Monaco, May 29 (BNA): Sergio Perez deflected orders from Red Bull Racing a week ago to claim his first Formula 1 victory of the season at the rain-soaked Monaco Grand Prix.
Perez claimed his third Formula 1 career victory on the bright streets of Monaco after a questionable strategy call by Ferrari cost number one Charles Leclerc a victory on his home circuit, according to the Associated Press.
Although Leclerc finished the race first in four attempts, he finished fourth and allowed world champion Max Verstappen to extend his lead in the points standings. Carlos Sainz Jr. finished second with Ferrari and Verstappen was third with Red Bull.
Verstappen now leads Leclerc by nine points in the standings; Leclerc has two wins this season, Verstappen and Perez have five while Red Bull and Ferrari have won all seven races.
But the win went to Verstappen’s teammate just a week after Perez was ordered to give up the lead in favor of Verstappen during the Spanish Grand Prix.
Leclerc had pulled out of the race with an engine failure and Red Bull chose to take advantage by rigging at the end to win Verstappen in Spain.
The team promised Perez they would let him race for victories and he stuck to his word on Sunday.
Leclerc drove off the pole and cried angrily when asked to drill for a second tire change on lap 22 – at the same time as Sainz. His engineer realized the mistake and shouted “Stay out!” But it was too late and Leclerc was back on track in fourth.
Leclerc also won the pole a year ago but never started because he crashed at the end of qualifying, and the car’s gearbox failed moments before the start. In 2018 and 2019, Leclerc pulled out of the race due to crash damage.
The race was postponed for 70 minutes due to heavy rain and started from behind a safety car. The red flag was then set on lap 30 after heavyweight Mick Schumacher crashed three laps earlier, cutting his Haas in two. He escaped unharmed.
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