Mercedes Explains Strategic Call From Monaco Grand Prix That Was Questioned By Hamilton

"We never thought we would be able to undercut Max, because the reality is if we stopped because there was no one behind us and we had clear track, they are not going to stop if they do not have the window to drop out ahead of us."

"What we thought we would have ended up with was Lewis then catching up to Max, who does not stop. Max is on a used set of tires; Lewis is on a new set of tires, and he can put Max under pressure."

"The bit that did not go well was because we did not tell Lewis to go flat out on that out lap. Max actually had the gap to make the pit stop, so he was able to, because he was not going as fast as he could to start with, he could push up behind George."

"He gained time against himself because he was managing. He was able to do that. Stop and get out in front."

"What we inadvertently ended up with was Max on a new set behind George, which was not ideal, but as you saw, it did not really look like George was at risk of losing that position. He had managed the tires well, and he had good rubber at the end."