If you’re looking for the short answer to who won the Monaco GP, it depends on which year you're shouting about at the pub. In 2024, Charles Leclerc finally—and I mean finally—broke his home-race curse to take the win. But fast forward to the 2025 edition, and it was McLaren’s Lando Norris standing on the top step after a chess match of a race.
Monaco is weird. It’s a place where the race is usually won on Saturday during qualifying, and Sunday is just a very high-speed, very expensive parade. Except when it isn't.
The 2024 and 2025 races were massive for different reasons. For Leclerc in 2024, it was about emotional catharsis. For Norris in 2025, it was about cold, hard strategy and proving that McLaren was officially back as a powerhouse. Honestly, if you missed these races, you missed the two biggest shifts in the modern F1 power dynamic.
The Day the Curse Broke: Charles Leclerc’s 2024 Triumph
Let’s talk about May 26, 2024. Before that day, Charles Leclerc had a track record in Monaco that looked like it was written by a horror novelist. He’d had poles and lost them. He’d had mechanical failures before the race even started. He’d crashed.
But in 2024, the stars aligned.
Leclerc took pole position on Saturday, which is about 80% of the job done in Monte Carlo. The race itself started with absolute carnage. A massive Lap 1 crash involving Sergio Pérez and the two Haas cars (Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hülkenberg) brought out a red flag almost immediately. Pérez’s Red Bull was basically a pile of carbon fiber dust.
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Why the Red Flag Changed Everything
Because the race was stopped, the FIA allowed teams to change tires. This effectively killed the need for a pit stop. Basically, the top four—Leclerc, Oscar Piastri, Carlos Sainz, and Lando Norris—swapped tires on the grid and then had to nurse those same tires for the next 77 laps.
It was a slow-motion tactical battle. Leclerc spent the entire race backing up the pack to ensure nobody behind him could find a gap to pit and come back with fresh rubber. He crossed the line 7.1 seconds ahead of Piastri.
It was the first time a Monégasque driver had won their home race in the Formula 1 World Championship era. The last guy to do it was Louis Chiron back in 1931. Prince Albert II was literally crying on the podium. It was a whole thing.
Lando Norris and the 2025 Strategy Masterclass
If 2024 was about emotion, 2025 was about the rulebook. In 2025, the FIA introduced a mandatory two-stop rule for Monaco. They wanted to kill the "one-stop and cruise" meta that had made the race boring for years.
Lando Norris started on pole. He almost lost it immediately with a massive double lock-up into Sainte Devote (Turn 1), but he held off Leclerc.
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The Verstappen Wildcard
Max Verstappen tried something weird. He ran an offset strategy, staying out forever while everyone else pitted twice. For a good chunk of the late race, Verstappen actually led. But he still owed the stewards a pit stop.
Norris had to play it perfectly. He had to stay close enough to Verstappen to inherit the lead when Max eventually pitted, but he also had to keep Charles Leclerc from sniffing his gearbox.
- 1st Place: Lando Norris (McLaren)
- 2nd Place: Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
- 3rd Place: Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
Norris took the win on May 25, 2025, finishing about 3 seconds ahead of Leclerc. It was his second win of that season and it put him within three points of his teammate, Oscar Piastri, in the championship standings.
Why Winning Monaco Actually Matters
People say Monaco is outdated. They say the cars are too big for the streets. They aren't wrong. But winning here is still the "Triple Crown" requirement for a reason.
You can't just be fast. You have to be perfect. One millimeter too close to the barrier at Swimming Pool and your suspension is toast. In 2025, George Russell found that out the hard way, getting stuck in the midfield after qualifying issues and a drive-through penalty for a messy move on Alex Albon.
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The Technical Gap
In 2024, the Ferrari was the class of the field on slow-speed bumps. By 2025, the McLaren MCL39 had leapfrogged them in terms of mechanical grip and tire management. That's why Norris could survive that lock-up at the start and still pull away.
Looking Ahead to the 2026 Season
As we move into the 2026 season, the stakes are even higher with the massive engine regulation changes. There’s a lot of chatter about whether the smaller, lighter 2026 cars will make overtaking possible again in the Principality.
Early reports suggest the 2026 cars will have significantly less drag and a smaller footprint. If that happens, the answer to who won the Monaco GP might actually involve some overtakes on track rather than just winning the "pit stop lottery."
Key Takeaways for F1 Fans
- Track Position is King: Even with the two-stop rule in 2025, the top four finished exactly where they started on the grid.
- The "Home Curse" is Dead: Leclerc’s win proved that luck eventually turns if you’re fast enough.
- McLaren is the Team to Watch: Their consistency across 2024 and 2025 shows they’ve cracked the code for street circuits.
If you’re planning to watch the next one, focus on Qualifying. In Monaco, Saturday is the real race; Sunday is just the coronation. To stay ahead of the curve, keep an eye on the Friday practice long-run paces—that’s usually where the winner reveals themselves.