Following a race of attrition on the streets of Monte-Carlo, with Safety Cars, a red flag and a late-race restart, the team believed to have scored points, owing to Nico's ninth place at the flag – only for a penalty to demote the German to 14th place. Team-mate, Gabriel Bortoleto, had an eventful afternoon as his car failed to launch during the pre-race procedures: a quick intervention by the crew allowed him to rejoin with a pit-lane start, and he fought his way patiently to climb to P12 at the flag.
Despite the good pace shown both earlier in the weekend and during the race, the team leaves the Principality with no points to show for its efforts. The performance displayed on the circuit, however, gives confidence for a competitive showing in the next events, starting next week in Barcelona.
Allan McNish, Racing Director: "We know that, in Monaco, qualifying and grid position largely dictate the outcome of the race, and unfortunately we started today out of position relative to the pace we had in the car.
"Gabriel's car stopped on the way to the grid, which meant he had to start from the pit lane. From there, it became a race of attrition, and we were looking for any opportunities that might come our way, knowing how difficult overtaking is around Monaco. He kept pushing throughout and gained valuable experience on a challenging weekend.
"On Nico's side, we showed good pace and made an early switch to the hard tyre; in clean air, he showed very strong pace but once he caught up with the back of the midfield pack there was little opportunity to make progress. The red flag reshuffled the race, and, after the restart, he was involved in an incident at the hairpin that resulted in a 10-second penalty. It was a harsh outcome given the circumstances, particularly as it ultimately cost him a points finish after a determined drive.
"The result doesn't reflect the pace we showed this weekend, but there are positives to take forward as we focus on the next race."
Nico Hulkenberg (Car 27):
Race result: 14th
Fastest lap: 1:16.332 (Lap 15)
Strategy & Pit Stops: Start (New Medium) - Lap 12 (New Hard) - Lap 67 (New Soft)
"It's a disappointing way to end the weekend. For a while it looked like we made our way into the points, but the penalty put an end to that. After the restart, with only a handful of laps remaining, it was always going to get quite intense. I had to react to avoid the car ahead and moved to the inside, but once I was there, I was at full lock and there wasn't really anywhere else for me to go. Carlos was on the outside and we made contact. It's frustrating because the pace we showed earlier in the weekend was encouraging, but unfortunately, we weren't able to convert that into a result"
Gabriel Bortoleto (Car 5)
Race result: 12th
Fastest lap: 1:16.803 (Lap 46)
Strategy & Pit Stops: Strategy & Pit Stops: Start (New Soft) - Lap 1 - (New Hard) - Lap 43 (New Medium) - Lap 59 (New Soft) - Lap 67 (New Soft)
"My race was effectively compromised before it really began. I had an issue as I was preparing for my practice starts and the car shut off: the crew did a great job to get it going again, but I had to start from the pitlane, and around Monaco that makes life very difficult. Once you are caught in traffic, opportunities are extremely limited and I spent most of the race unable to make progress.
"That was disappointing, and it added to the frustration from yesterday's qualifying. The positive is that we showed good pace and a good package over the weekend. I think the team did a great job overall this weekend and would have deserved a lot more for it: to have both cars reach the finish is positive, and the crew did an excellent job overnight to repair the damage from qualifying and get my car ready to race. There are lessons to take away, but I am encouraged by what we achieved as a team and by the progress we continue to make."
