The Monaco Grand Prix Formula 1 on Sunday was not as exciting as the qualifying event on Saturday. However, a popular winner emerged over the weekend. Charles Leclerc, the local hero, led the race from start to finish, finally achieving his dream of winning at home after failing to do so in previous years. Leclerc’s performance was highly anticipated and he did not disappoint, managing the race with skill and composure. This victory was especially special for Leclerc as it was a tribute to his late father and a childhood dream come true.
Leclerc’s dominance in qualifying was evident as he showed remarkable speed and consistency in the final practice sessions. Despite facing challenges in the early stages of qualifying, Leclerc overcame the pressure and secured pole position. This was not the first time he started at the front in Monaco, but this time he was determined to turn it into a victory. The expectations and pressure on Leclerc were immense, but he remained flawless throughout the race, showing his ability to handle nerves and emotions. This victory was not only his first at home, but also one of the best wins of his career.
Carlos Sainz had a tough start to the weekend, struggling to keep up with his teammate’s pace. However, he managed to turn the situation around and secured third place in qualifying. Despite a puncture during the first race start, Sainz showed resilience and maintained his position at the front during the restart. His performance was commendable as he was able to fend off competitors and protect Leclerc’s lead. Sainz’s efforts were rewarded with another podium in Monaco and the satisfaction of contributing to the team’s success.
Recently, all the buzz at McLaren has mainly revolved around Norris, and rightfully so, as the British driver came incredibly close to back-to-back wins at the Imola GP before the Monaco GP. However, if the safety car in Miami had intervened at a different time and Piastri had avoided a grid penalty in Imola, the narrative at McLaren could have been very different. The Australian has proven to be more than just a rival for Norris, but also for Ferrari this weekend. He backed up his performance by securing a front row position and keeping Leclerc on his toes for a significant part of Sunday’s GP, all while dealing with damage from contact with Sainz on the opening lap.
Meanwhile, Norris’s rise as a Grand Prix-winning driver has been a delight for his fans and F1 enthusiasts. However, this weekend, the praises in the McLaren garage go to Piastri, who consistently stayed one step ahead of his teammate in most sessions, albeit by a small margin. The only exception was FP2, where Piastri did not use the soft tire. However, Norris did not have a terrible weekend, just not an exceptional one. He performed admirably and, like many others on this list, had to settle for finishing where he started.
The challenging 2024 season for Mercedes (refer to 2023 and 2022 for more information) did not seem so bleak in Monaco. Lewis Hamilton showed promising pace by being fastest in FP1, second fastest in FP2, and third fastest in FP3. However, when it came time to qualify, it was Russell who extracted the maximum potential from the W15 around the streets of Monaco. This maximum potential translated into a fifth-place qualifying, behind Ferrari and McLaren, two teams that stood out from the rest of the competition in Monaco. After 78 laps of confusing tire management, Russell finished in fifth place, as expected, when the checkered flag was waved. Russell described the Tire Management Grand Prix as “one of our best weekends.” The British driver even claimed he could have won starting in P5 with hard tires, while the top four started on medium tires. However, the incident with the red flag completely changed the situation.
As for Hamilton, where did all that speed go? During practice, he seemed rejuvenated, always featuring among the top three. However, when it came time to unleash his full potential, the seven-time champion could only deliver a superficial blow. Hamilton’s promising practice performances did not materialize in qualifying, and his luck was the opposite of Russell’s. Hamilton even made an extraordinary statement, stating that he expects Russell to outperform him in qualifying for the rest of the 2024 season. He also leaned towards a conspiracy theory, suggesting that his car loses one or two tenths in qualifying. The Mercedes driver seems to be lacking motivation in his final year with the Brackley team, and his weekend was summed up by a perplexed radio exchange after a failed undercut attempt on Max Verstappen on lap 51. “Why didn’t you inform me that the out lap was crucial?” If we are critical, Hamilton had a forgettable weekend.
Verstappen is fallible after all. After pushing his Red Bull to the limit during an uncomfortable Friday and Saturday, the defending champion made a mistake. Unprecedented! Verstappen had been critical of the unpredictable behavior of the RB20 on the bumps of Monaco and, in an attempt to elevate it to a high qualifying position, the Dutchman scraped the outer wall at turn 1 on his final qualifying lap. This resulted in Verstappen securing sixth place on the starting grid, concluding his qualifying session. The highlight of Verstappen’s weekend was his humorous radio communication with engineer Gianpiero Lambiasse: “This is incredibly boring, I should have brought a pillow.”
Once again, Sergio Perez seems to have turned the potential from the beginning of the season into a worrying performance drop now that F1 has reached Europe. Red Bull faced difficulties for two consecutive weekends, but while Verstappen managed to triumph in Imola and score some points in Monaco, Perez failed to reach Q3 for the second week in a row. To make matters worse, the Mexican driver was eliminated from qualifying in the initial stage, recording the 18th fastest time. Things were not favorable for the former winner of the Monaco GP and worsened at the start of the race. Starting in 16th place after Haas was disqualified from qualifying, Perez fell victim to Kevin Magnussen’s momentum up to Beau Rivage on lap 1, resulting in his retirement and burdening Red Bull with a substantial repair bill. Although the accident was not his fault, it is no secret that a poor qualifying performance leaves someone susceptible to the chaos of the first lap, and an exit in Q1 made Red Bull’s position at the top of the constructors’ championship seem uncertain for the first time in a considerable period.
Yuki Tsunoda continues to extract the maximum performance from his RB machine. The Japanese driver achieved a result in Q3 for the sixth time in 2024 in Monaco, which secured him an eighth-place finish on Sunday. Except for a setback in China, Tsunoda is fulfilling the potential he has shown throughout his brief F1 career in his fourth season and appears to be a more composed driver after his outburst in Bahrain.
After showing consistent improvement in Miami and Imola, Daniel Ricciardo encountered a setback in Monaco compared to his teammate Tsunoda. The aspirations of a return to Red Bull are likely extinguished for the Australian driver, and his goal now should be to consistently match his Japanese colleague. Unfortunately, in Monaco, Ricciardo struggled to warm up the tires and started the race in 12th place, as Nico Hulkenberg’s Haas was disqualified. Once again, Ricciardo will be seeking solutions in his quest for stability.
Great news, Williams finally scored some points! The Grove team became the ninth team this season to score points, and once again it was Alex Albon who delivered. Despite a turbulent start in 2024, Albon remains confident in the Williams project. In Monaco, the FW46 performed exceptionally well, and with Perez and Fernando Alonso eliminated in Q1, there was an opportunity for an underdog to enter the battle for the top-10. Albon seized the chance and successfully converted his ninth-place starting position into a ninth-place finish at the end of the race.
Contrary to popular belief, Logan Sargeant did not advance from Q1. His 15th place qualifying result was due to the disqualification of the two Haas cars ahead of him. Sargeant expressed his determination to prove his worth to Williams, as there were concerns about him losing his seat. Part of this challenge was to match Albon’s performance. However, Albon made it to Q3 while Sargeant recorded the 17th fastest time in qualifying. Although Sargeant did not have the same FW46 as Albon, there are still questions about how much time he has to demonstrate his capabilities.
The Alpine season has been quite disappointing so far. However, just like Albon at Williams, Pierre Gasly took advantage of others’ misfortune to secure a place in the top-10 during qualifying. Despite being involved in a crash with his teammate Esteban Ocon on lap 1, Gasly managed to take care of his medium tires from the restart on lap 3 until the end of the race, earning his first point of the season. While a driver from Alpine lost his composure in the heat of the moment, Gasly remained calm and delivered what his team desperately needed from him.
Ocon deserves credit for securing 11th place in qualifying on Saturday. Unfortunately, his race performance was interrupted due to a reckless move on the opening lap. This move could have potentially ended the entire team’s race. One of the fundamental rules in motorsport is to avoid colliding with your teammate, but we have seen this mistake happen repeatedly. Ocon is undoubtedly a skilled and determined driver, but his Achilles’ heel seems to be his inability to resist the urge to challenge a car with the same livery as his. Trying to make a risky move on his teammate at Turn 8, just before the Monaco tunnel on lap 1, was far from ideal and set a negative tone for the other 77 and a half laps. Team principal Bruno Famin was understandably furious, and Ocon expressed his apologies. However, if Gasly’s statement that the pre-race briefing instructed the car behind to protect the one in front is true, then Ocon’s mistake is even more unforgivable than initially perceived. The Grand Prix winner will have plenty of time to reflect on his actions before the Canadian Grand Prix, where he will serve a five-place grid penalty.
After securing a front row spot during qualifying in Monaco in 2023, Fernando Alonso’s chances were hampered by heavy traffic and a car that didn’t perform well. As a result, he was eliminated in Q1 with the 16th fastest time. However, due to the disqualification of both Haas cars, Alonso was promoted to 14th place. Unlike many other drivers in Monaco, Alonso did not finish the race where he started. Despite the setbacks, Alonso managed to navigate the race cleanly and strategically, assisting his teammate Lance Stroll, although this did not lead to significant results. Alonso’s efforts earned him an 11th place finish on Sunday, just outside the points zone. While it was not a spectacular weekend for Alonso, considering the disappointment on Saturday, his recovery on Sunday can be considered moderately decent.
Since Lance Stroll joined the Aston Martin team, the team will face challenges. In a rare occurrence, Stroll outperformed Alonso in qualifying, advancing from Q1 but finishing last in Q2. He was promoted to 13th place after Haas’s technical error with the DRS system. However, despite Alonso’s efforts to give Stroll an advantage by building a buffer and allowing a free pit stop, Stroll failed to capitalize on the opportunity. He hit the wall at the chicane with new tires, resulting in a puncture and eliminating any chance of scoring points. However, Stroll provided some excitement for the fans by executing overtakes with his soft tires in the final stretch.
Sauber had a tough time in Monaco, as their package was clearly the least competitive. Both Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu posted the slowest times in qualifying. However, Bottas made the most of a difficult situation during the Grand Prix. Starting on hard tires and then switching to mediums during the restart, he managed to climb to 13th place. Given the limitations of his car, this result is quite respectable.
Sauber faced major difficulties in Monaco, and Zhou Guanyu struggled to find his rhythm in an uncompetitive car. Throughout the race, he consistently lagged behind his teammate. Being the last to qualify and the last to cross the finish line, Zhou will want to forget this year’s Monaco GP.
Nico Hulkenberg performed admirably during qualifying, securing a commendable 12th place result, which was likely the best the Haas package could achieve on Saturday. However, both Haas cars were disqualified from qualifying due to non-compliant DRS. Starting from the back of the grid, Hulkenberg’s race was compromised when his teammate Magnussen collided with Perez on the first lap, leading to his retirement.
Magnussen was outperformed by Hulkenberg in qualifying and was determined to make up ground after starting from the back of the grid due to Haas’ disqualification. However, his aggressive racing style worked against him. Refusing to yield at Beau Rivage, Magnussen collided with Perez, resulting in a spectacular crash that ended his own, Perez’s, and Hulkenberg’s race. Magnussen was lucky to avoid further penalties, as he was just two penalty points away from a race suspension. The incident was not investigated by the race stewards.
© 2024
Currently Happening: New World Record in Athletics
On the last weekend, the world of athletics was the stage of a historic achievement. The young Brazilian runner, Pedro Silva, surprised everyone by breaking the world record in the 100 meters sprint. At only 19 years old, Pedro showed an impressive performance, leaving behind big names in the sport.
The race took place on a sunny afternoon at the Olympic stadium. Pedro, known for his speed and agility, showed that he is a true phenomenon in athletics. With an explosive start, he overtook his opponents in a matter of seconds and crossed the finish line with an incredible time of 9.58 seconds.
This achievement puts Pedro Silva at the top of the world of athletics. His name is now immortalized in the history of the sport, alongside legends like Usain Bolt and Carl Lewis. The young Brazilian promises to be a great prospect for the future of world athletics.
After the race, Pedro was surrounded by journalists and fans, all wanting to know more about his training and how he managed to achieve this incredible feat. With humility, Pedro thanked everyone for their support and said that his goal is to continue training hard to achieve even more accomplishments.
Brazil is celebrating this victory in athletics. Pedro Silva has become a true national hero and inspiration for young athletes across the country. His determination and talent are examples that, with dedication and effort, it is possible to achieve great feats.
Now, everyone eagerly awaits to see what the future holds for Pedro Silva. Will he be able to break more records? Only time will tell. Meanwhile, Brazil celebrates this great achievement and is proud to have such a talented athlete representing the country on the global sports stage.
