1. Verstappen shows action speaks louder than words 

Max Verstappen landed the first major blow in the 2021 title race race in 𝓡Monaco by🎉 enjoying an 18-point swing over chief rival Lewis Hamilton. 

Hamilton came into the weekend holding a 14-point lead over Verstappen, but a woeful weekend for Hamilton, coupled with a maiden Monaco victory for Verstappen, ensured it was the Red Bull driveꦓr who departed the principality with the championship advantage for the first time in his career. 

Verstappen and Red Bull were on top form to capitalise on a rare off-weekend for Mercedes, with the Dutchman saying after꧑ the race that his win was a “good lesson” to “talk on the track” in what appeared🍬 to be a dig at Hamilton’s pre-race comments. 

After five 👍rounds, the titl꧃e race is hotting up nicely…

2. Chinks in Mercedes armour appear 

Whe🔥n the wheels fall off at Mercedes, they do so spectacularly. &n🔴bsp;

In this case, Mercedes’ victory chances were thwarted by a wheel they couldn’t get off Valtteri Bottas’ car. Bottas’s hopes of taking the fight to Verstappen fo🧸r the lead were dashed on lap 30 during a bizarre and calamitous pit stop that☂ forced him to retire. 

The sജeven-time world champion was already frustrated after qualifying a lowly seventh, and his mood only got worse in the race when Mercedes’ strategy proved to be the wrong choice, leaving him where he started in P7. 

An irate Hamilton said afterwards that Mercedes had not been up to its usual standards on what could end up proving to be a𒊎 v🃏ery costly weekend in the championship. 

Like Sakhir 2020, Germany 2019 and Spain 2016, the 2021 Monaco Gra🉐nd Priꦺx highlighted that the well-oiled Mercedes operation is not 100 percent bulletproof. 

3. Hamilton’s frustration boiled over 

It was a♐ miserable weekend for Hamilton, who like Mercedes, w𒁏asn’t operating at his normal exceptional level. 

It is rare to see Hamilton be critical of his team - especially considering his usual ‘we win and lose together’ mantra - but in Monaco his discontent at how things were u🐲nfolding was evident. 

After his poor qualifying - which was execrated by Mercedes opting against exploring the set-up approach Hamilton wanted - his hopes of salvaging any kind of decen🌺t result hinge💜d on strategy. 

Hamilton was rightly angry to lose out on three potenti🐽al places he could have gained had things gone well, and several irate exchanges were heard over team radio during the race. 

Hamilton’s criticism continued꧟ after the race, leadi🍨ng F1 motorsport chief Ross Brawn to suggest that “he’s a bit out of practice in handling these things”.

Mercedes and Hamilton will analyse how and why their weekend unravelled and will be determined to bounce back in Baku.&nbs⛄p;

4. Ferrari misses out on ‘one-off’ win 

Ferrari’s resurgence was one of the biggest stories of the Monaco💎 Grand Prix weeke🥃nd. 

Granted, it was largely down to the circuit’s unique layout playing to the characteristics of Ferrari’s 2021 car, but 🎐nevertheless it was fantastic to see the team back at the sharp end of the grid. 🌠;

Ferrariꦜ’s eye-catching practice pace translated into qualifying and enabled Charles Leclerc to produce a stunning lap to take a shock pole position, only for a crash on his final lap to ruin his chances of victory.

𝓡An investigation found that a driveshaft hub failure directly linked to his qualifying shunt forced Ferrari to withdraw Leclerc from his home race befo🎃re it had begun on Sunday. 

After the race, Leclerc admitted he fears he missed Ferrari’s only chance to fight for a win thi🅠s season.

Leclerc𓂃’൲s crash acted as a double blow for Ferrari as it also prevented teammate Carlos Sainz from joining him on the front row of the grid. 

Sainz ꧑went on to claim his maiden podium for Ferrari and his race pace demonstrated that had Leclerc been able to start the race from pole, he could well have gꩲone on to deliver the Maranello outfit’s first win in F1 since 2019. 

5. Norris continues to deliver 

Lando Norr🅰is’ stellar start to the season continued in Monaco as he recorded his second podium finish of the season - and third of his F1 career - by finishing third. 

McLaren had expected to struggle around the streets of Monte Carlo but a stunning lap from Norris in qualifying put him fiꦚfth on the grid. He inherited fourth place due to Leclerc not starting and was promoted onto the podium thanks to B🌃ottas’ DNF. 

But Norris had the pace on merit to earn his latest third place finish, having fen♚ded off Perez’s Red Bull in the closing stages to seal a spot on the rostrum.

It marked the fourt👍h time this season that Norris took a top-four finish and was a 💙result that lifts him up to third place in the championship. 

6. A step in the right direction for Perez 

Sergio Perez has struggled to match the level of teammate Verstappen so far since joining Red Bull, but in the Monaco GP, he enjoyed arguably his best ra🔜ce yet. 

A lack of single-lap pace in qualifying again let him down on Saturday, but a brilliant Red B✃ull strategy, combined with a strong drive, allowed Perez to fini♛sh P4. 

Wit🗹h the overcut strat꧋egy proving powerful, Perez maximised a brief spell running in clean air to great effect by jumping ahead of Vettel, Gasly and Hamilton when he pitted later than his rivals. 

While a late attack for a maiden Red Bull podium was not enough to beat✱ McLaren’s Norris, a 🦋strong fourth place was just reward for a great recovery effort on Sunday. 

If Perez can get his Saturdays together, he will be right in the🅠 mix for the podium places. 

7. Much-needed boost for Vettel, Aston Martin

Sebastian Vetꦛtel proved his doubters wrong with a superb performance around the streets of Monte Carlo as he got off the mark for Aston🔯 Martin in style. 

The four-time world champion’s recent slump appeared to continue into 2021 as he struggled to get up to speed at Aston Martin and endured a fairly difficul✱t start to life in green. 

But Vettel turned a corner in Monaco, with the revita༺lised German taking advantage of a cunning strategy call by his team to le🐼apfrog his rivals and improve from his P8 starting slot to cross the line in fifth. 

The Monaco GP weekend wꦰas Vettel’s best performance of the season to date and he wꦗill be hoping it will kickstart a run of improved form. 

8. Lapped Ricciardo hits new low 

Things went from bad to worse for Daniel R🃏icciardo at t🔜he Monaco GP. 

Regarded as something of a Monte Carlo specialist, the Australian was unable toꦫ join teammate Norris in Q3 and knew he was in for a tough race after ending up 12th in qualifying.&🐬nbsp;

Stuck behꦦind Kimi Raikkonen’s Alfa Romeo, Ricciardo was unable to progress as he came home where he started, while his tea෴mmate went on to claim an unexpected podium. 

Rubbing further salt into Ricciardo’s wounds, he was lapped by Norris in what♏ ended up being a weekend to forget for McLaren’s new signing, whose stru💝ggles show little sign of coming to an end. 

“All weekend was a disaster,” Ricciardo summarꦓised afterwards. “One of those weekends.&nbsᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚp;

“I would not have expected it here in Monaco. 🔯But we will try to understand it and come back.” 

9. Giovinazzi’s luck improves 

After a run of unfortunate races, Antonio Giovinaz🐼zi scored his and Alfa Romeo’s first poinꦬts of the season in Monaco. 

The Italian was one of the stars of qualifying as he recorded Alfa’s first Q3 appearance of the year with a lap good enough fo🌌r 10th on the grid. 

Giovinaz😼zi went on to convert that into his points top-10 finish of the season on Sunday, finishing just 0.4s behind Alpine’s Esteban Ocon in P10. 

The 27-year-old had not been rewarded for 🔴his efforts until Monaco, having endured a torrid run of luck. 

At Imola, an unscheduled pit stop due to a brake issue ruined any h😼opes of a top-10 finish, while in Barcelona, a bizarre deflated tyre incident in the pits cost him a shot of points. 

Giovinazzi hopes his firs🍎t points finish will prove to be a turning point to his season after his tricky sta🧸rt.

10. A war over flexi-wings is brewing 

As well as the intense title fight, F1 2021 has rꦐecently been dominated by a flexi-wing controversy and a war of words between the Mercedes and Red Bull camps. 

That could escalate into full-blown warfare at Baku, with Mercedes indicating that the flexi-wing saga could lead to a protest at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix i🌺f 🌜teams are allowed to continue running them. 

Merc🧔edes and McLaren are upset at the timing of a new set of FIA tests that will not be introduced until after Baku, where 🙈teams running the so-called “bendy” wings are expected to gain an advantage over those not. 

Toto Wolff haᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚs warned that Mercedes could end up in a “messy” fight against Red Bull in the🧜 International Court of Appeal. 

The situation is set to heat up in Ba🐠ku, so watch this spa🦩ce…