Watch: Fernando Alonso stages impressive move up the order to score podium finish for Ferrari | 2012 Monaco GP. Fernando Alonso on podium at Monte Carlo in 2012.

The 2012 Monaco Grand Prix was held on 26th May.

In qualifying Michael Schumacher took pole in the Mercedes, but the German had to take a penalty handed out at the previous Spanish Grand Prix and dropped five places on the grid. Thus he found himself splitting the two Ferrari F2012s of Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa, starting from the third and fourth rows.

It was an extremely close race, with Fernando Alonso staging an impressive move up the order, which took him to the podium. It was a very important result, because the Spaniard took the flag ahead of Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel, thus taking the championship lead. To show just how close was this marathon race around the streets of the Principality, one only has to consider that the first four drivers finished within 1.3 seconds of one another. Mark Webber won for Red Bull, beating Nico Rosberg’s Mercedes by 6 tenths, Fernando in the Ferrari by 9 and Sebastian Vettel in the other Red Bull by 1.3 seconds.