Monaco GP: Top 10 quotes after race
Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen secure a Ferrari one-two
Photo by: Sutton Images
Cla | # | Driver | Chassis | Engine | Time | Gap | Pits | Points |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 5 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | Ferrari | 1:44'44.340 | 1 | 25 | |
“It's an incredible day. In the laps before my pit-stop I was surprised by my own pace because earlier on Kimi and I were both struggling with the rear tires. Those laps I did today were comparatively better than the ones I did in qualifying yesterday. It was impossible for me to predict how fast I could go today. At one point I thought a second, maybe half a second, but then it turned out it was more than that, which was obviously crucial to grant me first place out of the box. It was fantastic to be in the lead and win the race. There was a lot of adrenaline during those laps but in general I could control the race. It sure helps to be the leading car, without any traffic, so that you get better into the rhythm. Once I had new tires, again I was able to control the position. We had the chance this weekend to finish first and second and that's what the team did. It's great to see what we were able to do. Today the team gained a lot of points. It's been a while since Ferrari won here so it's a great day. I really enjoyed driving for the team. It is great to work together, we try to push each other and the best thing is to see that the team keeps growing.” | ||||||||
2 | 7 | Kimi Raikkonen | Ferrari | Ferrari | 1:44'47.485 | 3.145 | 1 | 18 |
“To finish first and second is what we wanted, a very good result for the whole team. Obviously right now I'm not very happy, because second place is not what I was looking for, but that's how it goes. When you have done most of the hard work and you finish second it's not bad, but we expected a bit more. When I came out after the pit stop I got stuck behind lapped cars and that was not ideal, but this was out of my control. At the next track in Canada the layout is completely different from here: it's hard to predict what will happen, but let's see.” | ||||||||
3 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | Red Bull | TAG | 1:44'48.085 | 3.745 | 1 | 15 |
“I’m much happier today. I can’t obviously complain how it worked out and I have to thank the team. It was cool to show some pace today and we had that clear track. I didn’t think the tyres had that much more but I just got into that rhythm, was able to punch out some good times. I knew the pace was right, my engineer was encouraging me on the radio saying: “Pace is really good. Keep going, keep going!” That was certainly motivating and my thanks to the homies. After the safety car it was pretty unexpected when I touched the wall as I didn’t brake late or anything, I felt I was quite cautious, but then when I turned I thought the car isn’t turning, I then hit the wall and thought I damaged the front wing or something but in the end it was okay. I’m just happy to be back on the podium to be honest. That was definitely the icing on the cake and is a reward for myself and the team.” | ||||||||
4 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1:44'49.857 | 5.517 | 1 | 12 |
"Missing out on a first Monaco podium is painful. It's been a long week and we've worked so hard, so it's disappointing to miss out. I was stuck in the traffic while Daniel (Ricciardo) was running in free air and ultimately, that cost me a place on the podium. It's been a really tough weekend for us and we've just been missing pace. Ferrari were very strong this weekend and for whatever reason, their car seems easier to operate, so we have work to do. We have to learn from this, but there's a long year ahead. Hopefully this will be our worst weekend this season. Canada should be a different story." | ||||||||
5 | 33 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | TAG | 1:44'50.539 | 6.199 | 2 | 10 |
“It is very disappointing after such a clean weekend where everything has gone really well to then feel I lost out on a podium, but I guess that is racing. I tried everything I could to get close to Bottas, you can say we stopped too early or should have gone longer but that is always easy to think after the race. Even after the safety car, I was on fresh, softer rubber but with the wide cars and dirty air you can’t make a move and I had no real chance of overtaking here. I think I did 77 laps in traffic today, that isn’t much fun and I couldn’t push but at least we finished the race which is the biggest positive from the day.” | ||||||||
6 | 55 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | Toro Rosso | Renault | 1:44'56.378 | 12.038 | 1 | 8 |
“What a result, what a perfect weekend! We need to enjoy this moment, because it’s not usual to achieve a faultless Grand Prix on the streets of Monaco – and this time we did! We put in good laps in practice, in yesterday’s qualifying session and, in today’s race, we were able to keep a World Champion in a faster car behind and finish P6 – it definitely feels so good! We’ve also been quicker than the rest of the midfield throughout the whole weekend and I’d like to thank the whole team for this, they gave me a very good car to drive! I really enjoyed today’s race – now it’s time to celebrate this well-deserved result with the team before starting to think about the Canadian GP, which is up next!” | ||||||||
7 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1:45'00.141 | 15.801 | 1 | 6 |
"I'm really, really happy that I was able to fight back to seventh. The strategists said P10 was probably the maximum today, so it feels great to have beaten that target. To score six points, considering where I was on the grid after a disastrous day on Saturday is a good recovery. Today it was impossible to overtake and I tried everything to get past Carlos [Sainz] at the end! I'm just grateful to have ended up in P7. I went on the radio at the end there to make sure the team know that this battle isn't over. We'll be sure to push those red cars hard next time out in Canada. We've got a real fight on our hands, but there are still 14 races to go." | ||||||||
8 | 8 | Romain Grosjean | Haas | Ferrari | 1:45'02.490 | 18.150 | 1 | 4 |
“It’s the first time we’ve had two cars in the top-10, so that’s really good, especially in Monaco. It was a tough race. We didn’t have the pace to stay with the first few guys. Unfortunately, nothing was happening at the front, it was all behind me. Every time a car retired it was behind me. Lewis (Hamilton) had some free air, and then managed to jump us at the pit stop. It’s great to have the two cars in the points. We managed to stay out of trouble and I drove as fast as I could. There’s a lot more we need to analyze and understand, but we’re growing as a team.” | ||||||||
9 | 19 | Felipe Massa | Williams | Mercedes | 1:45'03.785 | 19.445 | 2 | 2 |
“I’m happy with the result and scoring points today. We had brake issues from the start and I had to manage them from the very first lap. I’ve never had to do that before in my career! At the end, I could see Perez trying to pass me on his fresh tyres and I thought ‘stay here and just try to get some points’, which is exactly what happened. My experience as a driver definitely helped me to get points today, so I’m very happy.” | ||||||||
10 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | Ferrari | 1:45'05.783 | 21.443 | 2 | 1 |
“Personally, I had a very disappointing race. I had a puncture, but to still finish in the points with both cars is a really good job from the team. They really deserve this. I’m happy we got it. Even though it’s just one point, it could’ve been a lot more. I feel like I’ve had the most unlucky season of my life, but at least today we got both cars in the points and I’m proud of the team for that. It’s Monaco, and a lot of things can happen. There’s no reason to give up, you still push, and that’s what I did. I kept pushing.” |
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