One year ago, Racing Bulls finished the Monaco Grand Prix in sixth and seventh place, making the most of smart strategy calls in a race shaped by the mandatory two-stop rule. Improving on that result looked difficult, but this year the Faenza-based team went one step further by securing fifth and sixth positions, collecting a valuable haul of points that gave a significant boost to its championship campaign.
Thanks to the 18 points scored on the streets of the Principality, helped in part by the penalty handed to Pierre Gasly, Racing Bulls has moved back within touching distance of Alpine, now sitting just two points behind its rival. Even more interesting than the result itself, however, was the way those points were achieved, because once again the team delivered some very creative strategic thinking.
Starting with Liam Lawson in tenth place, already inside the points-paying positions, Racing Bulls was in an ideal situation to bring at least one car into the top ten. That opportunity became even stronger when Max Verstappen was forced to retire with an engine problem.
Other events during the race, from Lando Norris’ retirement due to a reliability issue to the penalties given to Pierre Gasly and George Russell, eventually opened the door to fifth place. Luck certainly played a role, but teams must also know how to create their own opportunities, especially when they avoid the mistakes made by others. Before the race, the FIA had warned teams not to cut too much across the pit lane entry, as doing so could lead to penalties.
The most effective strategy, however, was the one built around Arvid Lindblad, who started from 15th on the grid and maintained that position at the start. Earlier we mentioned how, under last year’s mandatory two-stop format, several teams used one driver to slow the field and create a pit-stop window for the other car.
Although the two-stop requirement was no longer in place this season, Williams chose to revive a similar tactic, first using Carlos Sainz and then Alex Albon to hold up the pack. Ironically, that decision ended up working against the Grove-based team.
Starting further back, Racing Bulls decided not to pit Arvid Lindblad and instead extended his opening stint on the medium tyres for as long as possible. While tyre degradation was certainly present, Williams’ decision to slow the field so dramatically behind Alex Albon actually helped reduce tyre wear.
Furthermore, the deployment issues affecting the FW47 created another opportunity for Racing Bulls to exploit. While Alex Albon could comfortably control the pace through the slower sections, he was forced to use electrical boost almost every lap to defend himself in the faster parts of the circuit.
That constant defensive approach eventually created deployment limitations, and Alex Albon was ultimately caught out by Arvid Lindblad on the main straight. The Racing Bulls driver successfully completed the overtake and gave fresh momentum to his strategy.
Once clear of his fellow Briton, Arvid Lindblad was able to push harder again, which allowed him to jump ahead of Carlos Sainz when the Williams driver eventually made his pit stop. In fact, after stopping, Carlos Sainz rejoined ahead of Alex Albon but not ahead of Arvid Lindblad, who had built exactly the margin required to stay in front and partially undo Williams’ strategic plan.
When the Safety Car was deployed following Lance Stroll’s accident, Racing Bulls engineers made another crucial call by choosing not to pit. Stopping at that moment would not have improved their position or earned additional points.
Instead, they remained on track and waited for the possibility of a red flag, while also monitoring the progressive deterioration of the circuit surface. The gamble paid off perfectly. The race suspension allowed Arvid Lindblad to change tyres without losing track position, preserving eighth place which later became a remarkable sixth after the penalties handed to Pierre Gasly and George Russell.
The strategy was so effective that Arvid Lindblad later described his engineers as “magicians” once the plan had fully worked out.
“During the first part of the race, our pace was actually faster than I expected, so I was able to push reasonably hard,” said the British driver. “Then, obviously, the Williams cars started playing some games, and these cars are designed to run flat out, not to drive three or four seconds slower per lap.
“When that happens, things stop working properly. You almost end up running into the back of them because they’re slowing you down so much, while at the same time the systems no longer operate in the way they should and become almost a limitation. It even becomes difficult to keep the car on track. I was also running on tyres that had done around 50 laps and had definitely seen better days, so it wasn’t the most enjoyable part of the race.
“But the red flag arrived at exactly the right moment for us. We rolled the dice with the strategy, and in the end it paid off.”
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