F1 Monaco GP live commentary and updates - race

Lap 39

"The gap to Leclerc is 5 seconds, if you have more pace, use it," Norris is told. Leclerc is finding little bits here and there to close in on the McLaren driver - it's now actually 4.6s.

Lap 36

Hamilton is backing up now, so Leclerc's preparing to pit and get into the gap behind Verstappen.

Bortoleto pits for a third time.

Lap 35

Hadjar and Ocon, seventh and eighth, can hold station until the end of the race - they've done both of their stops.

Bearman, Bortoleto, and Colapinto are also done for stops this afternoon - they're at the back, and waiting to move up when the cars ahead make stops.

Lap 34

The order is Norris - 6.4s - Leclerc - 5.1s - Piastri - 2.0 - Verstappen - 6.5s - Hamilton. Alonso is another 28s behind.

Lap 33

"My shifts feel like Monaco 1972," Verstappen says. His dad was just about around then, but couldn't really be driving at two months old.

Albon pits, and comes out just behind Lawson.

Lap 32

Lawson's about to do his first stop, and the Albon-Sainz gap has given him just enough space to get out in 10th. 

Albon, Sainz, Russell, and Antonelli are yet to stop.

Lap 31

Ocon pitted a lap or two ago, feeding out between Albon and Sainz as the Williams team hopes to extend a gap.

Norris is lapping these cars, and rattles past Sainz and Russell to complete his movement through the traffic. Leclerc is struggling with this pack too.

Lap 30

Norris is embroiled in some traffic here. "Why are there no blue flags," Norris asks - as he clears Stroll and has Hulkenberg, Tsunoda, and co to clear.

Bearman had a look at Stroll, but had a huge snap at the second part of the Swimming Pool section and just about saved his car from the wall.

Lap 28

Verstappen pits, leaving Norris to resume the lead. Piastri also comes out ahead, despite the Bortoleto/Colapinto traffic.

Hamilton is not far behind either, as he's trying to claim a top-four result here.

Lap 27

There's a big gap between Hamilton and Alonso now, 26s. Hamilton could pit again now for free, as any one of the top five could do the job.

Lap 26

"Sainz is backing off," Russell says. "He's been given a target of 1m19s," he's been told - as Williams tries to clear a space for Albon.

Piastri is within 18s of Verstappen now, so he should clear the Red Bull in a pit window.

Bortoleto and Colapinto come in for their second stops.

Lap 25

Verstappen continues to press on, but Norris is closing in. Whether he'd be able to stop and get ahead of Piastri is quite another thing - the Australian will have to pick up the pace.

Lap 24

So Lawson's essentially built a gap for Hadjar to stop twice into, and then has stuck with his team-mate to deny anyone a chance of using the same gap.

Lap 23

Verstappen, yet to stop, is 10.5s clear of Norris. Norris is 5.9s clear of Leclerc, with Piastri another 3s back.

"Now what's the plan, because that didn't work very well?" Piastri asks. He's told to keep a "safety car gap" vigil to Leclerc.

Lap 22

Leclerc pits, so Verstappen takes the lead. Norris is ahead, with Piastri still behind the Ferrari driver. All of the top eight, sans Verstappen, have stopped.

Lap 21

If you're one of those who have already stopped, ie. Tsunoda, Bortoleto, Hulkenberg, and co, it might be high-time to stop again as Lawson continues to back up the field.

That said, the Kiwi's running at 'normal' pace now.

Lap 20

"Box to overtake Leclerc," Piastri is told. He does so, but one of the wheels is a touch slow and he's a little slow in the box - it's the rear-left wheel.

He's going to have to cane it around the circuit on his outlap, as Verstappen might be able to overcut him.

Lap 19

Norris pits from the lead! He's going to come out on track behind Verstappen, and he'll have a chance to push on the hard compound tyre. 

Leclerc leads.

Hadjar also pits again, as Lawson keeps the decks clear for another stop. He's out in eighth.

Lap 18

Hamilton pits, and collects the hard tyre. He'll return to the circuit ahead of Hadjar and Alonso. Plenty of clean air to come out in. 

Lap 17

Hamilton is told to push - "this is our race," Ricciardo Adami tells him over the radio. He's going to push and attempt to pit, clearing Hadjar.

Stroll pits, as Bearman completes his final stop - he's going to the end.

Lap 16

The Williams, Mercs, and Stroll are in no-man's-land here behind Lawson. Those behind have already pitted and are at the back of the pack.

Alonso pits, seeking to take advantage of the Hadjar/Lawson gap. Hadjar gets out on track ahead of Alonso, as Ocon also pits and rejoins in eighth.

Lap 15

"What do you want me to do, keep pushing, we stay out, let him go?" Leclerc asks. "Plan B, stay with Norris," Leclerc is told.

Norris is picking up the pace now, and is 2.5s clear of Leclerc now.

Lap 14

Lawson has been slowing the pace in the midfield, presumably to clear a space for Hadjar - who pits now. Indeed, he does - he's up to eighth.

Lap 13

Alonso queries if Hadjar followed the yellow flag procedure over the radio.

Meantime, Norris is 1.2s ahead of Leclerc, who is 3.8s ahead of Piastri, who is 1.5s ahead of Verstappen. "Abrasion on the front left, but it's affecting all the cars we care about," Norris is told.

Colapinto pits, and comes out six seconds behind Hulkenberg.

Lap 12

Lawson has a bit of a train behind him, comprising of Albon, Sainz, Hulkenberg, Russell, Antonelli, Colapinto, Stroll, Tsunoda, and Bearman.

Hulkenberg pits, and takes the hard tyre. He's got plenty of clear track ahead.

Lap 10

Pitlane is closed as Gasly is stopped in the middle of the pitlane. Given a rule was introduced telling drivers to stop in the event of damage, Gasly might be in trouble...

Lap 9

Double-waved yellows down at the chicane - Verstappen tried to pounce on Piastri on the exit but the McLaren defended.

Gasly lost the car under braking and went into the back of Tsunoda at the chicane - the Red Bull driver somehow got away scot-free, it seems.

Lap 8

Gasly's come to blows! The Alpine driver has lost his left front and limps back to the pitlane. Yellows out at the Nouvelle Chicane.

Has he hit Tsunoda?

Lap 7

So, after that VSC fun, it's a little bit of a lull - surprisingly few drivers have taken punts on early stops. Tsunoda's just 2.0s behind Stroll now. Bearman is 4-5s faster than the leaders with his clear track - he's just going for it, as the leaders manage tyres.

Lap 6

Norris is already 2s up on Leclerc now, as he's trying to build a gap.  Piastri is another 3.5s behind.

Bearman's in the 1m15s - he's really pushing to catch the pack.

Lap 5

Tsunoda is catching the back of the pack now, after his early stop - he switched from the softs to the hards. Bearman had a slow stop and thus is 20s behind Tsunoda, while Bortoleto is also circulating on hards. 

Lap 4

We still haven't had any more takers for a VSC stop. We get a replay of the start, with Norris getting on the anchors and locking both wheels.

We also get a replay of Antonelli vs Bortoleto; the Sauber was off-line, and the Mercedes just took the initiative.

Lap 3

The majority of the runners stay out, so it's just the Tsunoda/Gasly/Bearman/Bortoleto quartet who choose to stop. We're still under VSC, presumably for debris, as Norris still leads.

The top 10 is as you were when we started.