Formula 1 had a scintillating weekend at Monaco as Lando Norris took the victory, leading from Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri. We saw multiple great results from the midfield teams. Both Racing Bulls and Williams finished in double points, and a Haas that outscored both Mercedes cars.
The race saw both Mercedes cars finish outside the points, a racing masterclass by Hadjar, and a very bad day for the two-time world champion, Fernando Alonso. However, the highlight of the race remains to be the fight out front between the McLarens, Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen.
Lando Norris creates the ultimate upset at Monaco
Lando Norris drove a great race at Monaco. He was being constantly hunted by Charles Leclerc, who was hoping to repeat the statement he made last year on the same circuit. The Monegasque driver was more or less within a second behind Norris, however, the McLaren driver refused to crack under pressure.
Norris’ fabled win at Monaco sets a milestone in his career, and he talked about celebrating it tonight.
“It feels amazing. It’s a long race, a long, gruelling race. We could push for the whole race, and we won in Monaco! An amazing weekend with pole, with today. This is what we dream of, this is what I did dream of as a kid.” said Norris.
“We are going to have a wonderful night!” he added.
Norris had an incident that Leclerc couldn’t capitalise on in Turn 1 in the first lap. The Briton had a small lockup but kept his lead and managed to stand on top of the podium. After the race, Leclerc talked about how he had already lost the race on Saturday.
😓| Lando Norris on his first Monaco GP win:
“It was a stressful race. It’s a lot of laps for things to go wrong, but — you know — an incredible race. We won Monaco, which has been a dream of mine since I was a kid. It’s one race that everyone wants to win.”
“Of course, when… pic.twitter.com/u2v3Zi95F2
— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) May 25, 2025
“Yeah, I’m happy anyway, I think. I cannot be infinitely disappointed with yesterday. Yesterday was a big disappointment, and I think eventually we lose the race of today by missing pole yesterday, but it’s the way it is. Honestly, for the car we have and for the situation we are in at the moment, I’m very satisfied with our overall result.” said Leclerc
Oscar Piastri didn’t have a bad race either. The Australian driver kept his position from qualifying, finishing P3.
On the other side of the Ferrari garage, Lewis Hamilton managed to claw his way into the top 5, a two-position gain from his qualifying position, just behind Verstappen.
The reigning world champion was another driver on the grid who finished in the same position he started, P4. After completing one stop, he remained out on track, hoping for a last-minute red flag, which could have handed him a victory. But Max had to eventually pit for his second mandatory stop on the final lap as there were no other race interruptions apart from the early VSC. He ended up finishing 4th, which was probably what was expected from the Dutch driver given his starting position.
The intense midfield strategy battle
The midfield battle wasn’t any less interesting here in Monte Carlo. We saw some great results from both Racing Bulls and Williams, who clearly had great strategies coming into the race.
In a great call by the Racing Bulls team, Isack Hadjar pitted very early in the race. He changed to softs but only drove a few laps on them before pitting again. The French driver got out with hard compound tyres and finished at P6. With support from Liam Lawson, he was able to keep the competition behind and maintain his position after the stops. Lawson himself finished at P8.
⚫| Toto Wolff on the Monaco Grand Prix:
“There was a bit of frustration there. Was that a bit of a point if George had taken the penalty? You know, at the end you’re playing for points that are not satisfying in itself. Monaco race — you’re winning or losing on Saturday. This… pic.twitter.com/5v65ptEzGY
— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) May 25, 2025
Williams also had great strategy calls where they focused on pushing Albon to the top. Both Williams drivers showcased great teamwork at the race, helping each other create gaps to not to lose much time during their respective pit stops. Both drivers finished in points at P9 and P10.
One side of the Haas garage was another unseen force in this race. Esteban Ocon managed to outscore both Mercs, Williams and a Racing Bulls car and finished at P7 with perfectly timed pitstops, making up the top 10.
Mercedes had a very disappointing weekend at Monaco. They only qualified P14 and P15 and could not score any points in the race as well. However, they would hope to turn this around next weekend.
F1 heads to Barcelona next weekend, a high-speed, high-degradation track that will push the cars to their limits due to its lack of high-braking zones, and let the drivers showcase their ability to maintain the tyres.
