tyres lasted 40 odd laps was no need to change regardless.

[erictheblueuk]

Weren't Nico's tyres in the same state as Hammy's?

[Guest]

Yes, it was a monumental foul up of epic proportions

[Guest]

All come about from Verstapppen's error & impatience, Lewis had this in the bag. For such a team, they do have some quite incredible foul up moments, when put under pressure. Lauda pinpointed it to a communication error, with too many heads having a say, but that's how they are set up since Brawn went. Some would say this was intentional, to make the championship still interesting.

[CaledonianCraig]

What I would add is that Lewis could have argued for them not to bring him in - or at least waited until others pitted.

[GSC]

Heh the conspiracy stories are up again

[CaledonianCraig]

Heh the conspiracy stories are up again

I don't see any need for them really.

I am more puzzled as to why Hamilton agreed to come in first. I presume they conferred with him so the ball was also in his court. Tyres couldn't have been too marginal as others made it to the end no problem.

[GSC]

Probably thought they could get out in front of Nico and speed clear on fresh tyres

[CaledonianCraig]

Probably thought they could get out in front of Nico and speed clear on fresh tyres

But what was the benefit? Track position is everything at Monaco so when a safety car comes out with just over ten laps to go tyre issues then became even less problematic. It really was weird and you have to question why Hamilton went along with the suggestion.

[GSC]

Depends what Hamilton thought of his tyres. Overtaking is tough, but you need confidence in the tyres when under pressure.

And I suspect Mercedes deeply feared an incident between the two so were hoping that Lewis would get clear and win by 10 seconds on new tyres

[Guest]

Funny how monaco seems to be conquered by inferior drivers recently. Webber had Vettel in his pocket around these streets & now Rosberg has done the same thing to Hamilton & won three in a row to join a great like Senna. Strange stuff, should be other way around with these drivers.

Can see this title going down to the wire again, Hamilton never does anything easy, irrespective of it being the teams fault today

[GSC]

Verstappen needs to learn to rein it in at times. Pretty funny to see Grosjean slam the door shut when he tried to follow through a lapped car for the third time.

[CaledonianCraig]

Depends what Hamilton thought of his tyres.

That is the real key here. If he was desperate for the pitstop then he can have no real complaints. However, I cannot believe he decided to pit before getting assurances that others were going to stop as well. Basically, they were all in the same boat with regards to the amount of laps done on their set of tyres.

[GSC]

Yeah, the flipside is Rosberg, Vettel etc all end on fresh tyres buzzing around behind him, and I'm guessing neither he or the team fancied it.

Ultimately it was a strategy balls up. It does happen time to time

[GSC]

That was a big smash for Verstappen. As before, has to rein it at a track like this, was a touch of the old Kobayashi bonzai in him today

[CaledonianCraig]

That was a big smash for Verstappen. As before, has to rein it at a track like this, was a touch of the old Kobayashi bonzai in him today

The exuberance of youth I'd say and couldn't you just see it coming? I could.

[GSC]

Mmm, don't think he made many friends with the lapped car manoeuvres. Grosjean pretty much said try it and you're going in the wall. As you say the exhuberance of youth but its something the top drivers have to learn. Sometimes its just better to finish

[GSC]

Think if you penalise Alonso for the Hulkenburg incident, Ricciardo has to be for the Kimi one.

[CaledonianCraig]

Yeah, the flipside is Rosberg, Vettel etc all end on fresh tyres buzzing around behind him, and I'm guessing neither he or the team fancied it.

Ultimately it was a strategy balls up. It does happen time to time

Yes but as we now know they never pitted. Let them gamble as they were the ones without track position and all Hamilton and Mercedes needed to do and should have done was react to what Ferrari did. After all if Vettel had pitted then they's still have got their 1-2 finish if they'd covered it off and surely Rosberg would have been the one to pit to cover off the move? Many errors on that call from Mercedes and even Hamilton.

[CaledonianCraig]

I must say a well done to Button and McLaren on picking up their first points finish of the season with his 8th place. McLaren are getting there very slowly but obviously a very long way to go to get back to the head of the field.

[Guest]

F1 isn't about making friends, Verstappen just shows he's a racer, with a great thinking head on young shoulders. It's about being ruthless & cunning in an attempt to maximise your race, all the great would of done similar moves to Verstappen behind Vettel today. Yeah, he showed impatience & inexperience behind Grosjean, but he's learning still, but he's exciting to watch.

[GSC]

Holy cliche batman

[Roberto Baggio]

I can't help but feel Grosjean brake checked Verstappen by breaking earlier than normal to fluster his on track rival.

Max said in an interview that the Frenchman picked his breaking spot a lot earlier than in the previous laps he'd been following him.

Without reviewing telemetry of this, I can only make an accusation that this was something manufactured by Grosjean in the heat of the moment. Maybe he's jealous at the impact Max has made as a rookie compared to his own first season.

[dyrewolfe]

I can't help but feel Grosjean brake checked Verstappen by breaking earlier than normal to fluster his on track rival.

Max said in an interview that the Frenchman picked his breaking spot a lot earlier than in the previous laps he'd been following him.

Without reviewing telemetry of this, I can only make an accusation that this was something manufactured by Grosjean in the heat of the moment. Maybe he's jealous at the impact Max has made as a rookie compared to his own first season.

Funny, as I thought the same thing after watching the replays. At first I thought Grosjean had jinked back into Verstappen's path, but then you see he doesn't change direction, but his car does slow earlier than you'd expect.


Back on to the race result, with my tinfoil hat on I think Mercedes did it on purpose to keep Nico happy and the title race close.

Taking it off again, if they really did read the data wrong, all you can do is accept they messed up...everyone makes mistakes, after all. Nice to see everyone involved being so reasonable about it. Sure Lewis will come back strong in Canada.

[banbrotam]

Lewis's luck in his one win in 2008 has now certainly been paid back in spades

It's nonsense for any to talk about a conspiracy - so Mercedes decided in a few seconds that they'd go for less points than they already had? I don't think so

It's annoying because he would have been in cruise control for the rest of the Championship and as a fan, I'm fine with that!!

However, as we all suspect he's got so much more pace than his team-mate, plus a few circuits coming up where he's given some of his best drives

And worst!! We'll forget about Canada 08 and 11' or Silverstone 08'

The most annoying thing isn't that it's another Rosberg victory. It's that it's another Rosberg victory where he starts behind Hamilton and wins but not by overtaking him

Astonishingly, he's not overtaken Hamilton once on the track (and made it stick) since last season started

[banbrotam]

What I would add is that Lewis could have argued for them not to bring him in - or at least waited until others pitted.

Not really. History is full of incidents where drivers insisted on staying out and became a cropper. Hamilton at China in 2008 is an excellent example. If the pit crew call you in, you go in

[CaledonianCraig]

What I would add is that Lewis could have argued for them not to bring him in - or at least waited until others pitted.

Not really. History is full of incidents where drivers insisted on staying out and became a cropper. Hamilton at China in 2008 is an excellent example. If the pit crew call you in, you go in

No in this instance I'd say not. We've heard Hamilton and other drivers argue over strategy and besides it is really dumb to agree to come in for a pitstop with ten laps to go. Before the safety car came out (and if it hadn't come out) there would not have been another stop for tyres so the tyres were in decent enough shape to survive to the finish without a doubt and going at reduced speeds behind the safety car was doing even less damage. I am sure Hamilton must have realised this so all he should have been doing was covering those around him. As in only come in for a stop if Vettel and Rosberg did.

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