Verstappen goes Wire-To-Wire in Monaco To Secure Most Wins By A Red Bull Driver

Verstappen overcomes rain to seal dominant victory ahead of Fernando Alonso.

Max Verstappen won the Monaco Grand Prix from Pole and overcoming slick conditions on the track from the rain. With the win, Verstappen extends world championship lead to 39 points.

Joining Verstappen on the podium was Fernando Alonso second for Aston Martin and in the shocker of the weekend Esteban Ocon claims final podium spot for Alpine.

After snatching pole position from Alonso  in the dying seconds of Saturday’s thrilling qualifying session, Red Bull’s Verstappen looked to be on course for a far more routine Sunday as he held his lead at the start and built a significant margin over the Aston Martin. In a race such as Monaco where there are limited places for passing, having Pole or starting from the front row all but secures a race win as long as you run a clean race.

Rain began falling with a third of the race remaining to suddenly create jeopardy, but Verstappen responded with great composure and showed his superb skills in wet conditions to ultimately extend his advantage to almost 28 seconds by the time he took the checkered flag.

Alonso claimed his fifth podium in six races with Aston Martin, while Esteban Ocon took full advantage of his outstanding qualifying performance to hold on to third for Alpine.

MONTE-CARLO, MONACO - MAY 28: Max Verstappen of the Netherlands driving the (1) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB19 leads the field at the start during the F1 Grand Prix of Monaco at Circuit de Monaco on May 28, 2023 in Monte-Carlo, Monaco. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images) // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool // SI202305280235 // Usage for editorial use only //

"It’s super nice to win here again in Monaco! It was actually quite a difficult race," said Verstappen post race. “We were on the medium to begin with and Fernando on the hard compound, so we didn’t want the first stint to be that long, but we had to stay out. The rain also made it quite complicated, we made the call for inters and the first few laps on them were incredibly slippery. I clipped the walls a few times again, but that’s Monaco. When you are that far in the lead, you don’t want to push that hard, but also you don’t want to loose too much time. We managed to stay calm and bring it home, and we scored a good amount of points for the team. I, of course, will celebrate this evening with my friends and family, but tomorrow we focus on Spain."

The victory extends Red Bull’s winning streak at the start of the season to six races, while Verstappen moves past Sebastian Vettel as the team’s all-time leading race winner with 39 triumphs.

Verstappen, who is seeking a third successive world championship, now holds a 39-point lead over his nearest challenger – and team-mate Sergio Perez, who finished 16th after a qualifying crash left the Perez starting from the back of the grid.

“It was the worst weekend I can remember in a while; everything went wrong and today we paid the price for a poor mistake from myself in qualifying," said Perez post race. “I am really sad about the performance, not just today but the whole weekend. I knew yesterday would be extremely costly and ultimately it was 25 points. The conditions were tricky out there and there was some hope that when it started raining we could get things right but we didn’t, it was a shame. I don’t think there was much we could have done differently; all the damage was done yesterday. I only want to move on from this race because it was a terrible weekend. I still have hope in the Championship but I know I cannot afford another zero in a race, so I really hope I can be back to my normal level in Barcelona. I need to be perfect in the next few races, I need to get victories and get them soon. I am happy we are racing in a few days."

MONTE-CARLO, MONACO - MAY 28: Sergio Perez of Mexico driving the (11) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB19 on track during the F1 Grand Prix of Monaco at Circuit de Monaco on May 28, 2023 in Monte-Carlo, Monaco. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images) // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool // SI202305280454 // Usage for editorial use only //

Lewis Hamilton benefitted from a timely switch to intermediates when the rain began falling to take fourth, with team-mate George Russell overcoming a five-second penalty to finish a place behind him as Mercedes sealed a solid haul in their first race with major upgrades on the W14.

Charles Leclerc was sixth for Ferrari at his home circuit, with Pierre Gasly backing up Ocon’s effort to take seventh and ensure Alpine climb to the top of the midfield in the constructors’ standings.

Carlos Sainz paid the price for a spin in the wet as he dropped from starting fourth to finish eighth, while McLaren duo Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri both drove solid races to take ninth and 10th, respectively.

Red Bull’s lead in the constructors’ standings increases to 129 points ahead of next weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona.