Monaco – Race: Rosberg holds off Hamilton, Bianchi in the points!

It is under an overcast sky that the 2014 Monaco Grand Prix is about to start, with Marcus Ericsson in the pits. At the start of the warm-up lap, Pastor Maldonado was unable to start and abandons the race even before it begins.

At the start, Nico Rosberg gets a good launch and keeps the lead at the first corner. Kimi Räikkönen had a very good start by going around the outside and is in fourth position. Sebastian Vettel, on the other hand, is third. But there is chaos in the pack as in Mirabeau, Sergio Pérez turns on a McLaren and spins out into the rail. It’s a retirement for the Mexican and the safety car is already on track even before the first lap is completed to clear the Force India. Some drivers, like Romain Grosjean, are pitting to switch to soft tires, likely attempting a one-stop strategy.

The race resumes after three neutralized laps, and right at the restart, Sebastian Vettel experiences a lack of power. He is overtaken by Räikkönen, then Ricciardo, before the entire pack passes him. He returns to the pits and stops for a moment before rejoining the track, a lap behind; he is eventually called back to the box by Red Bull and retires. At the front, Hamilton puts pressure on Rosberg: the two Mercedes are separated by less than a second.

After 10 laps, Rosberg leads Hamilton, Räikkönen, Ricciardo, and Alonso. The two Mercedes cars remain close, even though Hamilton’s pressure is less intense than before. At the start of the 12th lap, it’s Daniil Kvyat who retires to the pits. Adrian Sutil, in the Sauber, is on an all-out attack: he passes Romain Grosjean and then, a few laps later, Marcus Ericsson in the Grand Hotel hairpin: tough but fair. Behind the two leaders, Räikkönen is 7.3 seconds back, leading Ricciardo by four seconds. Many drivers are isolated at the beginning of this race. Sutil continues his climb: he now overtakes Chilton and takes 15th place. The German is animating this Grand Prix.

**After 20 laps**, the stewards announce that Gutierrez, Chilton, and Bianchi will have to serve a 5-second stop-and-go penalty due to incorrect positioning on the starting grid. In the lead, Rosberg has a little over a one-second advantage over Hamilton. Räikkönen is almost 11 seconds behind the Mercedes and sees Ricciardo closing in. Rosberg is regularly locking his front left tire, which is quite worn. The leaders are approaching the first backmarkers: Grosjean moves aside in the tunnel before coming in to fit super soft tires.

On the 25th lap, Adrian Sutil loses control of his Sauber at the tunnel exit and hits the inside rail before sliding into the escape area. The debris on the track leads to the deployment of the safety car. In the pits, it’s a flurry of activity: both Mercedes cars stop in quick succession. Behind them, Toro Rosso releases Vergne in an unsafe manner, narrowly avoiding a collision with Magnussen’s McLaren; an investigation will be launched. Räikkönen, who was in third place, has to pit a second time within a few laps: he has a rear-left puncture.

The race restarts on lap 31: Rosberg leads Hamilton, Ricciardo, Alonso, and Massa. Magnussen gained an advantage over Vergne in the Rascasse but loses that position again, likely to avoid a potential penalty, and is then overtaken by Hülkenberg at the portier. Up front, the two Mercedes are separated by eight-tenths of a second. At the back of the pack, however, there’s a lot of action: Räikkönen, after two tricky attempts, manages to get past Kobayashi. Bianchi, meanwhile, aggressively overtakes the Japanese driver in the Rascasse, with several contacts between the two cars, which remain undamaged.

Vergne is penalized with a drive-through due to the unsafe release of his teammate during the second safety car. He rejoins in 13th position, just behind Bianchi. The two Mercedes maintain a one-second lead, while behind, Ricciardo sees Alonso closing in on him. In fifth position, Massa is sandwiched but still needs to pit, which he does on lap 46. At Mercedes, Hamilton is informed that, in order to save fuel, Rosberg will be lifting off earlier at the end of the straight.

After 50 out of 78 laps, Rosberg is still leading Hamilton, followed by Ricciardo, Alonso, and Hülkenberg. The battle for 12th place is fierce between Bianchi and Vergne. The Toro Rosso driver puts a lot of pressure on his compatriot, even making contact with the rear of the Marussia at the Grand Hotel hairpin. A few laps later, Vergne experiences an engine problem in the tunnel and is forced to retire.

On lap 57, it is Valtteri Bottas’s Williams engine that explodes before Mirabeau; he stops after the hairpin and the Williams can be cleared without a safety car intervention. The Finn had been blocking Gutierrez, Räikkönen, and Massa for a few laps; they are in 8th, 9th, and 10th places respectively. Bianchi is on the verge of points but could be penalized for serving his penalty under a safety car regime. Gutierrez, in the Rascasse, makes a mistake and hits the inside of the rail. He stops at the entrance of the pit lane but the safety car remains in place once again, as the car was cleared by the marshals.

On the 64th lap, Rosberg is more than a second ahead of Hamilton. Ricciardo is 14 seconds behind, ahead of Alonso and Hülkenberg. Gutierrez’s retirement has placed Bianchi in 10th position, but the Frenchman receives a 5-second stop-and-go penalty. At the front, Hamilton is losing ground to Rosberg, so much so that Mercedes wonders if he has an issue that would force him to pit: the Briton warns that he has something in his eye. He continues to lose time both to Rosberg and to Ricciardo, who comes within 7 seconds by the 68th lap. On the 72nd lap, the Australian is 3.5 seconds behind Hamilton, who is still struggling.

On the 73rd lap, Ricciardo is in Hamilton’s exhaust as Hamilton locks his wheels at Rascasse. A battle is about to ensue between the two men. They encounter backmarkers who they pass without much trouble, but behind them, Räikkönen attempts a maneuver on Magnussen at the hairpin and takes the Dane with him. The Ferrari driver damaged his front wing and has to pit again, while the McLaren lost a lot of time. Bianchi finds himself in 8th position!

With two laps to go, Hamilton is grappling with Ricciardo but resists, and it’s Nico Rosberg who wins for the second consecutive time in Monaco ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Daniel Ricciardo! Behind them, Alonso, Hülkenberg, Button, Massa, Bianchi, Grosjean, and Magnussen complete the top 10. The final standings will depend on the application of penalties.