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Monaco GP Recap: 'Plenty More Positives'

The 2024 Monaco Grand Prix will not live long in the memory of Formula One fans as a racing spectacle, but our team heads away from the shores of the Mediterranean buoyed by the fact we continue to sail a clearer course than at the start of 2024.

The margins in Monaco were fine, with some of the gaps as tight as the streets themselves - a flick of the barrier here, a turn of a steering wheel there.

For the second week in a row, George was the blink of an eye away from breaking into the top two rows on the grid, qualifying a fraction of a second off Norris in P4, a tenth off the front row.

It was an effort all the more impressive considering he had struggled with a suspension issue for much of Friday.

The gaps at the end of the race tell a story of progress too. The large deficits from the start of the season are coming down. 45 seconds in Bahrain and Japan, to 17 seconds in Miami and just 13 in Monaco.

Behind, despite running a conservative four seconds off the pace during the Grand Prix, Lewis in P7 was a whole lap clear of Yuki Tsunoda, who made one less visit to the pits, too.

"That was our strongest race of the season, there were a lot of positives to take," said George.

"It is the closest we have been to victory and the best the car has been feeling, especially in a circuit where we have ordinarily struggled."

How Did the Monaco F1 Corners Get Their Names

Lewis agreed: "We have taken a step forward with our car this weekend, if we continue to take a few more we can get ourselves in the fight with those top three teams."

"We have understood where the balance of the car needs to be and are bringing bits and pieces in order to enhance that," said Toto on Sunday evening.

He added: "I see the trajectory going up. There will going to be up and downs, better tracks, worse tracks. But overall, absolutely I am happy with the development direction."

Starting P5 and P7 in Monaco will leave you open-minded when selecting a race day strategy, and when George and Lewis took their marks on Sunday afternoon, there was a sense of opportunity.

"When I lined up P5 and saw those in front on Medium, I was super happy. I thought we had a good shot." said George

The idea was to run long, make use Monaco's high Safety Car or red flag potential and hopefully get ourselves in the mix, at a circuit where track position is more crucial than anywhere else.

Monaco is a Grand Prix that does not hurt an F1 driver's tyres. Given how easy it can be to manage tyres around the principality with few if any opportunities to pass, it would be possible to complete the entire 78-lap race on a single set.

What we did not need, was a first lap red flag.

What made the suspended race even more frustrating was the how the podium had been briefly brought into play by a puncture for Carlos Sainz's Ferrari in P4.

"With being on a different tyre and having Carlos go off in front, I thought we had a really good chance to fight for the podium or even the win," said George.

The restart saw those ahead who had originally started on Medium effectively make their mandatory pit stop in the break, and on the Hard tyre, 75 laps of Monaco was easily doable.

While those ahead focused on managing a more durable tyre, George and Lewis set about nursing their Mediums, dropping back enough to get the yellow-walled compound to the end, but not too much so as to afford any of the top four the luxury of a safety pit stop.

We are just chipping away. We will get there, but we know there could be setback too.

Toto

Our gap to the minor points behind had allowed such a luxury, and the Team and Lewis made the call to box on lap 51 in attempt to jump Max Verstappen and get both cars into the top six.

The reigning champion responded a lap later by boxing himself, and held position. Lewis made the most of the increased grip and duly recorded the fastest lap of the race, claiming an extra point in the process.

It marked the 54th fastest lap of his Mercedes career, and meant he surpassed Michael Schumacher for most fastest laps recorded with a single team in Formula One.

Lewis also became the first driver in F1 history to record a fastest lap in 17 different seasons.

Come the closing stages it was George - who had not stopped - and not the quartet out front that was picking up the pace on worn tyres.

Not only did that keep those ahead honest and leave them no margin for error, it was also enough to keep Verstappen in the Red Bull at bay, despite the fact the Dutchman had switched to fresher rubber.

"We were on a bit of a Sunday afternoon excursion, but in the end, we had tyre and pace left," explained Toto.

This improved tyre management was confirmation of a better balance level in W15, a further indicator of the progress the team has helped to bring to our car.

In all, George completed 77 laps on the Medium tyre, an impressive feat indeed. He has now scored over 500 points for the team in the sport, and P5 in Monaco represented his 50th points finish since his debut in 2019.

Canada is next in two weeks, and the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve will provide a better indication of how the upgraded front wing brought to Monaco will hopefully help propel us closer to the front.

"We are just chipping away. We will get there, but we know there could be setback too," said Toto.

Trackside in Monaco was a hive of activity as always. Our Ritz-Carlton Hospitality programme provided those in attendance with a unique spectacle befitting one of the world's most iconic and famous races.

Earlier in the week, Lewis and George were on hand to help launch the Mercedes-AMG PureSpeed Concept, on a floating pontoon in the Monaco harbour.

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