F1 update – Monaco GP

Round 6 of the 2026 Formula 1 World Championship was held on the streets of Monte-Carlo for the Monaco Grand Prix.

It was a race that was dominated by the amount of penalties handed out to drivers where no less than 8 drivers were given penalties during the race, it also saw a red flag as well. In amongst all of the drama Mercedes driver Andrea ‘Kimi’ Antonelli notched up his fifth win of the year and in a row by leading from start to finish to win the Monaco Grand Prix ahead of Ferrari’s Sir Lewis Hamilton who despite earning 5 second penalty for speeding in the pitlane finished second with Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar finishing third, despite Alpine’s Pierre Gasly finishing third on the road, although Alpine have requested a right to review over the penalties given to Gasly that dropped him to seventh in the race results.

Monaco GP – top 5:

• 1st: Andrea ‘Kimi’ Antonelli – Mercedes
• 2nd: Sir Lewis Hamilton – Ferrari
• 3rd: Isack Hadjar – Red Bull
• 4th: Oscar Piastri – McLaren
• 5th: Liam Lawson – Racing Bulls

Other highlights:

• Racing Bulls driver Arvid Lindblad scored his best result of his short Formula 1 career so far with a sixth place finish.
• Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso scored his and the teams first point of the year with a tenth place finish. His team mate Lance Stroll was handed a 5 second time penalty for exceeding track limits, however Stroll would retire on lap 57 when he crashed out at Anthony Noughes which bought out the safety car.
• Alpine’s Franco Colapinto was handed a 5 second time penalty for speeding in the pitlane on his way to fourteenth.
• McLaren’s Oscar Piastri was handed a 5 second time penalty for speeding in the pitlane which he did serve. His team mate Lando Norris would retire on lap 44 with battery issues with the car.
• Mercedes driver George Russell was initially handed a 5 second time penalty for speeding in the pitlane, however as he didn’t serve that correctly he was given a drive through penalty which dropped him to twelfth at the finish.
• Cadillac’s Sergio Perez was handed a 10 second time penalty for being out of position on the grid on the restart of the race which cost the team their first ever point. He was handed a drive through penalty for the same offence at the start of the race which he served. His team mate Valtteri Bottas retired on lap 16 with brake issues.
• Mixed day for Haas with Esteban Ocon finishing ninth, whilst his team mate Oliver Bearman would retire on lap 28 with brake problems.
• The same mixed day feeling would also hit Williams with Alexander Albon finishing eighth, whilst his team mate Carlos Sainz would be taken out of the race on lap 71 when he collided with Audi’s Nico Hulkenberg at Lowes Hairpin and then Alpine’s Franco Colapinto at Portier. Hulkenberg was handed a 10 second penalty for colliding with Sainz, whilst Colapinto had no further action given to him for his collision with Sainz.
• Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc would retire on lap 65 when he crashed out at Anthony Noughes after the safety car peeled off into the pits, the accident would inturn cause a red flag.
• Red Bull’s Max Verstappen wouldn’t make it past the opening lap as he would retire which an engine failure that saw him not leave the line properly at the start.

News:

• Ferrari announced that their driver Charles Leclerc has signed a new multi year deal to remain with the team.
• The organisers of the Las Vegas Grand Prix have announced a new deal which will see the Las Vegas Grand Prix remain on the calendar until at least 2037.
• There will be tweeks to the 2027 rules which into force from 2027 which the F.I.A have announced, this includes minor tweeks to the aerodyamics and bodywork components.

The next round of 2026 Formula 1 World Championship will be held at the Circuit De Catalunya in Barcelona, Spain for the Catalunya-Barcelona Grand Prix on 12th to 14th June.

Here’s Aston and regular contributor Cameron Perkins with the latest from the world of Formula 1.