Verstappen secures a masterful victory in Monaco

Max Verstappen had never been on the podium in Monaco before this season. When he returns to his home in the Principality this evening, the pilot Red Bull will do so in the shoes of the new leader of the world championship after a perfectly mastered performance in the streets of Monte Carlo. 

2nd on the grid, the Dutchman benefited from a big boost even before the lights went out since the pole sitter Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) suffered a mechanical problem during his grid lap. The Monegasque's weekend race was interrupted before it even started.

Verstappen therefore had a clear view at the start but he was still on the outside of the grid and under the threat of a Valtteri Bottas who had the inside trajectory from 3rd place on the grid. The Finn of Mercedes also took off better but Verstappen had anticipated such a maneuver by pointing his Red Bull towards the inside. 

The Dutchman closed the door immediately and presented himself to Ste Dévote in the lead. He almost never let go of the controls, except for the space of one lap after his only pit stop, made on the 34th lap. 

At that point, the hypothetical threat embodied by Bottas had already disappeared due to a completely botched pit stop for the Finn. The German team simply could not remove his right front tire, the Mercedes mechanic's gun having machined the wheel nut, which could no longer be removed. 

Valtteri's woes weren't the only hiccup for the seven-time world champions, as his teammate Lewis Hamilton had a frustrating afternoon. Qualified only 7th, the Briton was the first of the leading group to stop in the hope of surprising Pierre Gasly behind him. Alpha Tauri reacted immediately by stopping the Frenchman a lap later. 

Gasly was able to maintain his position against a Hamilton who was fuming on the radio. On the other hand, the Norman was unable to do anything to counter the profitable overcut attempts of Sergio Pérez (Red Bull) and Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin). 

In front of, Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) and his former teammate McLaren (Lando Norris) took advantage of Bottas' abandonment to surround Verstappen on the princely podium. After a mixed performance in qualifying, Pérez recovered well by securing a valuable 4th place, ahead of Vettel found in the Principality.

Next are Gasly and Hamilton, who spent their Sunday afternoon in close formation. The Briton limits the damage a little by scraping the point for the best lap in the race thanks to a late stop to put on Tendres.  

Lance stroll made an offbeat strategy work with a very long first stint on hard tires to propel themselves from 13th to 8th place under the checkerboard. The Canadian from Aston Martin is ahead Esteban Ocon, which saves a little furniture for Alpine with 9th position. 

Present for the first time of the season in Q1, the team Alfa Romeo snatches the last point put into play through Antonio Giovinazzi, who finishes on the heels of Ocon.  

By scoring 18 points more than his rival Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen carried out a superb operation in the standings as he took control of the world championship for the first time in his career. The Dutchman is now 4 points ahead of the Mercedes driver.