As it happened: 2012 Monaco - The Race

• 12:30

  Hello, welcome to the Factbyte Factbox for the Monaco Grand Prix - are you excited? I am!

• 12:30

  Already, the principality has delivered plenty of interesting moments, but today there's potential for a protest against Red Bull's floor.

• 12:31

  There's no official word but some teams may be unhappy about the floor of the RB8, but Red Bull are confident it is legal.

• 12:32

  Meanwhile, we have a pole sitter who didn't actually qualify first, and there's talk of rain hitting the race at some point.

• 12:32

  Tweet from @radarguruf1: #F1 radar update 13:26 CEST: Showers making it over the Alps and heading slowly towards #Monaco. Showers at mid-distance if this continues

• 12:33

  The pit lane has just opened, and cars are streaming out for their first taste of the track today.

• 12:33

  Mark Webber lines up in P1 with Nico Rosberg beside him, as polesitter Michael Schumacher was demoted five places from an incident in Spain.

• 12:34

  Highlights of an interview with Webber, in which he doesn't really count it as a pole but... "I’ll take it, we’re a little bit surprised we’re that far up. We put up a good battle. A big part of the jigsaw is qualifying here, but you never get ahead of yourself here. I know what it’s like to win here, I know what it takes to win here. Emotionally, it’s worth double when you win here."

• 12:35

  The grid is absolutely packed as the cars are pushed through to their grid positions.

• 12:37

  Starting Position

  1	Mark Webber	Red Bull
  2	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes
  3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren
  4	Romain Grosjean	Lotus
  5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari
  6	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes
  7	Felipe Massa	Ferrari
  8	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus
  9	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull
  10	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India

• 12:37

  Interview with Michael Schumacher: "The car and the character would fit this track well, I know I am still capable and I’m more than happy to have proven this. What concerns the race is traffic, you have to pass five other people... It’s a long race, I have a lot of experience, I hope it will pay out. We’ve been so close at moments, certainly this year everything is going much better... It would be nice to do it over here, definitely.

  "It’s most likely to be a one stop strategy, so there’s not many positions you can jump on strategy, so you have to do it on track. At the end of the day, good solid points is what I’m going for."

• 12:39

  Do join in the comments if you're watching the racing action today: https://sidepodcast.com/dashboard

• 12:40

  Many are pondering whether Webber will be able to keep his front row position as the Australian is not traditionally a great starter.

• 12:41

  Tweet from @MyCaterhamF1: As the cars head to the grid we are hearing there is rain around 50 minutes to one hour away. The word "significant" was used to describe it

• 12:43

  Interview with Norbert Haug: "We normally start good, but everything is different in Monaco of course. I hope we can get Mark at the start and control the race, this is the plan."

• 12:45

  Comment from Will: Don't forget load up your http://www.formula1.com/live_timing/ while it's not overloaded.

• 12:47

  Circuit Data

  Circuit de Monaco
  Local timezone	+02:00 GMT
  First race	1950
  Number of laps	78
  Circuit length	3.340km
  Race distance	260.520km
  Start offset	0.000km

• 12:52

  Two drivers who struggled in qualifying yesterday include Sergio Pérez who crashed early on, and starts at the back of the grid. Jean-Éric Vergne also lost a front wing on Saturday.

• 12:52

  Jenson Button didn't get out of Q2, and he starts 12th on the grid, sandwiched between Kobayashi and Senna.

• 12:55

  Five minutes to go now.

• 12:56

  

  22°C

  Track	35°C
  Humidity	58%
  Wind speed	2.1mps

• 12:59

  2012 Race Wins

  Pos	Driver	Total
  1	Fernando Alonso	1
  2	Jenson Button	1
  3	Pastor Maldonado	1
  4	Nico Rosberg	1
  5	Sebastian Vettel	1

• 13:00

  The engines are firing up, the mechanics clear the grid, and the cars move off on their formation lap.

• 13:00

  Rosberg was very slow moving away, losing a place which he will get back, of course.

• 13:02

  Vettel 9th, Button 12th, Di Resta 14th, Petrov 18th and De la Rosa 20th are all on the prime tyre, the soft compound, the yellow sidewalls.

• 13:02

  Worth noting that Pastor Maldonado is at the back of the grid after changing his gearbox.

• 13:03

  Race started.

• 13:03 Lap 1

  Clean start at the front, but Schumacher hit Grosjean and the Lotus has spun round.

• 13:03 Lap 1

  Yellow flag.

• 13:04 Lap 1

  It looks as though everyone else managed to avoid the incident but it's shaken up the order somewhat. Button has lost out on many places.

• 13:04 Lap 1

  Webber did manage to make a good start and leads Rosberg, then Hamilton.

• 13:04 Lap 1

  Pastor Maldonado is in the wall.

• 13:04 Lap 2

  Safety car deployed.

• 13:05 Lap 2

  Pedro de la Rosa has no rear wing, he and Kobayashi have both pitted.

• 13:05 Lap 2

  Grosjean is out of the race, the marshals are busy pushing the car off track. Two retirements already.

• 13:05 Lap 2

  Replays show Grosjean moved across into the side of Schumacher, there was no space left and the pair collided.

• 13:06 Lap 3

  Grosjean picked up one of the Saubers which was catapulted into Button, who had to take evasive action to avoid the flying car.

• 13:07 Lap 3

  In the concertina effect at the first corner, Maldonado ran into the back of De la Rosa, hence the HRT pitting early and the Williams retiring minus a front wing.

• 13:08 Lap 3

  Race Control: Safety Car in this lap.

• 13:08 Lap 3

  Race Control: DRS enabled.

• 13:08 Lap 3

  Track is clear.

• 13:08 Lap 4

  Webber made yet another good start, but Rosberg stays with him. Hamilton didn't get such a good start, but looks like he's kept his third place for now.

• 13:08 Lap 4

  Petrov has pitted from 21st place, as Kobayashi sets the fastest lap so far from 20th!

• 13:09 Lap 4

  Heikki Kovalainen is currently up in 13th position.

• 13:09 Lap 5

  Look closely and you can see the shadow of the Sauber as the car gets some air.

• 13:10 Lap 5

  De la Rosa has actually retired from the race, leaving Petrov last after his stop.

• 13:12 Lap 6

  Driver Positions

  Pos		Driver
  1	0	Webber
  2	0	Rosberg
  3	0	Hamilton
  4	1	Alonso
  5	2	Massa
  6	3	Vettel
  7	1	Räikkönen
  8	-2	Schumacher
  9	1	Hülkenberg
  10	3	Senna

• 13:14 Lap 8

  Race Control: Cars shortcutting the first corner on lap 1 under investigation.

• 13:15 Lap 8

  It looks like it was two Marussia cars, and one Caterham, one Force India and Vergne - all taking avoiding action but not giving places back?

• 13:16 Lap 9

  Webber has set the fastest lap of the race so far, leading with just over a second on Rosberg.

• 13:17 Lap 11

  Tweet from @clubforce: P9 for Nico and P11 for Paul on lap 8 here in Monaco. Paul just 11 seconds off the leader Webber.

• 13:19 Lap 11

  Tweet from @eddstrawf1: No action against those that cut the first corner

• 13:20 Lap 12

  Replays show Pérez attempting to overtake Vergne for 17th place, and the Toro Rosso cutting the corner to retain the position.

• 13:21 Lap 13

  From Alonso in fourth back to Senna in tenth there is a train of cars all very close. Watching them snake around the hairpin is tense!

• 13:21 Lap 13

  Lotus radio suggests there could be rain in fifteen laps.

• 13:23 Lap 14

  Interview with Romain Grosjean: "I think we had a terrible start, and then I don't know exactly what happened behind me... it was strange to see everyone facing me or me facing everybody in the first corner. I'm very disappointed not finishing the Monaco Grand Prix."

• 13:24 Lap 15

  Vergne was told to give the position to Pérez, as we might have expected, but JEV not happy about it.

• 13:25 Lap 16

  Interview with Pastor Maldonado: "It was difficult to brake, I was on the dirty side of the track and I locked the fronts. Somebody drove my line and it was a difficult moment."

• 13:26 Lap 16

  Gap Analysis

  Pos	Driver	Gap
  1st	WEB	1:19.601
  2nd	ROS	+2.0
  3rd	HAM	+3.9
  4th	ALO	+8.3

• 13:26 Lap 17

  Comment from guille2306: "alonso is just slow or is he taking care of the tyres expecting the rain?"

• 13:26 Lap 17

  Replay show Karthikeyan all by himself at the hairpin and nearly losing it into the barriers. Avoided them, just about, and it's okay, there was no one to see it.

• 13:27 Lap 18

  Vitaly Petrov has returned to the pitlane for the second time, and they're pushing him into the garage - race over.

• 13:27 Lap 18

  Jean-Éric Vergne has also dived into the pitlane - his first stop of the day, and it looked like an actual planned stop.

• 13:28 Lap 19

  Tweet from @MyCaterhamF1: Vitaly's car has had to be retired with an electrical problem

• 13:29 Lap 19

  Interview with Kamui Kobayashi: "Definitely I had a problem with suspension, it was very dangerous to continue to drive. Unfortunately, I didn't expect it to happen like that, the car is damaged."

• 13:29 Lap 20

  Kovalainen is still 13th, with Jenson Button behind him, and Sergio Pérez tucked up behind the McLaren.

• 13:31 Lap 20

  Alonso is now putting in fastest lap after fastest lap, picking up the pace and closing the gap to those in front.

• 13:31 Lap 21

  Team radio to Button: "Car behind is Pérez, he is quick."

• 13:32 Lap 21

  Top Speeds

  Sector 1	ALO	203kph
  Sector 2	BUT	185kph
  Sector 3	MSC	263kph
  Speed trap	PER	283kph

• 13:34 Lap 23

  Retirements

  Driver	Reason	Lap
  Maldonado	Accident	1
  Grosjean	Accident	1
  De la Rosa	Accident damage	2
  Kobayashi	Accident damage	2
  Petrov	Electrical problem	18

• 13:34 Lap 23

  Sebastian Vettel is the next driver to have missed the apex at turn 10, although it doesn't look like he's gained anything from it.

• 13:35 Lap 23

  One to Watch

  Räikkönen	vs.	Schumacher
  7th	+0.4s	8th

• 13:35 Lap 24

  Replays do show that Vettel missing the opening corner to the chicane - there was no one else around, but he may have gained a little bit of time.

• 13:36 Lap 25

  Still we just have the one driver having stopped, the tyres are lasting impressively well!

• 13:38 Lap 26

  Rosberg's radio suggests rain in four minutes. There are clouds moving in.

• 13:39 Lap 26

  Jean-Éric Vergne has just set the fastest lap of the race, 1:22.388.

• 13:40 Lap 27

  Räikkönen is still holding up Schumacher, and a train of cars behind.

• 13:40 Lap 27

  Team radio to Räikkönen: "Okay, Kimi, we are expecting rain in the next five laps, we need to stay out."

• 13:40 Lap 28

  Nico Rosberg pits from second place. Good clean stop.

• 13:41 Lap 28

  Kimi holds up a train of cars.

• 13:43 Lap 29

  Kimi's tyres are just not working at all, he can't possibly hold that train up for much longer. We have seen a fall for Lotus before.

• 13:43 Lap 30

  Race leader Webber pits, and Hamilton follows him in. Both have put on the yellow sidewalls, as Rosberg did before.

• 13:44 Lap 30

  Räikkönen finally gives in and heads into the pitlane, followed by Hülkenberg and Senna.

• 13:44 Lap 30

  Schumacher stayed out and, now free from the dirty air of the Lotus, is setting some speedy times.

• 13:44 Lap 31

  Alonso pits from the lead, as Karthikeyan also comes in from the opposite end of the order.

• 13:45 Lap 31

  In the stops, Alonso has managed to jump Hamilton by quite a significant margin - must have been a great lap from Fernando.

• 13:45 Lap 31

  Kovalainen and Glock have both pitted.

• 13:46 Lap 31

  Replays show Kimi almost running over a Force India tyre blanket as he exits his stop.

• 13:46 Lap 32

  Felipe Massa pits from second place and heads out behind Hamilton and Schumacher, although Michael has yet to stop.

• 13:46 Lap 32

  Vettel now leads but he hasn't stopped yet.

• 13:47 Lap 32

  Pit Stop Analysis

  Driver	L Hamilton
  Team	McLaren
  Pit lane	25.748s
  Stopped	4.3s

• 13:48 Lap 33

  Team radio to Vettel: "Rain could be as soon as five minutes away, so keep doing this."

• 13:49 Lap 34

  Vettel is putting in strong lap times, as replays show Webber cutting the chicane just as teammate did before him.

• 13:49 Lap 34

  Driver Analysis

  Driver	S Vettel
  Team	Red Bull
  Position	1
  Started	9
  Stops	0
  Last lap	1:19.661
  Best lap	1:19.661

• 13:50 Lap 35

  The Mercedes crew head into the pitlane and it is Michael Schumacher who dives in for the yellow sidewalls.

• 13:50 Lap 35

  Sergio Pérez has also come in for his first stop of the day.

• 13:51 Lap 35

  A bit of smoke plumes from the back of Karthikeyan, as he moves out of the way of the leading cars.

• 13:52 Lap 36

  Kimi attempted to get past Pérez, but the Sauber was heading into the pitlane and caught the Lotus out. As Kimi returned to the racing line, he was passed by Hülk, losing a place.

• 13:52 Lap 37

  Karthikeyan cut the chicane to keep out the way, as blue flags are waved furiously.

• 13:53 Lap 37

  Race Control: Incident involving Räikkönen and Pérez under investigation.

• 13:54 Lap 38

  Crushed graphics, I know, but you get the idea.

  Gap Analysis

  Pos	Driver	Gap
  1st	VET	1:19.696
  2nd	WEB	+16.2
  3rd	ROS	+17.7
  4th	ALO	+18.9
  5th	HAM	+20.6

• 13:55 Lap 39

  Race Control: Drive through penalty for Pérez - late pit entry and impeding Räikkönen.

• 13:56 Lap 39

  Jenson Button pits for the first time, and it is super soft tyres that go on the McLaren.

• 13:57 Lap 39

  On the exit, Kovalainen closes up to Button and they head side by side, with Heikki taking the position. 14th for Caterham.

• 13:57 Lap 40

  Team radio from Hamilton: "At this pace, the tyres are not going to last very long, the rears are degrading."

• 13:57 Lap 40

  Tweet from @EliGP: The lack of rain proves that when all F1 teams agree over something, they are usually wrong

• 13:58 Lap 41

  Pérez comes into the pitlane to take his drive through penalty. He's dropped to the back of the grid again, a tough day for Sauber.

• 13:59 Lap 41

  Daniel Ricciardo pits from 10th place, leaving Vettel the only driver not to have stopped yet.

• 14:01 Lap 43

  Driver Positions

  Pos		Driver	Stops
  1	8	Vettel
  2	-1	Webber	1
  3	-1	Rosberg	1
  4	1	Alonso	1
  5	-2	Hamilton	1
  6	1	Massa	1
  7	-1	Schumacher	1
  8	8	Vergne	1
  9	5	Di Resta	1
  10	0	Hülkenberg	1

• 14:02 Lap 44

  Jenson Button is still stuck behind the Caterham of Heikki Kovalainen - as soon as they reach any straights, Kovi streaks away.

• 14:03 Lap 45

  Hamilton's radio suggests that people are dropping things off the pitboard and they hit him on the head.

• 14:03 Lap 45

  That's his complaint, anyway.

• 14:05 Lap 46

  Vettel has now completed 45 laps on the soft compound tyre and the gap isn't closing at all. Suddenly Red Bull are easy on their tyres?

• 14:06 Lap 46

  Red Bull mechanics finally run out into the pitlane, and Vettel dives in for his first stop of the day. Where will he come out?

• 14:06 Lap 47

  Webber passes the pit exit, Rosberg and Alonso also go through, with Vettel just pipping Hamilton to fourth place.

• 14:08 Lap 48

  Couldn't be more even.

  Gap Analysis

  Pos	Driver	Gap
  1st	WEB	1:20.548
  2nd	ROS	+1.2
  3rd	ALO	+2.3
  4th	VET	+3.5
  5th	HAM	+4.5
  6th	MAS	+5.3

• 14:08 Lap 48

  That gap analysis sums up Monaco, really, doesn't it?

• 14:09 Lap 49

  Radio to Kimi Räikkönen confirms they are no longer expecting any rain.

• 14:09 Lap 49

  Pérez, all the way down in 17th, puts in the fastest lap of the race so far. 1:18.085.

• 14:10 Lap 49

  Michael Schumacher locks up his tyres massively, and misses the corner. The rubber won't be playing nicely after that.

• 14:11 Lap 50

  Webber is told over the radio to watch his tyre temperature.

• 14:12 Lap 51

  Another fastest lap from Pérez - what could he be doing if he wasn't at the back?

• 14:12 Lap 51

  Team radio from Hamilton: You're expecting me to get to the end of the race on THESE tyres?"

• 14:15 Lap 54

  The top six drivers remain close - just 6.6 seconds between them. Then there's a massive gap to Schumacher in seventh.

• 14:16 Lap 54

  Yellow flag.

• 14:17 Lap 55

  Not sure why there is a yellow flag at the moment. It doesn't look like any cars are out of place.

• 14:17 Lap 55

  Replays show an end plate flying off a Marussia as it hits the kerb with force.

• 14:17 Lap 55

  Race Control: Debris on track at turn 14.

• 14:18 Lap 56

  Glock pits from 18th, he's coming for a new nose.

• 14:19 Lap 56

  Track is clear.

• 14:19 Lap 56

  A really slow stop for Glock, the tyres are changed, nose comes off, new nose on. Massively slow stop from Marussia.

• 14:19 Lap 57

  Tweet from @tomcary_tel: If it finishes like this Alonso will be leading drivers' world champ by three points from Vettel

• 14:21 Lap 58

  Driver Analysis

  Driver	L Hamilton
  Team	McLaren
  Position	5
  Started	3
  Stops	1
  Last lap	1:20.096
  Best lap	1:18.806

• 14:21 Lap 58

  Just three cars have been lapped so far, Pic, Glock and Karthikeyan.

• 14:22 Lap 58

  Jenson Button complains over the radio that Kovalainen missed the chicane at turn 10. Pit replies that Heikki has been warned and the "keep him under pressure."

• 14:23 Lap 59

  The other side of the conversation, team radio to Kovalainen: "Do not cut the chicane again, otherwise we'll get a penalty."

  "Okay, okay."

• 14:23 Lap 60

  Team radio from Schumacher: "I have a problem with the car, I don't know what it is."

  "Okay Michael, we can see something on the data but keep pushing. It may clear."

• 14:27 Lap 62

  Current Tyres

  Pos	Driver	Compound
  1	Webber	Soft
  2	Rosberg	Soft
  3	Alonso	Soft
  4	Vettel	Super soft
  5	Hamilton	Soft
  6	Massa	Soft

• 14:27 Lap 63

  Jean-Éric Vergne has passed Schumacher for 7th place, it looks like the mechanical trouble may hinder him some more.

• 14:29 Lap 64

  Räikkönen has been told that Schumi is struggling, and they should catch him in a few laps time.

• 14:30 Lap 65

  More talk of rain, but I'm not fooled yet.

• 14:30 Lap 65

  Schumacher is losing so much time now, the real debate is whether he will get to the end of the race, let alone lose places to Lotus.

• 14:31 Lap 65

  Schumacher pits.

• 14:31 Lap 66

  The mechanics have hoisted up the car to have a look, but I can't see him coming back out again. There it is, they push him into the garage.

• 14:32 Lap 66

  Replays show Button getting desperate to pass Heikki, but hitting the kerbs and narrowly missing the Caterham. He didn't get the place.

• 14:32 Lap 66

  Yellow flag.

• 14:33 Lap 67

  Schumacher climbs from the car and has a good look at the rear.

• 14:33 Lap 67

  Charles Pic has stopped at turn 11.

• 14:33 Lap 67

  Track is clear.

• 14:33 Lap 67

  Tweet from @MyCaterhamF1: Schumi retires and Heikki moves to 12th as he defends valiantly from Button

• 14:34 Lap 68

  Daniel Ricciardo pits from 15th.

• 14:34 Lap 68

  Ricciardo also gets pushed into the garage - busy few laps for retirements!

• 14:35 Lap 68

  Ten laps remaining, still rumblings about the rain.

• 14:36 Lap 69

  Team radio to Hamilton: "The field is really bunching up for the last ten laps of the race."

• 14:37 Lap 70

  Webber is now closing up to Narain, he could have got massively in the way, but handled the stream of cars well.

• 14:37 Lap 70

  Race Control: Lap 1 incident involving in Schumacher and Grosjean will be investigated after the race.

• 14:38 Lap 71

  Rosberg has closed right up to Webber, the train of cars are threading their way carefully through the streets, but the pressure is on now.

• 14:38 Lap 71

  It looks like Button may have spun and lost a place to Sergio Pérez - 14th place now.

• 14:39 Lap 71

  Vergne pits from 11th place, putting on the intermediate tyres and gambling on some rain!

• 14:40 Lap 72

  Pérez has spun at turn one, letting Button back past.

• 14:40 Lap 72

  Yellow flag.

• 14:40 Lap 72

  Button has stopped at turn 1.

• 14:41 Lap 73

  Replays show the two spins we missed. Button tapped the back of Kovalainen and spun, losing the place. Then Pérez collided with the Caterham a bit harder, and also spun it.

• 14:41 Lap 73

  Race Control: Turn 1 incident involving Pérez and Kovalainen to be investigated after the race.

• 14:41 Lap 73

  Both Kovalainen and Pérez are circling very slowly.

• 14:42 Lap 73

  Track is clear (a while ago).

• 14:42 Lap 74

  The Caterham and Sauber are both clearly struggling and yet still battling for position.

• 14:42 Lap 74

  Five laps to go.

• 14:43 Lap 74

  Di Resta has been told there's no more rain in the pit lane, the rain has likely cleared. Bad call for Vergne?

• 14:44 Lap 75

  Kovalainen pits from 13th place for a new front wing, disappointing as the Caterham was doing really well.

• 14:44 Lap 75

  Hülkenberg is told to save fuel.

• 14:45 Lap 75

  Button walks through the pitlane back to his garage, gloves in hand, helmet still on. That's not a happy driver.

• 14:46 Lap 77

  Paul di Resta has also been told to save fuel - both Force India cars desperate to reach the end of the race for double points.

• 14:48 Lap 78

  Webber crosses the line to begin the final lap.

• 14:49 Lap 78

  Mark Webber wins the Monaco Grand Prix!

• 14:49

  Massive cheers in the Red Bull pit lane as Webber becomes the sixth winner of the season.

• 14:50

  Force India do manage to get both their cars to the end of the race.

• 14:50

  Race Winner

  Driver	Mark Webber
  Team	Red Bull
  Race time	1:46:06.557
  Race distance	260.520km
  Average speed	147.312km/h

• 14:52

  Driver Positions

  Pos		Driver	Stops
  1	0	Webber	1
  2	0	Rosberg	1
  3	2	Alonso	1
  4	5	Vettel	1
  5	-2	Hamilton	1
  6	1	Massa	1
  7	7	Di Resta	1
  8	2	Hülkenberg	1
  9	-1	Räikkönen	1
  10	3	Senna	1

• 14:53

  Webber finally arrives and climbs out of the car. Rosberg and Alonso both waiting for him there.

• 14:55

  Interview with Christian Horner: "Fantastic to do a triple in Monaco, the last three years. Mark was fantastic today, totally controlled, very disciplined in weather like this. Great drive.

  "Vettel's strategy paid off, he really made those laps work for him in the middle of the race... He owes the boys a lot today to get past Lewis and Felipe.

  "Monaco in the rain is a tricky place, and it was neither one thing or the other. When you're the leader, it's the hardest thing... Again, Mark did a wonderful job."

• 14:56

  The drivers take to the podium to raise their trophies. The Monaco podium always seems disappointingly unglamourous.

• 14:57

  Webber raises his trophy as Prince Albert looks on.

• 14:57

  Tweet from @InsideFerrari: A fantastic performance from both Felipe and Fernando. They drovebrialliantly

• 14:58

  Tweet from @EliGP: Seventh winner in Canada then?

• 14:59

  Webber scampers off with his champagne, spraying it at the crowd and then into his mouth. A happy chap, you might say.

• 14:59

  Alonso hand-delivers his bottle of champagne to the waiting mechanics and poses for a photo.

• 15:04

  Red Bull have won the race, but there is still the threat of a protest hanging over their heads. Horner remains convinced they have a legal car though.

• 15:05

  There are also a couple of post-race investigations to be undertaken by the stewards so the final results may yet change.

• 15:07

  Press Conference Quotes - Mark Webber: "Feeling incredible. It was a very interesting race, reasonably straight forward at the start, getting the gap on the supersofts, just managing it with Nico. Both of us were getting away, then it was just a matter of trying to get back into a reasonable gap.

  The weather was threatening around that pit stop window. But Nico went for it, went early, so a few people reacted to his first chess move. The next phase of the race was very strange. It was hard to get the prime tyre warmed up. Seb had his in and it wasn't wearing down very much, so he was coming back into the picture.

  At the start of the stint, I had low front grip, had to manage that. Managing Nico and everyone else, didn't want to get Seb to get the magic 21 seconds to get the stop and the victory. Managed to sort that out, and get the car to the end. Amazing day for the team, myself, I'm really, really happy to have won again here. Great memory for me."

• 15:08

  Press Conference Quotes - Nico Rosberg: "In general, the beginning was pretty straightforward. I had a good start, but Mark had a good start too. Then it was just a matter of tyre management. I was surprised how strong we were... at the end of the day, we probably had the fastest car out there, which is great to see. Unfortunately, didn't come together perfectly, so P2... could have been P1 this weekend. I'm very happy with second place, of course. GOt a bit difficult towards the end but I'm very pleased."

• 15:09

  Press Conference Quotes - Fernando Alonso: "Our target was to try and finish in front of Sebastian and Lewis in the world championship. If you go race by race, next one will be Mark. It will be interesting all through the season, developing the car, constant surprises we are having all through the race.

  Today's went smooth after the start, after contact with Grosjean. I thought the car was maybe damaged, but it was perfectly fine so I kept running. To manage the traffic, we overtook Hamilton at the stop. Thanks to the team, we are in a privilaged position."

• 15:10

  Press Conference Quotes - Nico Rosberg: "It was strategy wise pretty straight forward.There were two ways to beat Mark, one was to go faster at the end, the better chance was to go short and hope I could put in some good laptimes out of the pits."

• 15:11

  Press Conference Quotes - Fernando Alonso: "I had a fantastic start, so in the first ten metres, I was side by side with Romain. I was passing Lewis as well. They went close to each other and I put the car in the middle, and I think I touched Romain with my rear left and his right front. After that touch, he spun. We were lucky there was nothing damaged in the car.

  Some people were hurt, some people were gaining some advantage."

• 15:12

  Press Conference Quotes - Mark Webber: "I think we're all a little bit... it's up and down, the races are still hard to predict. For us, how we judge how a Grand Prix is going to unfold is not straightforward. That's sometimes frustrating for us... it's different to how it's been in the past. Maybe we have seven different winners after Montreal, but maybe we'll get a bit of routine now.

  We got the absolute maximum out of this weekend. We were fortunate to get pole, then we knew the race was ours to lose. It was a special victory for us today, and more to come hopefully."

• 15:16

  It's pouring with rain in Monaco now. Too little, too late. Or quite a lot, too late, really.

• 15:17

  Championship Standings

  Pos	Driver	Pts
  1	Alonso	76
  2	Vettel	73
  3	Webber	73
  4	Hamilton	63
  5	Rosberg	59
  6	Räikkönen	51
  7	Button	45
  8	Grosjean	35
  9	Maldonado	29
  10	Pérez	22

• 15:18

  Championship Standings

  Pos	Driver	Pts
  1	Red Bull	146
  2	McLaren	108
  3	Ferrari	86
  4	Lotus	86
  5	Mercedes	61
  6	Williams	44
  7	Sauber	41
  8	Force India	28
  9	Toro Rosso	6
  10	Caterham	0

• 15:21

  Interview with Jenson Button: "If somebody places their car well, and has good exits so you can't overtake, it's very difficult. It's part of racing but it's frustrating when you're so much quicker than the car in front. I spun off and caught him within two laps.

  It all comes from bad qualifying, and then being unlucky at the start, but that's because we qualified so far back, you're more prone to incidents. A tough afternoon, congratulations to Mark. He's a good lad, sixth winner, and it livens up the championship a bit. Their day is today, but hopefully we can fight back sooner rather than later to have our day again."

• 15:22

  Retirements

  Driver	Reason	Lap
  Maldonado	Accident	1
  Grosjean	Accident	1
  De la Rosa	Accident damage	2
  Kobayashi	Accident damage	2
  Petrov	Electrical problem	18
  Schumacher	Fuel pressure	66
  Pic	Broken exhaust	18
  Ricciardo	Unknown	68
  Button	Accident	72

• 15:24

  Interview with Lewis Hamilton: "It wasn't frustrating, it wasn't the best result. I really dislike going backwards, but nonetheless, we still came away with some points. There are many races ahead of us so we just have to keep our heads up and keep pushing.

  My start was one of the worst I've had in a long time. I don't understand why it happens, when the two guys next to me got perfect starts. I was very fortunate not to get caught up in a crash. It should not be a problem. After that, I don't know how long my pit stop was but I lost quite a lot of time, wasn't able to keep up really with Alonso. Then Sebastian got me through his pit stop, and then it's impossible to overtake.

  It was strange, all the guys that hold the pit boards, coming out the last corner, about two or three of the sign, the slips, fell out and hit me in the face, in the helmet. This is getting ridiculous, they kept dropping them, and there was another few on the floor. I was just saying someone do something about it, as my visor's getting worse and worse."

• 15:26

  Interview with Michael Schumacher: "Fuel pickup problem, so just didn't have enough fuel for what the engine needed. I guess the stewards will have a view of the start, we'll find out."

• 15:28

  Not a classic race, but certainly good enough for an afternoon's entertainment.

• 15:28

  Alonso leads the championship now, but still all the drivers are curious about the shape the season is taking - predictions are nigh on impossible.

• 15:29

  Formula One heads to Montreal next, which also tends to offer up some chaotic racing. Who will be the next winner?

• 15:29

  Hope you've had a good weekend (stick around for Indy if you're on Sidepodcast), and will join us again for the Canadian GP in two week's time!

• 15:30

  Stay cool, my lovely fact fans.