by M.C. – photo: Formula1 | All circuits have their own particularities which make them attractive in their own unique way, but winning the Monaco GP has a whole different flavour to it than all other victories. At least that is what most of the drivers on the grid say. Monaco is the most coveted Grand Prix. A race in which the dexterity and skill set of each driver is key at the classification stage, where many of the points disputed on Sunday are decided. Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull) had the necessary resolve and strength of mind from the start of the training sessions and it all showed during Saturday’s classification round when he took the pole. As everyone knows, having the pole at the urban circuit of Monte Carlo is pretty much like having victory served on a plate.

There were no further surprises and after a pretty uneventful race, with no major incidents to report, the Australian driver from Red Bull achieved one of his most desired triumphs, particularly after having slipped through his fingers in 2016. During the race, he had to deal with some power-loss issues and cope with the pressure from Sebastian Vettel, who was at times coming dangerously close on board his Ferrari. But despite it all and with no other incidents to change the course of things, the German driver couldn’t steal the victory from him. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) earned an expected third position, never standing a chance to do any better.

Alonso out, first time this season

As for the rest of the day, and despite the tremendous interest that the Monaco GP always arouses in both public and media, the race was disappointingly straightforward, feeling even monotonous at times. Fernando Alonso (McLaren) was unfortunately forced to quit after having completed over a hundred laps, due to some gearbox mechanical problems. The Spaniard, who seemed to have everything going for him, has managed to come in points in the previous five races but couldn’t keep the trend in this occasion. He was seventh when he had to retire, the same position in which he classified.

The impulsive driver from Red Bull, Max Verstappen, provided the little excitement that there was to have on the day by climbing all the way to ninth position from the very last, where he was relegated to after crashing during the classification stage.