After an impeccable performance in which
he brilliantly overcame being restricted to just six of his eight gears,
Ricciardo crossed the line just 7.3 seconds clear of Ferrari’s Sebastian
Vettel, with Mercedes Lewis Hamilton completing the podium to retain his championship
lead.
Raikkonen crossed the line fourth,
ahead of Bottas with Esteban Ocon converting a strong qualifying into a
'best-of-the-rest' sixth place for Force India. Pierre Gasly threw his hat into
the ring for Driver of the Day - an honor that ultimately went to Ricciardo -
with a stunning drive in the Toro Rosso. The
Frenchman made the hypersofts last, at a good pace, for nearly half the race,
allowing him to move up to seventh. He then drove brilliantly on the supersofts
to defend from Hulkenberg to maintain that position. Sainz completed the top
10.
Fernando Alonso failed to see the
chequered flag for the first time this season when he pulled up at Ste Devote
with smoke emanating from the rear of his car on Lap 53 of the 78. It was a
miserable day for Williams, too. Sergey Sirotkin ran 12th early on but
picked up a 10-second stop-go penalty for a wheel infringement on the grid,
while Lance Stroll suffered two punctures, one of which was caused when he
collided with Marcus Ericsson on the opening lap. They were the last classified
finishers, more than a lap down.
But
the day belonged to Ricciardo and Red Bull, who banished the memories of 2016,
when a pit stop error cost the Australian victory here. He still hasn’t had an
easy win – each of his now seven F1 triumphs have been challenging – but he
won’t care. The Monaco victory is finally his.
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