The team Mercedes had its worst result of the year, largely due to the problem they had with Valtteri Bottas at the only pit stop he made during the Monaco GP.
Carlos Sainz gets a doctor with his first podium at Ferrari in a Monaco GP won by Max Verstappen
The nut on the right front tire of the Finn’s car got stuck, and the excessive pressure of the gun on it caused him to drop his teeth. Literally, polished nut sockets until they were blunt, so that it became impossible to remove it. They have not been able to do it in the usual way and have taken the car back to the factory with that tire on, to split it there and be able to free the car.
F1, in its official media, has shown the moment of the event. You can perfectly hear how the mechanic operates the gun and the mechanism splits the teeth of the nut, with a very distinctive screech.
One small piece of metal that turned the race on its head 🤯#MonacoGP 🇲🇨 # F1 pic.twitter.com/JIkFcDk18D
– Formula 1 (@ F1) May 24, 2021
The consequence of this incident, in addition to the abandonment itself, is that Bottas has fallen to fourth place in the general classification of the Drivers’ World Championship. The Finn has now been overtaken by Lando norris, which is curdling a great season with McLaren, as they escape to the front Max verstappen Y Lewis hamilton, now four points behind the Dutch.