
Hamilton's auto has been suffering with a loose rear end all weekend, as the Mercedes has struggled to get heat into the tires. As the German national anthem played, he stood atop the podium with his eyes closed.
The Ferrari driver rarely says much, yet the quietest man in Formula One felt the need to speak up after being on the receiving end of what seemed like clear team orders favoring his teammate Sebastian Vettel.
Vettel's joy appeared not to be shared by Raikkonen who remained evasive in interviews after the race and, under specific questions, conceded that it was not his idea to be the first to pit when he was leading.
The Finn looked far from happy on the podium, staring fixedly ahead and taking gulps of the Champagne as Vettel sprayed his.
"It's still second place but it doesn't feel awfully good". "It's how it goes sometimes". I pushed everything I had because I knew if there is a chance to win, then that's it.
Behind the two Ferraris came the Red Bull of Daniel Ricciardo with Hamilton's teammate Valterri Bottas's Merecedes in fourth.
While Raikkonen led for the first 34 laps, the writing was on the wall at the pitstops with a consensus emerging already before the start that Ferrari would favour the championship leader.
"I think it was a very, very intense race", Vettel said after the race.
"I came in this morning feeling bad - I didn't get a lot of sleep last night - so to come away with the points I've come away with, I can happily take this and move forwards", said the Briton. If I had a choice at that point, sitting behind Kimi, if I was going in the pits first. Unfortunately for Jenson Button his fairy tale return for what is likely to be his last race was anything but enjoyable as the former world champion was sitting last all race before a collision with Pascal Wehrlein with 20 laps left to go prematurely ended his race.
Wehrlein's vehicle was resting precariously on its side on the entrance to the tunnel and the German was trapped in his seat.
The other factor to consider is the safety auto. To get there he had to jump ahead of both Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas and his own team-mate Max Verstappen, the Australian delivering the required quick laps to get the job done. Frenchman Romain Grosjean was eighth. The McLaren had been running P10 and in the points at the time. While Valtteri Bottas was more competitive in final practice, Hamilton was still struggling and after a hard Q2 session his final attempt to progress was ended by Stoffel Vandoorne's crash at the exit of the Swimming Pool section.
Lewis Hamilton scoffed at the level of competition facing Fernando Alonso ahead of Sunday's Indy 500.Not long after this weekend's prestigious F1 race, Monaco Grand Prix absentee Alonso will.