VICTORIOUS ... Red Bull's Mark Webber
Published: Today at 15:01
MARK WEBBER claimed victory at the Monaco Grand Prix to became the SIXTH different winner from the opening six races this season.
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But it was another weekend to forget for McLaren, with Lewis Hamilton posting
a fifth-place finish and Jenson Button failing to complete the race.
Nico Rosberg was second and Fernando Alonso came home in third, one place ahead of Sebastian Vettel.
Red Bull’s Webber took full advantage of his pole position and got away cleanly from the start.
But the tight Monaco streets quickly claimed their first few victims as early as the first turn.
Michael Schumacher, who actually qualified on pole but had a five-place grid penalty hanging over him from the previous race for slamming into Bruno Senna, clipped Lotus’ Romain Grosjean.
As the two cars bumped wheels, it was the Frenchman who came off worse and his car went into a spin, causing chaos for those behind.
Button was one driver who got caught up in the traffic and ended up dropping
behind Heikki Kovalainen’s Caterham, while Grosjean was forced to retire.
There was more drama to come when Pastor Maldonado, winner of the Spanish Grand Prix, crashed his Williams into the HRT of Pedro de la Rosa, bringing an end to both drivers’ races.
The collision meant the safety car was deployed as early as lap two and Sauber’s Kamui Kobayashi also saw his race end early with damaged suspension following his brush with Grosjean.
As the drama unfolded behind him, Webber kept his focus and set about posting some quick lap times to pull away from Rosberg, who started in second place.
Webber’s Red Bull team-mate Vettel also made a solid start and was quickly up to sixth, three places up from where he started on the grid.
Hamilton was also holding third, despite coming under pressure from Ferrari’s Alonso, who picked up speed as the track temperature dropped with the threat of rain looming.
The change in weather caused plenty of debate in the pit lane as the drivers tried to nurse their tyres.
Mercedes were first to act and Rosberg was called into the pits to be supplied
with fresh soft tyres.
It was a huge gamble by Mercedes as the rest of the teams monitored the threat of rain before following suit.
The call sparked a frantic burst of activity, with Hamilton ducking in on lap 30 for a fresh supply of rubber.
However, this season McLaren have struggled with a succession of pit-stop problems and have even made staff and equipment changes.
While this was not as bad as previous bungled stops, it was still a sixth of a second slower than Alonso’s Ferrari, which meant the Spanish driver leapfrogged the Brit.
When Hamilton exited the pits, he was down in fifth place as he started lap 37 of this 78-lap race.
Button, who had still to make a stop, was down in eighth place.
The 32-year-old did finally make his stop at the halfway stage, only to find himself behind Kovalainen once more when he rejoined the race.
Out in front, Vettel showed his grit by making his tyres last up to lap 45 when the rest of the field had already stopped.
Astonishingly, he was still managing to pull away from Webber and, when he did stop, he returned ahead of Hamilton.
It was a close call but one that angered Hamilton, who claimed over the team radio that he was not being kept informed about Vettel’s position.
And the squabbling will do little to improve the team’s mood as more
championship points slipped through their fingers.
After Button’s victory in Australia at the start of the season, the team have been in decline and the alarm bells must be ringing loud and clear at the team’s Woking HQ.
The glum faces in the McLaren garage were contrasted by those in the Red Bull one, as Webber continued to stretch his lead over Rosberg.
The Australian, who is out of contract in the summer, had not led a lap this year going into the race.
And the 2010 winner here came under a lot of pressure in the final 10 laps as Rosberg quickly caught the leader.
While Rosberg was hunting down Webber, Schumacher was left frustrated by another DNF.
The 43-year-old, who had driven so well during Saturday’s qualifying session, retired on lap 64 with a mechanical problem. He has now failed to finish in four of the six races this season.
While Schumacher’s name joined a growing list of retired cars, it was soon followed by that of Button’s.
The Brit had been snapping at the heels of Kovalainen but pushed too hard on lap 70 and ended up spinning off at turn one.
He was unable to restart his car and made the short journey to the pits on foot.
The result means Red Bull are now 38 points ahead of McLaren in the constructors’ championship.
Nico Rosberg was second and Fernando Alonso came home in third, one place ahead of Sebastian Vettel.
Red Bull’s Webber took full advantage of his pole position and got away cleanly from the start.
But the tight Monaco streets quickly claimed their first few victims as early as the first turn.
Michael Schumacher, who actually qualified on pole but had a five-place grid penalty hanging over him from the previous race for slamming into Bruno Senna, clipped Lotus’ Romain Grosjean.
As the two cars bumped wheels, it was the Frenchman who came off worse and his car went into a spin, causing chaos for those behind.
JOB DONE ... Mark Webber celebrates
There was more drama to come when Pastor Maldonado, winner of the Spanish Grand Prix, crashed his Williams into the HRT of Pedro de la Rosa, bringing an end to both drivers’ races.
The collision meant the safety car was deployed as early as lap two and Sauber’s Kamui Kobayashi also saw his race end early with damaged suspension following his brush with Grosjean.
As the drama unfolded behind him, Webber kept his focus and set about posting some quick lap times to pull away from Rosberg, who started in second place.
Webber’s Red Bull team-mate Vettel also made a solid start and was quickly up to sixth, three places up from where he started on the grid.
Hamilton was also holding third, despite coming under pressure from Ferrari’s Alonso, who picked up speed as the track temperature dropped with the threat of rain looming.
The change in weather caused plenty of debate in the pit lane as the drivers tried to nurse their tyres.
LOVELY BUBBLY ... Mark Webber poses for the cameras
It was a huge gamble by Mercedes as the rest of the teams monitored the threat of rain before following suit.
The call sparked a frantic burst of activity, with Hamilton ducking in on lap 30 for a fresh supply of rubber.
However, this season McLaren have struggled with a succession of pit-stop problems and have even made staff and equipment changes.
While this was not as bad as previous bungled stops, it was still a sixth of a second slower than Alonso’s Ferrari, which meant the Spanish driver leapfrogged the Brit.
When Hamilton exited the pits, he was down in fifth place as he started lap 37 of this 78-lap race.
Button, who had still to make a stop, was down in eighth place.
The 32-year-old did finally make his stop at the halfway stage, only to find himself behind Kovalainen once more when he rejoined the race.
Out in front, Vettel showed his grit by making his tyres last up to lap 45 when the rest of the field had already stopped.
Astonishingly, he was still managing to pull away from Webber and, when he did stop, he returned ahead of Hamilton.
It was a close call but one that angered Hamilton, who claimed over the team radio that he was not being kept informed about Vettel’s position.
THREE 'N EASY ... Fernando Alonso enjoys third place with his team
After Button’s victory in Australia at the start of the season, the team have been in decline and the alarm bells must be ringing loud and clear at the team’s Woking HQ.
The glum faces in the McLaren garage were contrasted by those in the Red Bull one, as Webber continued to stretch his lead over Rosberg.
The Australian, who is out of contract in the summer, had not led a lap this year going into the race.
And the 2010 winner here came under a lot of pressure in the final 10 laps as Rosberg quickly caught the leader.
While Rosberg was hunting down Webber, Schumacher was left frustrated by another DNF.
The 43-year-old, who had driven so well during Saturday’s qualifying session, retired on lap 64 with a mechanical problem. He has now failed to finish in four of the six races this season.
While Schumacher’s name joined a growing list of retired cars, it was soon followed by that of Button’s.
The Brit had been snapping at the heels of Kovalainen but pushed too hard on lap 70 and ended up spinning off at turn one.
He was unable to restart his car and made the short journey to the pits on foot.
The result means Red Bull are now 38 points ahead of McLaren in the constructors’ championship.
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