From May 24-26, the motorsport world was revving with events across the continents. While Monaco hosted the three Formula races in which F1’s Charles Leclerc claimed his first-ever home race victory, the Shanghai E-Prix double-header saw two different pole-setters and race winners.
F1: Third time’s a charm as Leclerc finally breaks the Monaco curse
In a street circuit like Monte Carlo, securing pole position in qualifying almost guarantees a race win because of the nature of the track. Although Ferrari’s Leclerc topped the timesheet on Saturday, he knew he had his work cut out, keeping in mind his Monaco curse.
Since his F1 career began in 2018, the Monegasque driver had failed to make it to the podium of his home race. Back in 2021 and 2022, Leclerc claimed pole position but couldn’t convert them into wins – he didn’t start the race in 2021 and a poor team strategy cost him the next year.
After starting at the front on Sunday, he was dealt with a race restart with the charging McLaren of Oscar Piastri hot on his heels. But nothing could come in the way of the 26-year-old, who dominated from start to finish to win an emotional first-ever home race.
Indy 500: Newgarden with a last-lap pass to take thrilling Indianapolis 500 win
The Indianapolis 500, commonly known as the Indy 500, saw 33 drivers take part in the 500-mile rain-affected race on Sunday. Often termed ‘the greatest spectacle in racing’, the 108th edition of the Indy 500 around the 2.5-mile circuit proved exactly why.
It was Josef Newgarden who came out on top in the most riveting fashion as he passed Pato O’Ward in the final lap to win back-to-back races. The two raced it out to the flag, trading positions a few times before Newgarden and his Penske sealed the deal.
He became the first driver to win consecutive 500s since Helio Castroneves did it for Penske in 2001 and 2002.
F2: O’ Sullivan wins from P15, Hadjar’s near-miss in the tunnel
Zak O’Sullivan will have the Virtual Safety Car to thank as it helped him win the Feature race and get a first-career win in F2. Going on a long stint after starting from P15, the ART Grand Prix driver had a cheap pit stop to come ahead of leader Isack Hadjar.
Richard Verschoor, who started from the front, faced issues with the car and saw his lead diminish with every lap. Falling to the back of the grid, he was handed a five-second penalty and eventually retired his Trident.
Hadjar, who won the Imola Feature race last weekend, battled his way from P3 but was denied by O’Sullivan in a dramatic final lap.
Hadjar was also in the middle of a heart-in-mouth moment on Friday when he used his skills and reflexes to swerve away from a slow-moving Ritomo Miyata in the tunnel section of the track.
F3: Mini claims feature race victory to lead the championship
PREMA Racing’s Gabriele Mini claimed victory at the Monte Carlo Feature race, making him the eighth different winner in eight races this season. Mini has now won two Monaco feature street races in a row.
Leading from pole position, the Italian had to defend from ART Grand Prix’s Christian Mansell who was a car-length behind him for most of the race. He managed to lead the pack throughout despite three Safety Car restarts in the 27-lap race.
He now leads the Driver’s Championship with a four-point gap to second placed Luke Browning of Hitech Pulse-Eight.
MotoGP: All eyes on Espargaro as he wins Catalunya sprint
Aleix Espargaro broke the news of his retirement to the MotoGP world before the Catalunya GP, bringing to end a nearly 15-year long career. However, 48 hours after announcing his departure, he was gifted his first sprint win of the season, in his home race.
The Aprilia Racing driver started from pole but fell down the order in the 12-lap sprint. Francesco Bagnaia, who found his way to the front of the pack, crashed on the last lap to give the win away to the Spaniard.
Bagnaia had a better show on Sunday as he drove his Ducati to victory at the Circuit de Catalunya while Espargaro had to settle for fourth.
Formula E: Double-header Shanghai weekend sees Evans, Da Costa victorious
The Shanghai E-Prix weekend had two exciting races which saw Mitch Evans take victory despite being overtaken in the penultimate lap, and Antonio Felix Da Costa claim a second win in three races.
Evans, who started Saturday’s race from third, was passed by Pascal Wehrlein in the closing stages by cutting across the circuit. But the Kiwi driver made a move in the final corners to claim the win.
In the second race, Mclaren’s Jake Hughes stole pole position by one thousandth of a second but had to settle for second as Da Costa managed to pull ahead of the pack with better energy management.
NASCAR: Rain-shortened race gives Bell second NASCAR Cup series win
After leading the pack for 90 of 249 laps, which was 151 laps less than the usual 400, Christopher Bell was declared winner after the race was called off. Due to a heavy storm that resulted in a shorter format of the calendar’s longest race, the officials were forced to call the race off keeping in mind the safety conditions.
For Kyle Larson, who was supposed to do ‘The Double’ by racing at the Indy500 as well, weather played spoilsport and ruined his plans. A delayed start and fuel issues in Indianapolis made him take the call to fly back to Charlotte. But three stages of the Cup Series race had already gone by and Larson was yet to land.
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