F1 Driver Form: Monaco Grand Prix

Max Verstappen’s Monaco career got off to a very good start as he finished second fastest in Free Practice 1 with Toro Rosso in 2015 with his first laps of the track. Since then, Verstappen’s Monaco appearances have been somewhat hit and miss.

His 2015 race here came to an early end after he collided with the rear of Romain Grosjean. He failed to finish again in 2016 in a crash-strewn weekend. He clipped the barrier at Casino in Free Practice 3, crashed out at the Swimming Pool complex in Q1 and crashed out of the race at Massenet. He also missed out on qualifying in 2017 following a crash in the final practice session.

Since then, Verstappen has scored on all four visits to Monaco, finishing on the podium for the first time with his 2021 victory. He could have finished on the podium in the 2019 race here, if not for a five second time penalty for a pit-lane incident.

Verstappen’s best qualifying result at the circuit is second, in 2021, and he became the de facto polesitter when Charles Leclerc was unable to start the race.

Sergio Perez’s fourth place at the Monaco Grand Prix in 2021 marked the first time he has scored at the circuit since taking a podium finish in 2016.

From ten Monaco appearances, Perez has scored three times, finished outside of the points four times, recorded two DNFs and failed to start in 2011 after suffering a huge qualifying crash. Despite the crash, Perez had already reached Q3, and since then he has failed to reach Q3 at the circuit only twice. He did not set a lap time in 2012, and was eliminated in Q1 in 2019.

His best qualifying position here is seventh, which he has recorded on three occasions. The Mexican has started from seventh on the grid at Monaco four times.

In the last seven Monaco Grands Prix, Lewis Hamilton’s seventh places in 2017 and 2021 are the only occasions that he has failed to finish on the podium.

Hamilton has won in Monaco three times, in 2008, 2016 and 2019. He has a 100% finish rate at the track, with 2009 being the only season that he has failed to score.

Hamilton has taken pole here twice, in 2015 and 2019, and has started from the front row a further three times. 2009 and 2017 are the only years that he has failed to qualify in the top ten.

In his fourteen appearances, Hamilton has been out-qualified by his team-mate more often than not.

In his six visits to the Monaco Grand Prix, Carlos Sainz has never failed to score. In 2021, he recorded his first Monaco Grand Prix podium result with second place.

Sainz has also never missed out on Q3 at the track, and has a best qualifying result of fourth in 2021. He started from the pit lane in 2015, but still managed to score.

2021 was the first time that Sainz has been out-qualified by his team-mate at the circuit.

Daniel Ricciardo took victory at the 2018 Monaco Grand Prix. It followed disappointment in 2016, when he was on course to win, but a pit stop error from Red Bull saw him finish only second. Ricciardo finished on the podium in all three years between 2016 and 2018, and also finished third in 2014.

His first two appearances at the track resulted in DNFs. Last year, Ricciardo finished only twelfth, marking the first time he failed to score at the track since 2013. Likewise, Ricciardo failed to reach Q3 for the first time since 2013 last year.

Ricciardo took pole in both 2016 and 2018. 2017 is the only season that Ricciardo has finished the Monaco Grand Prix in a better position than where he started.

Fernando Alonso won the Monaco Grand Prix in 2006 and 2007, becoming the only driver in F1 history to win the event in successive years with different teams. Alonso has a further two podium finishes to his name here, both recorded with Ferrari in 2011 and 2012.

The Spaniard has retired from the event four times, while his tenth place in 2008 and thirteenth in 2021 are the only times he’s finished a Monaco Grand Prix in a position outside of the points.

Alonso has lined up on the front row here on three occasions, including with pole positions in 2006 and 2007. 2010, when he failed to set a lap in qualifying, and 2021 are the only times he’s been eliminated in Q1 here, while 2015 is the only other time he’s failed to reach Q3 in Monaco.

Aside from the races which he won, Alonso has led a further three laps here. He led for a single lap in the 2004, 2011 and 2012 Monaco Grands Prix.

Sebastian Vettel has won the Monaco Grand Prix twice and has finished on the podium in seven Monaco races. Aside from two retirements, Vettel is yet to finish in a position outside of the top five at the event.

Vettel’s victories here came in 2011 and 2017, and his other five podium finishes at the circuit were all runner-up spots.

His first appearance with Toro Rosso in 2008, when he was eliminated in Q1, is the only season that Vettel has failed to reach Q3 at the circuit. He has taken pole only once, in 2011, but also started from the front row in both 2017 and 2018.

Impressively for a thirteen race career at Monaco, aside from the two races which he has failed to finish, Vettel has never lost a position from where he has started. He has gained places on eight occasions, including a massive gain of fourteen spots in 2008 to finish fifth.

From eight Monaco Grand Prix appearances, Valtteri Bottas has scored only three times. He did not score at the circuit until joining Mercedes in 2017. He finished fourth that year, before finishing fifth in 2018 and scoring his first Monaco podium with third place in 2019. He retired from the race in 2021 following a botched pit stop. It was his second retirement at the circuit, having also retired in 2014.

Like his race results, Bottas did not reach Q3 at Monaco until he joined Mercedes. He started from the front row at the circuit for the first time in 2019. Bottas has not gained any positions from where he has started in Monaco since 2015.

Kevin Magnussen has scored a total of two points at the Monaco Grand Prix, with tenth place finishes in 2014 and 2017. He has retired here only once, in 2016.

Magnussen’s best qualifying result here came on his most recent appearance at the track, in 2019, when he qualified sixth. He also reached Q3 with McLaren in 2014.