Lewis Hamilton 4th F1 victory with Monaco Grand Prix win and championship lead.
MONACO (AP) — Lewis Hamilton’s stressful win at Sunday’s Monaco Grand Prix extended his championship lead to 17 points after six races,
previously Hamilton wins after overtaking Bottas at the start in Spanish GP - Mercedes' 5th one-two victory in a row.
Holding off Max Verstappen on fading tires that made his Mercedes slip around, Hamilton clinched his fourth win of the season and 77th of a glittering career. The five-time F1 champion ranked it among his best five drives.
Verstappen, despite being hit by a five-second time penalty, would have been hard to catch had he got ahead of Hamilton. For more than 30 laps, Hamilton managed to both maintain his speed and fend off Verstappen — one of the most aggressive and quickest drivers in F1.
Fittingly, Verstappen drove brilliantly, too, considering he was not just chasing Hamilton but also competing against his time penalty. Even though he finished just behind Hamilton, Verstappen placed fourth overall behind Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas in third and Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel in second.
2019 Formula 1 Drivers and Constructor Standings - F1
1 - Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport - 137
2 - Valtteri Bottas - Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport - 120
3 - Sebastian Vettel - Scuderia Ferrari - 82
4 - Max Verstappen - Aston Martin Red Bull Racing - 78
5 - Charles Leclerc - Scuderia Ferrari - 57
6 - Pierre Gasly - Aston Martin Red Bull Racing - 32
Hamilton Said:
"That was definitely the hardest race I've had but nonetheless I really was fighting with the spirit of Niki - he's been such an influence in our team and I know he will be looking down and taking his hat off. I was trying to stay focused and make him proud that it's been the goal all week and we truly miss him."
Vettel Said:
"A tough race to manage, at Monaco something always happens, Max must have had an incredible stop, I saw them (Verstappen and Bottas) touching in the pit lane. I wanted to put some more pressure on, I just struggled with my tyres, not as badly as Lewis and Max's, but mine were just not getting hot."
Bottas:
"It's obviously disappointing for me, I think the speed was there and I was feeling good in the car. It was small margins yesterday and that made today difficult. Max got me in the pitlane and left me with no room and then I was stuck behind, it was like a Sunday drive."
What's next in Formula 1 race?
Canada in two weeks' time. Mercedes will start as favourites, but the long straights might give Ferrari their first chance to be competitive since Baku two races ago. The Next Formula 1 race will be held on Sunday 9 June, at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve Track.
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