Norris finished fifth in Saturday’s qualifier. However, he was fourth on the grid when the fastest Charles Leclerc could not start on his car due to a technical problem.
Although he chased Sainz in the first half of the race, he started to lose after being switched to a harder set. He came in third thanks to Valtteri Bottas’ problems in the pits.
At the end of the race, the fourth Sergio Pérez from Red Bull pulled Norris on newer tires. But Norris defended his position and finished third for the second time this year.
“It’s a great feeling. You don’t know how great it is until you’re really here, it’s unbelievable. It was a long race, especially with Pérez in the last laps, “said Norris.
“I know defending is relatively easy in Monaco, but there’s still pressure and it’s been a little stressful to see him in the rearview mirrors at every turn. In the second stint, I was a little worried about a harder set of tires, but we had a good speed all weekend and it paid off.
“It was more about looking after a few things like fuel, tires and things like that. There are races like that sometimes, but it paid off, so I’m not complaining. “
Ricciardo didn’t get any points
After starting from twelfth place, Daniel Ricciardo also reached the finish line in the same position. For the first time since his transfer to McLaren, he has not scored this season.
“Unfortunately, this was a weekend to forget. At the start, I struggled a bit with the middle set, and that more or less decided my race, “said Ricciardo.
“The second stint on the hard set was solid and the lap times started to improve, but at that moment I couldn’t do much because of how difficult it is to overtake here.”
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