Lewis Hamilton returns to victory in Monaco

After seeing Nico Rosberg dominate the first four races of 2016, and after the collision with his teammate in Spain, Lewis Hamilton ended his drought of victories, which had been going on since the Austin event in 2015, the scene of his third world title.

The Briton had a perfect race, with a timely strategy and a single pit stop, switching directly from rain rubber to ultra-soft tires, when most of the drivers opted for a stint on intermediate tires. Magnussen (Renault) had initiated the movement as soon as the safety car returned which had led the peloton during the first eight laps.

The pilot Mercedes also benefited from the error of Red Bull Racing during a passage in the pitlane of Daniel Ricciardo, in the lead from the start. The Australian lost a lot of time as the tires were not ready when he arrived at his location.

Back in the lead, Hamilton contained Ricciardo's attacks, once blocking the Milton Keynes driver's attempt at the exit of the tunnel chicane. The gap between the two drivers will vary depending on the virtual safety cars, but Hamilton will ultimately cross the line as the winner.

Behind the duo who led the fight for victory, Sergio Pérez (Force India) climbs onto the podium by getting ahead of the Ferrari de Sebastian Vettel. Fernando Alonso (McLaren) brings the points for fifth place to Woking and leads Nico Hulkenberg (Force India) which finished sixth after overtaking Nico Rosberg's Mercedes on the last lap, in difficulty this Sunday in Monaco.

The German, victim of brake temperature problems, let it pass on the orders of his team, Hamilton at the start of the race and was never able to keep up with the pace of the leaders. Carlos Sainz (Toro Rosso) follows in the standings ahead of Jenson Button (McLaren) and Felipe Massa who brings a point to Williams.

The event was marked by numerous incidents, including the most impressive of Jolyon Palmer in the first minutes of the race. The Renault driver made a mistake on the pit straight, hitting the rail before ending his race in the Sainte-Dévote escape route.

Kimi Räikkönen (Ferrari) also hit the barriers at Loews, and immediately blocked Romain Grosjean (Haas), before giving up a few meters further on. The Frenchman was able to continue his effort, finally finishing 14th.

Already made a mistake in qualifying, Max Verstappen (Red Bull) concluded its race in the rail at the Massenet curve at the top of the Beau-Rivage climb. The two Saubers of Felipe Nasr and Marcus Ericsson were also forced to retire, after clinging to the Rascasse, and Kevin Magnussen (Renault) was unable to cross the finish line, after an error notably at Mirabeau.

With this success, Lewis Hamilton returns to 24 points behind his teammate in the general classification of the world championship. Photos from the Monaco Grand Prix can be viewed in our dedicated gallery.

Results Monaco Grand Prix

Find our full report and analysis of the Monaco Grand Prix, in issue 2065 of AUTOhebdo, available from tomorrow evening at 22 p.m. in digital version, and from this Wednesday on newsstands.