Pierre Gasly reckoned there was no better place to score his second F1 top-10 finish of the season than Monaco.
The Toro Rosso driver never put a foot wrong around the treacherous course, running an unusually long first stint on Pirelli's hypersoft tyre, but one that enabled him to hold his position in the second tier of the top-10 field after his pit stop.
"My first Monaco GP in Formula 1 and my second time in the points, honestly, it was an amazing race!," enthused the Frenchman.
"Starting P10, we knew it could be difficult but the car was just so fast!
"I tried to be careful with the tyres from the beginning, and when I was alone on track I could just push flat out because I was feeling good with the car."
Indeed, the 22-year-old picked up where he left off after a well-executed stop from the Toro Rosso crew.
"We managed to exit after the pits in front of the others and I fought hard to keep Hulkenberg behind because we know that in Monaco it’s hard to pass," said Gasly.
"I just tried to stay focused and not to make any mistakes because in the end the tyres were quite used – It wasn’t easy but we managed to finish in P7. I’m just super happy!"
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