Max Verstappen and Red Bull endured a nightmare at the start of the Monaco Grand Prix as the four-time champion was forced to retire early in the 78-lapped race at the Crown Jewel on Sunday, June 7. Verstappen was on the front row for the race after taking the second position in Saturday’s qualifying.
However, the Red Bull driver was forced to retire his car at the end of the opening lap after finding power issues at the start of the race. He parked his Red Bull tilted to the right to stop the Ferraris of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc at the start of the line, but failed to find the power when the lights went off at the Principality.ย
The Dutch driver found power late as he dropped the field to the last, even behind Gabriel Bortoleto, who started from the pits. He asked his team what to do with the car, and they responded, “Just bring it home.” So did Verstappen as he retired the car.
Verstappen opens up on retirement
Meanwhile, the Dutch driver was asked about the issue which led to his retirement. “Already the formation lap was not going very well, and then, after that, the pre-start was terrible, there was no consistency, and then the engine just dropped dead,” Verstappen told Sky Sports. “I only got a little bit of power back after the first corner, and then the engine sounded really awful. I could not go full throttle, so we brought it back [to the pits], and that was it.”
Antonelli launches well, Ferraris follow
Championship leader Kimi Antonelli had a strong launch at the start, while the two Ferraris followed him well. Antonelli emerged as a clear contender to win the race after having put in over five seconds between himself and Hamilton in the early exchanges at the Monte Carlo. He had bagged the pole as he looked to distance himself from the rest of the pack in the championship.ย “It was one of those laps that we call a magic lap. I was able to put it all together,” Antonelli said after the qualifying.ย “I just need to get a clean start, don’t try to do the magic start,” Antonelli added.
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