Monaco Grand Prix 2018 recap: Daniel Ricciardo WINS to avenge 2016 heartache

Ricciardo made no secret of his disgust at missing out on the win two years ago after a botched pit-stop cost him dearly.

But it was the perfect race from the Australian this time round, leading from start to finish to take the chequered flag.

Sebastian Vettel threatened at times but never got close enough to challenge while Lewis Hamilton picked up the final podium spot.

– Daniel Ricciardo claims seventh Grand Prix win – first time in Monaco.

– Lewis Hamilton remains atop the drivers’ standings

Monaco Grand Prix 2018 RECAP

Ricciardo reaction

“I think I can show emotion today than yesterday,” he said. “This is two years in the making so I finally feel like the redemption has arrived.

“We had problems. We had a lot to deal with during the race. I felt a loss of power and I thought the race was done. I got home just using six gears.

“Thanks to the team. We got it back. I’m stoked.

“There were a few doubts that came in mid-race but…we won Monaco. It feels good!”

Top ten: Ricciardo, Vettel, Hamilton, Raikkonen, Bottas, Ocon, Gasly, Hulkenberg, Verstappen, Sainz

RICCIARDO WINS

Far from the most eventful race with Alonso, Leclerc and Hartley the only ones to retire.

But today is all about Ricciardo. He was heartbroken in 2016 when a botched pit-stop cost him dearly. But an excellent drive from start to finish means he will stand atop the podium at Monaco for the first time in his career.

Lap 78: Last lap and there are still some battles on the track with Hulkenberg, Gasly and Verstappen still fighting for seventh.

Ricciardo was just toying with everyone all along as he has finished with a couple of 1:16 laps

Lap 75: Green flags again and Vettel has fallen back five seconds behind Ricciardo!

Disaster for the German as he just couldn’t find any grip on the restart. Barring any massive shock here this will be Ricciardo’s first Monaco Grand Prix win.

Lap 73: CRASH!! Leclerc smashes into the back of Hartley! The Sauber driver appeared to lose his braking and just couldn’t avoid Hartley.

Virtual Safety Car though and there is plenty of debris to clear on the track.

Lap 72: Ricciardo now in clean air for the final six laps of the race.

It looks as though the Australian is going to avenge the 2016 Monaco Grand Prix disaster to pick up his first win at the famous circuit.

It hasn’t been pretty but Ricciardo has been 20kmh slower at the speed traps for majority of the race but has managed his tyres experts.

Lap 68: If we are going to get some drama at the front Vettel is going to have to gamble on Ricciardo. Hamilton hasn’t got the pace to challenge and his third place looks secure.

Will we see a dramatic final 10 laps?

Lap 64: There is some action on the track behind the front five with Gasly, Hulkenberg and Verstappen all fighting for seventh.

Hulkenberg has the grip on Gasly but some excellent defensive work from the young Toro Rosso driver.

Lets also not take anything away from Ricciardo’s drive. Was told of power trouble on lap 30 and he’s done a sensational job at managing the situation.

Lap 59: Alonso being the first retiree of the 2018 Monaco Grand Prix says a lot about this race so far.

Non-eventful with little promise to do so. Vettel occasionally getting close to Ricciardo but then drops off.

I get the feeling Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes are almost happy with how things are standing.

Lap 54: Trouble for Alonso! He was swiftly losing pace and parked his car at turn one.

He managed to find the one part of the track where it was safe to park up without the need for a safety car.

Lap 52: Verstappen pits for the first time and I get the feeling he will be the guinea pig for the frontrunners.

Mercedes garage are supposedly discussing another stop for some fresh tyres. Ricciardo is comfortable at the moment with Vettel not really challenging and Hamilton not close enough to make a move.

Lap 48: The front five are separated by just eight seconds now! Ricciardo still being able to manage the loss of power but Hamilton and Vettel are closing in.

We’ve surely got to see some action in the final 30 laps… 

Lap 42: It seems the ultra soft tyres are the way to go. Lance Stroll – the back-marker, comes out the pits and goes 4 seconds faster than race leader Ricciardo.

Bottas has the red-strip tyres on and is occasionally challenging Raikkonen. But so far Verstappen has been the only man that has done any real overtaking.

Lap 39: We’re halfway through the race and I’m struggling to see how teams would have been planning for a one-stop strategy here if they wanted to change tyes early.

It’s going to take an extraordinary drive from any one of the challengers for them to last on these tyres.

Ricciardo is constantly on the team radio asking how he can help manage the situation and Vettel has seemingly dropped off.

Lap 34: This is the sixth and final race before teams can bring in fresh engines and that could explain why some teams are struggling for power.

Still 45 laps to go here so this could get very interesting…

Lap 30: Trouble for Ricciardo!! He’s on the team radio saying he’s losing power and Vettel is on the back of him.

Now a test for the four-time world champion if he can make a move on this high circuit.

Lap 28: False hope on the Raikkonen front. Hamilton stretches the gap to 1.8.

Vettel is slowly catching Ricciardo at the front. He’s now just 1.4 seconds behind the race leader.

Everything seems to be happening slowly at the moment. Still we’re not even halfway in this race so plenty can change… we hope.

Lap 26: We might finally have some action here [fingers crossed]! Raikkonen is the man on the move right now and is all over the back of Hamilton.

Not close enough to make a move just yet but Mercedes once again struggling for pace in Monaco.

Lap 23: Verstappen watch – He is still in the race and has avoided the walls so far.

Impressive drive so far as he moves up to 11th. He said before the race he just wanted to finish but I’ve got a feeling he has his sights on sixth place.

Lap 20: So we’re back as we were with the top four with little change to the gaps between them.

Seems like the race leaders are struggling to find the temperature in their tyres and Vettel is slowly catching Ricciardo.

Trouble for the Red Bull driver? Or just a brief drop-off?

Lap 19: Vettel now makes his move by heading into the pits for some fresh ultra softs.

They time it well as he comes out ahead of Bottas and Hamilton. Ricciardo now through the pits and it works out perfectly for the Australian.

He’ll be breathing a sigh of relief there that went smoothly.

Lap 16: Hamilton gets past Ocon and now he has some clean air to put pressure on Daniel Ricciardo.

The race leader responds with the fastest lap of the Grand Prix so far.

Lap 13: Hamilton in the pits for the ultra softs! Mercedes first to make the move as they see a window.

Over to you and Ferrari and Red Bull…

Lap 11: We have our first big issue! Stroll with a puncture. Not sure why just yet.

But he needs a front nose change as well. Disaster for Williams as they bring up the rear of the drivers.

Lap 9: Verstappen the only one making this a spectacle so far and not because he’s putting his car in the barriers again.

He moves up to 16th with a brave move on Lance Stroll down the inside and swiftly makes his way up to 14th after Sirotkin serves his penalty and breezes past Brendon Hartley.

Lap 6: Sergey Sirotkin under investigation after his tyres weren’t fitted properly before the three-minute deadline ahead of the race.

Stewards have no mercy and give him a 10 SECOND penalty!

Lap 3: Ricciardo already opening up a 1.5 second lead over Vettel in second. Got a feeling this will come down to strategy among the top three drivers.

Top 10: Ricciardo, Vettel, Hamilton, Raikkonen, Bottas, Ocon, Alonso, Sainz, Perez, Gasly.

Lap One: Ricciardo gets off to a perfect start and holds off the challenge from Vettel into turn one. Unbelievably no real movement after the first lap.

Verstappen moves up two to 18th but a clean start from nearly everyone. 

LIGHTS OUT AND AWAY WE GO!

2:05pm: We’re minutes away from GO GO GO. 78 laps of high octane racing on the streets of Monaco.

One thing that this race guarantees is accidents and plenty of drama. Strapped in?

1:55pm: More frustration for Verstappen looking past Monaco as he needed a new MGU-K for the race.

As he will start the Grand Prix from the back of the grid anyway he won’t be handed a penalty this time around but will face a grip drop in the next race.

1:40pm: Just half an hour until the lights go out and time for a quick recap of what the top ten on the grid look like.

1. Ricciardo, 2. Vettel, 3. Hamilton, 4. Raikkonen, 5. Bottas, 6. Ocon, 7. Alonso, 8. Sainz, 9. Perez, 10 Gasly

1:30pm: We could be in for an extra special race here in Monaco with the potential of weather conditions playing a part.

There was some light drizzle earlier in the day and it appears to have eased off at the moment.

But David Coulthard doesn’t think Ricciardo will welcome the sight of any rain on the track during the Grand Prix.

“Ricciardo has been supreme all the way through,” he said on Channel 4.

“He doesn’t want the weather playing a part in this, he just wants to dominate from the front.”

1:20pm: It was another dreadful day for Verstappen as he crashed once again. At 20 years old his inexperience has really been tested this season.

And Red Bull’s patience is seemingly running thin with Christian Horner once again firing a warning to Verstappen yesterday.

“Max needs to learn from it and stop making these errors,” he said.

“He is in a car that is capable of winning this grand prix and that will hurt him even more because you don’t get that many opportunities to win a Monaco Grand Prix.”

1:10pm: Welcome to our live blog for the prestigious street circuit around Monaco where the Formula One cars take centre stage in the glitz and the glamour of the south of France.

Daniel Ricciardo is a man on a mission as he hopes to avenge his heartache from 2016 but Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton will be hot on his tail.