George Russell, Mercedes (P5) 7/10
While Russell had the pace to beat Leclerc to fourth place, a lack of straight line speed from his W16 prevented him from getting past the Monegasque for the entire Grand Prix. The Briton tried the undercut to no avail as well. At least he got to perform a few overtakes on track, albeit on much slower drivers on much older tyres.
Charles Leclerc, Ferrari (P4) 8/10
Leclerc won last year’s Italian Grand Prix from fourth on the grid, and would have been hoping to replicate his antics this year as well. The Ferrari driver put up a respectable fight in the opening phases, passing Piastri for third briefly until he was overtaken on lap six. The remainder of Leclerc’s race was focussed on keeping a slightly faster Russell behind, as he didn’t have the pace to stay in touch with Verstappen or the McLarens ahead.
