Sainz survived early contact with Alpine’s Esteban Ocon at the Nouvelle Chicane with minor front wing damage to keep the podium in sight through the opening half of the race.
On lap 33 of 78, Ocon suffered a slow stop as he switched to fresh mediums, with Ferrari opting to pit Sainz on the following tour in an attempt to utilise the overcut and cover off Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton, who was eighth after his first trip to the pits.
