An incredibly emotional Charles Leclerc ended his ‘Monaco curse’ by claiming an impressive victory at his home grand prix on Sunday.
The Ferrari star has been plagued by bad luck at his home race even before making his Formula 1 debut, missing out on two fantastic chances to win in 2021 and 2022.
But after taking the all-important pole position at the Monte Carlo street circuit on Saturday, he lead from the front and was never really troubled by the McLaren of Oscar Piastri who finished second ahead of the other Ferrari of Carlos Sainz.
As feared, it was a processional race given the narrow track doesn’t allow for much overtaking, though it had a chaotic start, with three lap one crashes, including one between the Alpines of Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly.
A huge one between Red Bull’s Sergio Perez and the Haas’ of Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg red flagged the race for 45 minutes.
It is Leclerc’s first win since Austria 2022, the sixth of his F1 career and Ferrari’s second of 2024 after Sainz’s victory in Australia.
The 26-year-old is the first ever Monegasque to win his home race in the F1 era and afterward emotions were running high, with Leclerc letting at a scream of joy and relief over the team radio before adding: ‘Tonight is going to be a big night.’
‘No words can explain that. It’s such a difficult race, I think the fact twice I’ve been starting on pole position and we couldn’t quite make it makes it even better in a way,’ he said afterward.
‘It means a lot, obviously. It’s the race which made me dream of becoming a Formula 1 driver one day.
‘Fifteen laps to the end you’re hoping nothing happens and the emotions are coming.
‘My dad has given everything for me to be here and it was a dream of ours for me to race here and win here, so it’s unbelievable.’
Leclerc’s father Herve died in 2017 shortly before it was announced that his son would be racing in F1.
Later in the cool down room, Leclerc confessed to Piastri and Sainz that he had begun crying with a few laps still to race and was ‘struggling to see’ through the tears.
Further behind, Lando Norris and George Russell finished fourth and fifth, with Max Verstappen sixth, completing a miserable weekend for the championship leader, and Lewis Hamilton seventh.
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